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Credit cards are one of the most powerful tools you can wield in life. Responsible use can result in a good credit score which opens the door to auto loans, mortgages, and even favorable health insurance. Some of the most important things in life are made possible thanks to credit cards.
There are dozens of credit cards to choose from. Whether you’re after cash back, free hotel stays, super cheap airfare, a tool to help grow your small business, or even if you’ve got poor/no credit and would like to improve your credit score, there’s a card for you.
Insider’s ultimate credit card reviews guide will help you find the exact product you’re looking for.
Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card
Intro offer
$200 cash rewards bonus after spending $1,000 in purchases in the first three months from account opening
Rewards
Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases.
Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card
Intro offer
$200 cash rewards bonus after spending $1,000 in purchases in the first three months from account opening
Rewards
Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases.
Details
Rewards
Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases.
Intro offer
$200 cash rewards bonus after spending $1,000 in purchases in the first three months from account opening
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
19.24%, 24.24%, or 29.24% Variable
Intro Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
0% intro APR on purchases and qualifying balance transfers for 15 months from account opening
Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
In terms of flexibility, cash back is the king of credit card rewards. Many cash back credit cards give you the option to redeem your accrual as either cash, a statement credit, or a transfer to your bank account.
Flat-rate cash-back cards are best for those who don’t want to keep track of multiple bonus categories and just want a simple earning structure. But choosing a card that earns bonus cash back in categories where you spend a lot — like groceries, dining, or gas — can make a huge difference in your rate of return.
Best cash back credit cards
This table reflects our current picks from the best cash-back credit cards guide.
Other cash back credit cards
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Intro offer
75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Rewards
Earn unlimited 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel. Earn unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases.
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
Intro offer
75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Rewards
Earn unlimited 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel. Earn unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases.
Details
Rewards
Earn unlimited 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel. Earn unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases.
Intro offer
75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Recommended Credit
Excellent
Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
21.24% – 28.24% Variable
Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
If you want to use travel rewards to save money on flights, an airline credit card is a must. You can choose between credit cards that earn airline miles, or cards that earn more flexible rewards points that you can transfer to various frequent flyer programs.
Airline cards also often come with valuable ongoing benefits like a free checked bag, priority boarding, or even airport lounge access.
Best airline credit cards
This table reflects our current picks from the best airline credit cards guide.
Other airline credit cards
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Intro offer
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Rewards
Earn 5x points on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Earn 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out. Earn 3x points on select streaming services. Earn 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs). Earn 2x points on other travel. Earn 1x point per dollar on everything else.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Intro offer
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Rewards
Earn 5x points on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Earn 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out. Earn 3x points on select streaming services. Earn 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs). Earn 2x points on other travel. Earn 1x point per dollar on everything else.
Details
Rewards
Earn 5x points on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Earn 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out. Earn 3x points on select streaming services. Earn 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs). Earn 2x points on other travel. Earn 1x point per dollar on everything else.
Intro offer
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
Recommended credit score. Note that credit card lenders may use many different variations of credit score models when considering your application.
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Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
20.24% – 27.24% Variable
Editor’s Rating
Our editor’s ratings analyze fees, bonuses, rewards, and benefits to highlight the simplest and most valuable credit cards available.
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Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
While it takes more effort to redeem points or miles compared to cash back, the upside is that you can get much more value for your points compared to simply cashing in your rewards for a statement credit or check at a rate of 1 cent per point.
In fact, it’s possible to receive double, triple, or even more than that amount when you’re strategic about how you redeem your rewards for travel, particularly if you book expensive luxury hotels or first-class flights.
Best travel credit cards
This table reflects our current picks from the best travel rewards credit cards guide.
Other travel credit cards
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Intro offer
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Rewards
Earn 5x points on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Earn 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out. Earn 3x points on select streaming services. Earn 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs). Earn 2x points on other travel. Earn 1x point per dollar on everything else.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Intro offer
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Rewards
Earn 5x points on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Earn 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out. Earn 3x points on select streaming services. Earn 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs). Earn 2x points on other travel. Earn 1x point per dollar on everything else.
Details
Rewards
Earn 5x points on all travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards. Earn 3x points on dining, including eligible delivery services, takeout, and dining out. Earn 3x points on select streaming services. Earn 3x points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart, and wholesale clubs). Earn 2x points on other travel. Earn 1x point per dollar on everything else.
Intro offer
60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
Recommended credit score. Note that credit card lenders may use many different variations of credit score models when considering your application.
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Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
20.24% – 27.24% Variable
Editor’s Rating
Our editor’s ratings analyze fees, bonuses, rewards, and benefits to highlight the simplest and most valuable credit cards available.
Show more
Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
If you’re thinking about opening a hotel credit card, the first step is to analyze your travel goals.
Are you a road-tripper who wants to book cheap hotels along the highway? Do you mostly use small-town hotels during trips to grandma’s for Thanksgiving? Do you want a five-star vacation in the Maldives?
It’s also important to consider the card’s welcome bonus, recurring benefits, ease of earning free nights via credit card spending, category bonuses, and elite status perks (if any).
The best hotel credit cards offer a free night after each account anniversary or for meeting spending thresholds. These nights can be worth much more than the cards’ annual fees, and make them worth keeping year after year.
Best hotel credit cards
This table reflects our current picks from the best hotel credit cards guide.
Other hotel credit cards
American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card
Intro offer
$250 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your card in your first 3 months
Rewards
Earn 2% cash back on everyday eligible business purchases (on up to $50,000 per year in purchases, then 1%). Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases.
American Express Blue Business Cash™ Card
Intro offer
$250 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your card in your first 3 months
Rewards
Earn 2% cash back on everyday eligible business purchases (on up to $50,000 per year in purchases, then 1%). Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases.
On American Express’s website
Details
Rewards
Earn 2% cash back on everyday eligible business purchases (on up to $50,000 per year in purchases, then 1%). Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Intro offer
$250 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your card in your first 3 months
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
17.49% – 25.49% Variable
Intro Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
0% intro APR on purchases for 12 months from account opening
Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
You’d be surprised at what qualifies you for a small business credit card. Small businesses aren’t always multi-million dollar operations — whether you’re a freelancer, an Uber driver, a dog-walker, or have any other side hustle, you could qualify for a small business credit card.
If you’ve got a sizable business, keeping your personal and business finances separate is vital. Things can get murky quickly when you’re cutting personal and business checks from the same account — a business credit card will not only help separate expenses, but also help you establish business credit, so that you have flexibility later on with loans and leases.
Best small business credit cards
This table reflects our current picks from the best small business credit cards guide.
Other small business credit cards
Discover it® Secured Credit Card
Intro offer
Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year
Rewards
Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter. Earn 1% unlimited cash back on all other purchases
Discover it® Secured Credit Card
Intro offer
Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year
Rewards
Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter. Earn 1% unlimited cash back on all other purchases
Details
Rewards
Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter. Earn 1% unlimited cash back on all other purchases
Intro offer
Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year
Recommended Credit
New/Rebuilding
Recommended credit score. Note that credit card lenders may use many different variations of credit score models when considering your application.
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Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
27.24% Variable
Editor’s Rating
Our editor’s ratings analyze fees, bonuses, rewards, and benefits to highlight the simplest and most valuable credit cards available.
Show more
Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
Having a low credit score makes it harder to get approved for a new credit card and other types of loans, and it means that when you do get approved for, say, a mortgage, you’ll generally get less-favorable terms like the highest variable interest rates. A bad credit score is defined as anything below 580, according to the FICO scoring model.
It may seem counterintuitive, but opening and using a credit card responsibly is one of the best ways to build your credit history and score.
Best credit cards for poor/no credit
This table reflects our current picks from the best credit cards for bad credit guide.
Other credit cards for poor/no credit
Discover it® Student Cash Back
Intro offer
Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year
Rewards
Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases automatically.
Discover it® Student Cash Back
Intro offer
Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year
Rewards
Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases automatically.
Details
Rewards
Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases automatically.
Intro offer
Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year
Recommended Credit
Fair/New to Credit
Recommended credit score. Note that credit card lenders may use many different variations of credit score models when considering your application.
Show more
Regular Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
17.24% – 26.24% Variable
Intro Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
0% intro APR for 6 months on purchases
Editor’s Rating
Our editor’s ratings analyze fees, bonuses, rewards, and benefits to highlight the simplest and most valuable credit cards available.
Show more
Pros & Cons
Highlights
Additional Reading
Alyssa Powell/Insider
Applying for your first credit card is an exciting milestone regardless of age, but young adults can find it hard to get approved with limited income and credit history. Some parents add their children as credit card authorized users while they’re still minors to get a head start on building credit, but this strategy isn’t a good fit for everyone.
If you’re a student without established credit, there are still plenty of credit cards that you can qualify for. Then, once you’ve improved your credit score by using a credit card responsibly, it can be easier to upgrade to more lucrative rewards credit cards.
Best student credit cards
This table reflects our current picks from the best student credit cards guide.
