My Top 3 Credit Cards for Beginners
Written By: Nick Nguyen | Read full profile
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Picking my first credit card was really hard. But I’ve gone through and put together a list of what I believe are great credit cards for beginners. My main criteria were that there are no annual fees, that it was easy to access your statement online, and that you had a high cashback rate or sign-up bonus.
This was the first credit card I got under my own name without being an authorized user or having a cosigner. I love this card because it provides 5% revolving calendar cashback on certain categories like Amazon.com, Groceries, Restaurants, etc. If you’re a student, you’re also eligible for an extra $20 cashback for 5 years as long as you maintain a 3.0 GPA! Plus, they match all the cashback you earn in your first calendar year! When you sign up with someone’s referral link, you can also get an extra $50 bonus.
- 5% cashback on certain popular categories every 3 months
- App and online interface are very easy to use
- Chat support for immediate questions
- No foreign transaction fees
- No annual fee
- Referral bonus of $50 if your friends use your link
- Several cool designs to choose from
- 1% cashback on all other purchases
- No special benefits like price protection or extended warranties
- Discover is not as widely accepted as Visa or Mastercards
This was the second credit card I got under my own name. It’s essentially the same exact card as the Discover It Cash Back! You still have the 5% revolving calendar on certain categories, but this card usually comes with a $100-$200 sign-up bonus if you spend $500 in the first 3 months! As of August 10, 2020, Chase is also extending an extra 5% cashback on grocery store purchases in the first year. (They must really be looking for customers to overspend…)
- 5% cashback on certain popular categories every 3 months
- App and online interface are very easy to use
- Extra cashback rewards through Chase at certain stores
- No annual fee
- Purchase and Extended Warranty Protection on purchases made with the card
- Referral bonus of $50-$100 if your friends use your link*
- 1% cashback on all other purchases
- No chat support for immediate questions, all support needs to done over the phone
- Foreign transaction fees
This was my go-to card for travel when I first started. There is typically a 25,000 point sign-up bonus if you spend $1000 in 90 days (subject to change, so make sure you check out Bank of America’s website). I really like the way the points work. You don’t have to use points up front to book travel, but rather you’ll use it as a statement credit on previous purchases, and they’re pretty lenient about using the travel credit on things like tolls, parking, lyft, uber, etc.! You’re not limited to just using your points on flights and hotels.
- Earn 1.5 points per $1 spent
- Can earn 25%-75% more if you are a Bank of America Customer with preferred tier status
- Travel credit can be used on a lot of different previous purchases.
- App and online interface are easy to use
- Extra cashback rewards through Bank of America at certain stores
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
- 1% cashback on all other purchases
- Limited chat support for questions
- No special benefits like price protection or extended warranties
- No referral bonus
*Currently the Chase Freedom has discontinued their referral bonus for this card, but they still allow you to earn a bonus if your friends open a Chase Freedom Unlimited Card, which gives 1.5% cashback on all purchases.
**Nguyening Lifestyles is not a registered financial service provider and is not liable for any decisions you make regarding credit cards or managing your debt. We are simply here to entertain and provide content for educational purposes only. Therefore, we are not liable in any capacity for any actions that may result from reading this post. Proceed with caution when using any type of credit card, credit line, debt, credit reporting company, etc.
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