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Here are our thoughts and recommendations on the what we think are the best credit cards in various categories.
Best Cash Back credit card
There are quite a few very good cash back credit cards in the market today. Below are four cards that we recommend that allows you to earn more than the standard 1% rebates with most cards.
The Blue Cash® from American Express is the only consumer cash rebate card that pays 5% rebates for purchases at supermarkets, gas stations and drugstores and also the only card to pay 1.5% rebates on "other purchases". You earn these rebate levels once your annual spending exceeds $6,500. You can earn unlimited rebates with this card. This card is a must for those looking for a cash back card. Kiplinger has chosen this card as their best cash back credit card.
If you do not spend as much on your card, then the Chase Freedom(SM) Credit Card will probably be a better card as there is no tiers to their rebate formula. Chase allows you to earn 3% cash rebates on your top 3 "everyday spending category". There are altogether 15 categories which includes things like gasoline spending, groceries, restaurants etc.
Gasoline Station Credit Card
In my opinion, the best gas rewards credit card today is the SimplyCash® Business Card from American Express is the best card for earning rebates at gas stations. You can earn 3% rebates for gasoline purchases at any gas station. Furthermore, you can earn unlimited rebates. Though this is a business credit card, you can still apply if you have no business. You'll simply be treated as a sole proprietor.
The Discover Open Road(SM) Card is the only
consumer gas rebate credit card that allows you to earn 5% cash rebates at ANY gasoline station. What is more impressive is that if you decide to exchange your cash rebates for gift certificates of partner merchants (60 partners at present), you can up to double the value of your cash rebates. For example a $20.00 cash rebate can get you a $40.00 gift certificate!. If you choose to redeem your cash rebates this way, it means you have effectively earned an unheard of 10% rebate.
Best Balance Transfer Credit Card and
Best Credit Card Rate
The best balance transfer credit card in the market today is the Advanta Platinum with Rewards. The reason is because it has the longest introductory period of all the credit cards that offer a 0% APR balance transfer deal - 15 months. Furthermore, there is no annual fee.
The Advanta card also has the lowest APR in the market today at 7.49%.
Note : Though it is a small business credit card, you do not need to own a business to get the card. Fill in your social security instead of your business tax id, and your name instead of a company name and you will be treated as a sole proprietor.
If you more comfortable with a consumer card, then you might to consider the Discover® More(SM) Card. There is one of the rare consumer credit cards that still offers a 0% APR balance transfer deal for 12 months (without sneakily removing caps from balance transfer fees). It is a cash back credit card that lets you convert cash rewards to more than 100 gift card partners for more than the cash rebates you have earned. Furthermore, ShopDiscover.com allows you to earn up to 20% cash back bonus.
0% APR Credit Card for Purchase
If you are looking for a credit card with a 0% APR on purchases because you want to get 0% financing on a large one-time purchase, then the Blue from American Express® is probably the best card to get. This is because if you have good credit, you can get a 0% APR on purchases for up to 15 months. Plus it has no annual fee and a great reward program as well.
Travel Rewards
Summary - The Capital One® No Hassle MilesSM Ultra—For Professionals is a perfect card for those with excellent credit that want to earn airline miles rewards. Cardholders earn two miles for each dollar spent on all purchases. Miles never expire, and there is no limit to the amount of miles that you can earn. Plus, miles are redeemable on any airline, anytime, with no blackout dates or seat restrictions. This card has an annual fee of $39. Cardholders are also eligible to receive exclusive savings: up to 40% on featured deals and 10% on everything else on Capital One® Saving ZoneSM on Yahoo!Shopping.
The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card is one of the most popular credit cards among the really frequent fliers and travelers. This is because it has probably the best hotel reward program, but also allows you to transfer points you earn (at a one for one ratio) into miles of over 30 airline partners. Furthermore, you get a 5,000 airmiles bonus if you transfer 20,000 points into miles. Effectively, you only need 20,000 points or miles to get a free domestic flight (since most require 25,000 miles!). Many American Express Centurion and Platinum cardholders also carry this card.
The Blue Sky® from American Express is different from most typical rewards credit cards. This card allows you to use any travel agent (even internet agents) to book your travel arrangements and get the best deal. You then use your points to get a credit on your next statement at a rate of 7,500 points for $100 (ie more than 1%). No blackout dates, no Saturday night stays, no advance booking, stopovers allowed. For the ultimate flexibility, consider this card.
The other Citicard we recommend is the Citi PremierPassSM Card. This is a very unique travel reward credit card in the market. You earn points ($1.00 = 1 point) when you use your credit card, but you also earn points on the miles you fly (at a rate of 1 miles for every 3 miles). Hence, if you are a frequent flyer, you can chalk up points very quickly. These points you earn are on top of the frequent flyer points you will get. If you pay for your companion's airline ticket, you will also earn points on the miles they fly. There is also no annual fee for the Citi Premierpass Card. The elite version allows you to earn double points for purchases at standalone supermarkets, gas stations and drugstores and one point for every mile flown. But you have to pay an annual fee of $75.00.
For College Students
The Citi® mtvUTM Platinum Select® Visa® Card for College Students is probably the most innovative student credit card. The reward program is based on Citibank's ThankYou Network reward program. You can earn five points for every dollar you spend at (1) bookstores, (2) record stores, (3) restaurants (including fast food), (4) motion picture theaters and (5) video entertainment rental stores and earn one point for every dollar spent on other purchases. But in addition to that, you earn 25 points each time you pay your minimum bills on-time and if you do not exceed your credit limit. You can also earn point twice a year for getting good GPA scores (4,000 points for a perfect score). This is a good incentive to develop good money habits and to motivate you to do well in studies.
Update : The Citi ThankYou Redemptions Network reward
program now allows you to exchange reward points that be
used to reduce your student loans.
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