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Young adults and professionals fall into one of the largest target markets for credit card issuers and banks.
Thanks to a renewed emphasis on lifestyle, luxury, travel, and dining, banks have introduced strong credit cards perfect for millennials and Gen Z.
Since thousands of different credit cards are out there, we’re offering you a head start with the best credit card choices that might apply to you.
You can narrow it down to your favorite choice and avoid analysis paralysis! But before we do that, let’s walk you through our top selections.
What To Look for in a Credit Card for Young Adults and Professionals
Young adults and professionals often put a solid chunk of their spending on food (including groceries and dining/food delivery), travel, streaming services, and entertainment.
And admittedly, there isn’t a credit card that rewards every single one of those categories, but you can get pretty darn close.
So the best credit cards for young adults and professionals ought to offer massive rewards on those above-mentioned purchases, a great credit card bonus offer, and boast travel and lifestyle benefits that set them apart from the rest of the crowd.
Let’s take a look at our best choices!
The 7 Best Personal Cards for Young Adults and Professionals
Earn 60,000 points after spending $4,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Plus, for a limited time, earn a total of 10 points per $1 spent on hotel, car rentals, and attractions (excluding air travel) booked on the Citi Travel portal through June 30, 2024.
It generally offers a superb welcome bonus offer, and to make things better, you will earn some of the most solid rewards out there:
5x points on all travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards travel portal and Lyft purchases (including bikes and scooters) through March 31, 2025
3x points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries
2x points on all other travel purchases
1x points on all other purchases
In addition, enjoy a 10% anniversary rewards bonus every year on all your purchases! With this card, you’ll receive a complimentary 1-year DoorDash DashPass subscription if activated by December 31, 2024.
Plus, you’ll receive an annual creditof up to $50 towards hotel stays booked via the Chase travel portal.
One of the most valuable characteristics of the Chase Sapphire Preferred card is its impeccable travel insurance — primary car rental coverage, trip cancellation and interruption coverage, trip delay insurance, baggage delay coverage, lost luggage coverage, travel accident insurance, and so much more are included with your card!
Lastly, the card is rounded out with purchase protection, extended warranty, and no foreign transaction fees.
The Amex Gold card has been solidified as one of our favorite cards out there, and it’s certainly one of our top picks for young adults and professionals.
In addition to a phenomenal welcome offer, the Amex Gold card boasts some incredible bonus categories:
4x points at restaurants (plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.) and at U.S. supermarkets, up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year (1x points after that)
3x points on flights purchased directly with the airline or at Amex Travel
1x points on all other purchases
Young professionals and adults spent a large chunk of their money on restaurants, groceries, and travel, which makes this card an awesome choice. And by earning 4x points, you’re getting a return on spend of 8.8% with a valuation of 2.2 cents per point!
You’ll also get:
Up to $120 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S. ($10 per month)
Up to $120 dining credit at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar, and select Shake Shack locations ($10 per month; enrollment required)
As if these perks weren’t enough, you’ll also get access to Amex’s The Hotel Collection, offering you up to $100 in property credit and a room upgrade (subject to availability) on qualifying stays of at least 2 nights at eligible properties.
Lastly, the Amex Gold card will give you access to Amex Offers (enrollment required) and no foreign transaction fees (rates & fees).
And for many young adults, it’s the perfect card option for optimizing lifestyle and travel benefits.
First, you’ll earn a great welcome bonus upon meeting the spending criteria. Plus, you’ll earn 5x Membership Rewards points on flights purchased directly with the airline or via Amex Travel (up to $500,000 per calendar year), plus 5x points on prepaid hotels booked via Amex Travel. You’ll earn 1x points on all other purchases. So depending on whether you’re earning 5x or 1x points, you could get a return on spend of 11% or 2.2%!
The Amex Platinum card is laden with other travel benefits, such as:
The Chase Sapphire Reserve card also includes the best travel insurance available on a credit card, including primary car rental insurance, trip interruption and cancellation insurance, trip delay, lost luggage, baggage delay, roadside assistance, emergency evacuation and transportation, emergency medical and dental, travel accident, and travel and emergency assistance coverage.
The Capital One Venture X card is Capital One’s ultra-premium credit card best suited for those looking to maximize their travel experiences and rewards.
There’s a substantial welcome offer to help catapult your rewards. Also, you can expect to earn up to 10x Capital One miles on purchases:
This impressive credit card has a suite of travel insurance policies, cell phone protection, no foreign transaction fees, and up to 4 authorized users for no additional annual fees. Lastly, you’ll enjoy purchase protection and extended warranty.
Hot Tip:
Authorized Capital One Venture X card users get incredible perks, like full airport lounge access, Hertz President’s Circle status, cell phone insurance, and no foreign transaction fees.
The Citi Premier card is one of the best out there for diverse spending categories and excellent all-around rewards.
Currently, the Citi Premier card offers a fantastic welcome offer, plus this long list of bonus categories:
3x points on air travel, restaurants, gas stations, hotels, and supermarkets
1x points on all other purchases
Being able to earn 3x points on all of these categories is unique to this credit card only — that’s not all, though, because here are the other perks:
Up to $100 in annual hotel savings when you book a single hotel stay of $500 or more, excluding taxes and fees, through thankyou.com or 800-THANKYOU (once per calendar year)
Access to Citi Entertainment and Citi Concierge
Purchase protection, extended warranty
You’ll notice that this card has no travel insurance coverage, so you’d generally only want to keep this card for its vast rewards structure.
The Capital One Venture card is a terrific mid-tier card just a step below the Capital One Venture X card. Currently, it also has a large welcome offer. This card earns up to 5x Capital One miles per $1 spent:
5x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
2x miles on other purchases
Every year, you’re allowed 2 complimentary visits to Capital One Lounges or Plaza Premium Lounges, plus a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit. Use the extended warranty and access to Capital One Dining and Capital One Entertainment.
You won’t be on the hook for foreign transaction fees or additional annual fees for authorized users.
Best Credit Card for Young Adults With No Credit
If you’re in the market for your first credit card and haven’t started building your credit score yet, you might find it difficult to be approved for some of our favorite card selections. That said, everyone has to start somewhere, and the sooner you start improving your credit score, the sooner you’ll be able to take advantage of some of the best credit cards.
Given that, you’ll want to start with one of the best first credit cards and be sure to pay your card on time and in full each month, as doing so can help your credit score rise quickly.
Best Credit Cards for Young Adults With Fair Credit
If you’ve had a credit card before, but your score is less than desirable, there are still options for the best credit cards for bad credit. Many of these card options are secured cards. While they require an upfront refundable security deposit, they can help you rebuild your credit history without being charged a high annual fee or excessive servicing fees.
The 5 Best Business Cards for Young Adults and Professionals
The Amex Business Gold card is similar to the Amex Gold card in that you enjoy some incredible rewards categories without diving deep into those luxury travel perks that the ultra-premium cards offer.
The welcome bonus is a great way to give yourself a head start on your point stash.
You can earn 4x Membership Rewards points on the 2 select categories where your business spent the most each month. Keep in mind that the 4x applies to the first $150,000 in combined purchases each calendar year for your top 2 categories in this list (after that, you’ll earn 1x):
Airfare purchased from airlines
U.S. purchases for advertising in select media
U.S. purchases made from select technology providers of computer hardware, software, and cloud solutions
U.S. purchases at gas stations
U.S. purchases at restaurants
U.S. purchases for shipping
That means you can earn up to 600,000 Membership Rewards points every calendar year from the 4x points structure before dropping to the standard 1x points structure.
Earning 4x points equals a return on spending of 8.8%, which is incredible. You won’t need to select any bonus categories, as Amex does it automatically.
This card offers no preset spending limit,* no foreign transaction fees (rates and fees), and up to 99 employee cards with no annual fee after the first employee card with a $50 annual fee (rates and fees).
Our runner-up credit card is the famous Ink Business Preferred card, offering a solid welcome bonus and some of the best bonus categories for earning Ultimate Rewards points.
Also, you will earn 3x Ultimate Rewards points on the following business categories, up to $150,000 in combined purchases per anniversary year:
Ads purchased with search engines or social media sites
Internet, cable, and phone services
Shipping expenses
Travel
You’ll earn 1x Ultimate Rewards points on all other purchases, making your return on spending equal to 6% or 2% if earning 3x and 1x points, respectively. Lastly, through March 31, 2025, you will earn 5x Ultimate Rewards points on Lyft purchases.
Plus, you’ll get top-notch cell phone insurance benefits, purchase protection, and extended warranty.
Remember the card’s noteworthy travel coverages, including primary rental car coverage when renting for business and trip cancellation and interruption insurance. You also won’t pay any foreign transaction or employee card fees.
The Ink Business Cash card boasts a fantastic welcome bonus offer plus some unique reward structures.
You’ll earn up to 5% cash-back at office supply stores and on internet, cable, and phone services (on the first $25,000 in combined purchases each account anniversary year), as well as 2% cash-back at gas stations and restaurants (on the first $25,000 in combined purchases each account anniversary year, separate from the 5% cash-back categories). Earn 1% cash back on all other purchases after achieving the two $25,000 bonus ceilings.
You can get 5% cash back on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025.
You can also take advantage of the 0% introductory APR. Regular APR, as indicated in the table above, applies after the introductory period.
And although these rewards aren’t Ultimate Rewards points, if you have a Chase Sapphire Preferred card, Ink Business Preferred card, or Chase Sapphire Reserve card, you can convert your 5%, 2%, and 1% cash-back to 5x, 2x, and 1x Ultimate Rewards points, netting you a return on spend of 10%, 4%, or 2%, respectively.
This credit card will give you primary rental car coverage, travel insurance, and purchase protection.
It has a great welcome bonus and a straightforward rewards structure. You’ll get a flat 1.5% cash-back on all your business purchases without any caps or limits to earning, plus 5% cash-back on Lyft purchases through March 31, 2025.
As with the Ink Business Cash card, if you also have a Chase Sapphire Preferred card, Ink Business Preferred card, or Chase Sapphire Reserve card, you can convert your cash-back to Ultimate Rewards points to get a return on spending of 3% on your purchases!
Plus, this card offers a 0% introductory APR perk (after the introductory period, the regular APR shown in the table above applies), primary rental car insurance when renting for a business, purchase protection, extended warranty, and no-fee employee cards.
The Amex Business Platinum card rounds out our best business cards for young adults and professionals. If you want a card loaded to the max with perks, the Amex Business Platinum card must be in your wallet.
Earn 5x Membership Rewards points on flights and prepaid hotels booked at Amex Travel. Importantly, you’ll also earn 1.5x on eligible purchases in key business categories and on purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else (up to $2 million in purchases per calendar year).
But the real kicker is the luxury perks, including access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection, the best lounge access of any card in the world.
Plus, you’ll get all kinds of other travel perks, like complimentary hotel and rental car elite status (upon enrollment), access to Fine Hotels + Resorts, a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit, up to $200 airline fee credit (upon enrollment), a 35% rebate on select flights using Pay With Points (~1.52 cents per point in redemption value, up to 1,000,000 points back per calendar year), and more.
The other ancillary perks surrounding this card include no preset spending limit,* no foreign transaction fees (rates and fees), purchase protection, extended warranty, cell phone insurance, and travel insurance protections.
Do Young Adults Need Credit Cards?
You technically do not need a credit card, as paying for all your expenses with your debit card is possible. However, we believe using a credit card responsibly can be a huge asset.
For starters, using a credit card responsibly can lead to a high credit score, which can land you better financing on expensive purchases like a car or a home. Depending on the loan terms, landing a better interest rate, thanks to your credit score, can save you thousands of dollars in interest payments over the life of your loan.
In addition to building and maintaining a solid credit score, you’ll also earn rewards that offer extra value on purchases you plan to make anyway. Depending on your card, these rewards can be redeemed for cash-back, flights, hotel stays, and more. If you opt for a debit card for your everyday purchases, you leave money on the table each time you swipe your card.
Lastly, credit cards offer far better consumer protections than debit cards do. You don’t want a card connected to your entire bank balance falling into the wrong hands. And credit cards can also offer purchase protection if an item you buy breaks, return protection for items past their return window, trip delay insurance, rental car insurance, and so much more.
What Are the Pros and Cons of Credit Cards for Young Adults?
Pros:
Rewards: Earn cash-back or travel rewards for every purchase you make, which can amount to considerable savings from month to month and year to year.
Build Credit: By using your card responsibly, you’ll be rewarded with a high credit score, saving you large sums of money on the big purchases in your life.
Consumer Protections: If someone makes a fraudulent purchase on your credit card, you are only liable for a maximum of $50, but often you don’t need to pay anything. When this happens to your debit card, your entire bank balance can be frozen for weeks while your bank sorts out the issue. Credit cards can offer great travel and purchase protections that help keep you covered when things go wrong.
Perks: Some credit cards offer perks like airport lounge access, elite hotel status, statement credits, merchant discounts, and more.
Cons:
Can Damage Your Credit: While credit cards can be great for building your credit, the opposite is true if you don’t use them responsibly.
Interest Fees: If you do not pay your statement balance in full each month, you can get hit with large interest fees. These make your purchases more expensive and completely negate the value of any rewards you’ve earned. Of course, the easy way around this is always to pay off your balance when your statement posts each month.
What Is the Easiest Credit Card To Get With No Credit?
This can depend on a variety of factors. Still, generally speaking, your best options would be a student credit card (if you are a student), a secured or starter credit card for the institution you already bank with, or even being added as an authorized user by your parent or guardian.
How Long Does Building Credit Take?
If you’ve never had a credit card before, it can take about 6 months to establish your credit history and about a year before your score is likely to be high enough to start taking advantage of better credit card options.
Of course, this assumes you pay your bill on time and in full each month. If it feels like we are belaboring this point, it is because these 2 factors alone, your payment history and credit utilization, make up 65% of your overall FICO credit score.
Credit Card Tips for Beginners
Here are a few tips to get you started on your credit journey.
Set Up Autopay: This will help ensure you always pay your balance on time each month.
Don’t Overspend: You must stick to your monthly budget to prevent yourself from getting behind on your financial goals or getting into credit card debt.
Keep Your Credit Utilization Low: Ideally, you’ll want to keep your credit utilization below 30% of your total credit limit, as consistently charging more than that can adversely impact your score. If you have a low credit limit, one way to stay on top of this is to submit a payment every 2 weeks to prevent your balance from getting too high.
Earn Rewards and Perks: If possible, holding a card that earns rewards and perks can be a huge benefit to you by earning points toward travel or cash-back, card protection, and more.
Keep Your Card Open: If you no longer use a certain card, you might be tempted to cancel it, but this could be a mistake. If the card doesn’t charge an annual fee, then there is no harm in keeping it open. It is better for your credit score to keep it open, as this helps add to your overall age of accounts.
Final Thoughts
Many top credit cards from American Express, Chase, Capital One, and Citi are a great fit for young adults and professionals, particularly if you spend heavily on dining, streaming, and entertainment.
Using a credit card can enhance your financial journey if the rewards and benefits align with your spending habits — and you learn to use it responsibly. As you choose a credit card, consider your spending patterns, preferences, and what each card brings to the table.
*No Preset Spending Limit means your spending limit is flexible. Unlike a traditional card with a set limit, the amount you can spend adapts based on factors such as your purchase, payment, and credit history
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
Enrollment required through Capital One website or mobile app. Upon enrollment, eligible cardholders will remain at upgraded status level through December 31, 2024. Please note, enrolling through the normal Hertz Gold Plus Rewards enrollment process (e.g. at Hertz.com) will not automatically detect a cardholder as being eligible for the program and cardholders will not be automatically upgraded to the applicable status tier. Additional terms apply.
For the cell phone protection benefit of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.
For the extended warranty benefit of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.
For the purchase protection benefit of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, eligibility and benefit level varies by Card. Terms, conditions and limitations apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here. For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, click here. For rates and fees of the American Express® Business Gold Card, click here. For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, click here.
Featured Image Credit: Upgraded Points
Frequently Asked Questions
The best personal credit cards for young professionals are the Amex Gold card, Chase Sapphire Preferred card, Amex Platinum card, Chase Sapphire Reserve card, Capital One Venture X card, Citi Premier card, and Capital One Venture card.
The best rewards credit card for young adults is likely the Chase Sapphire Preferred card or the Amex Gold card.
The best beginner rewards credit card is the Chase Sapphire Preferred card.
The best business cards for young adults and professionals are the Amex Business Gold card, Ink Business Preferred card, Ink Business Unlimited card, Ink Business Cash card, and Amex Business Platinum card.
Stephen is an established voice in the credit card space, with over 70 to his name. His work has been in publications like The Washington Post, and his Au Points and Awards Consulting Services is used by hundreds of clients.
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