There are all kinds of credit cards out there to meet the needs of just about anyone. Which one is right for you depends on your credit history, what you will use the card for and how fast you will pay it off.
Rewards Credit Cards
A rewards credit card gives you points or cash back toward purchases. These credit cards can be very rewarding if you use them right, but for many people they cost more. Rewards cards may have annual fees and often have higher interest rates than other cards. These are best for those people who pay their credit card off every month.
Low Rate Credit Cards
If you have good or excellent credit, you should try to get a low rate credit card. These cards require a much better credit rating than other cards, but you benefit by paying less in interest if you carry a balance. In many cases there will be no or only a very small annual fee for these credit cards.
Student Credit Cards
One of the best times to start establishing your credit is while you are in school. Credit card companies work hard to get students as customers, as they know that they might just get a customer for life if they can get them in college. In addition, students often do not use their money wisely, leading to high balances, and lots of earnings from interest.
Student credit cards often start out with a reasonably low credit limit, as most students do not really have a credit history.
Business Credit Cards
If you’re running a business it is a very good idea to get a business credit card. This is a great way of keeping your business expenditures separate from your personal ones, which is great come tax time. These cards often have features that are very helpful to a business, such as expense management reports and higher credit limits.
You can still get rewards with a business credit card if that is your choice. You can expect the same issues as with personal rewards cards - higher interest rates and so forth, but for some businesses this is not a problem.
Unsecured Credit Cards
If your credit is not in such good shape, an unsecured credit card may be a very good idea. It can be a way to rebuild your credit; however, if you aren’t ready to use a credit card properly it can also be a road to disaster.
Watch out for high annual fees with unsecured credit cards. You shouldn’t accept a high annual fee unless there is no other way for you to get a credit card. You should also be careful about how many credit cards you apply for - applying for a lot of cards can show up as a negative on your credit report. Pick the card you think you want most and are most likely to be accepted for.
Secured Credit Cards
If you just cannot get a credit card any other way, a secured credit card can allow you to build a positive credit history. However, you will need to put a deposit down, which will be used to determine your limit. This deposit keeps the credit card company from taking too big of a risk on you - if you don’t pay them, they still have your deposit.
If you go for a secured credit card, make sure it reports to the credit bureaus. There’s no point to having one of these if you aren’t building toward a better credit rating that will allow you to eventually get a regular credit card.
Know Your
Credit Cards