Best Credit Cards for Young Adults of March 2026

Our pick for: Building credit, rewards & upgrading

Like other secured credit cards for people building or rebuilding credit, the Discover it® Secured Credit Card requires a cash security deposit. Unlike most others, it offers rewards. But what really makes it stand out from the competition is its upgrade possibilities. The issuer has a process in place for automatically reviewing accounts for possible transition to an unsecured card. Read our review.

Our pick for: Building credit + easy card management

This card has no minimum deposit requirement, charges neither an annual fee nor interest, and doesn't require a credit check, and you can automate your payments so you're never late. But to get it, you must be a Chime® banking customer, which is an extra hoop to jump through — and which comes with its own considerations when it comes to customer service. Read our review.

Our pick for: Simple cash back

Among flat-rate cash-back cards, you'll be hard-pressed to beat the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card. It earns an unlimited 2% back on all purchases, which is excellent. But in addition, the card offers a rich sign-up bonus and a decent intro APR period on both purchases and balance transfers. That's an impressive, hard-to-find combination of features on a card with a $0 annual fee. Read our review.

Our pick for: Customized rewards & cool features

The Venmo Credit Card offers the benefit of bonus rewards categories without requiring you to keep track of them. You automatically earn 3% cash back in the category where you spend the most money (from a list of eight), 2% on the next-highest category, and 1% elsewhere. The eligible categories include all the biggies, like groceries, gas, restaurants and travel. Read our review.

Our pick for: Cash back for household spending

If your household spends a lot on groceries, gas, transit and streaming, the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is for you. The rewards it pays in those categories — particularly at U.S. supermarkets and on select U.S. streaming subscriptions — are among the richest of any card. There's a nice welcome offer for new cardholders and an introductory APR period, too. The generous benefits come at a cost, though: Unlike most cash-back cards, this one charges an annual fee. Terms apply. Read our review.

Our pick for: Cash back for going out & staying in

Some credit cards reward you well for going out, others for staying in. The Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card is the rare card that does both. It offers a terrific cash-back rate not only on dining and entertainment but also at grocery stores and on popular streaming services. Toss in a good bonus offer and intro APR period, and this card is a winner. (see rates and fees). Read our review.

Our pick for: Bonus cash back

The Chase Freedom Flex® offers bonus cash back in quarterly categories that you activate, as well as on travel booked through Chase, at restaurants and at drugstores. Category activation can be a hassle, but if your spending matches the categories — and for a lot of people, it will — you can rack up hundreds of dollars a year. There's a fantastic bonus offer for new cardholders and an intro APR offer, too. Read our review.

Our pick for: Simple travel rewards + perks

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is probably the best-known general-purpose travel credit card, thanks to its ubiquitous advertising. You earn 5 miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 2 miles per dollar on all other purchases. Miles can be redeemed at a value of 1 cent apiece for any travel purchase, without the blackout dates and other restrictions of branded hotel and airline cards. The card offers a great sign-up bonus and other worthwhile perks (see rates and fees). Read our review.

Our pick for: No-annual-fee travel rewards

The Wells Fargo Autograph® Card offers so much value, it's hard to believe there's no annual fee. Start with a great bonus offer, then earn extra rewards in a host of common spending categories — restaurants, gas stations, transit, travel, streaming and more. Read our review.

The answer to this question depends largely on where you are in your credit building journey:

If you don’t have a credit history yet, or you don’t have much of one, it’s best to start with, well, a “starter” card. These are cards specifically designed for people who are new to credit. They don’t offer the richest rewards or the swankiest perks, and their credit limits tend to be low. Some of them require a cash deposit. 

If you’ve already built a good credit history, you’ll have a better chance at getting approved for more popular, and more rewarding, mainstream credit cards. In that case, you’ll be looking for a card with rewards or other features that fit into your lifestyle. There is no single “best” credit card for young adults. There is a best credit card for you, however.

Young adults just getting started with credit can look into these options:

Buying things isn’t what gets credit card holders into trouble. Buying things they can’t afford is what gets them into trouble.

Credit cards can make overspending easy, unfortunately. Don’t have $300 for something? Why not put it on the card and pay it off over the next few months? It’s hardly rare for a young adult to make such a decision when they’re still learning how to use credit. And in isolation, a single purchase like this might not be a huge misstep. But then they make another such purchase the next month, and the next, and soon they’re caught in a debt trap.

When using a credit card to build credit or earn rewards, it’s best to treat it like a debit card. Don’t buy anything you wouldn’t buy otherwise, and don’t buy anything you don’t currently have the cash to cover. When your bill comes, pay everything off. Even better: Don’t wait for the bill. Pay it off online.

A major factor in your credit score is credit utilization — your balance expressed as a percentage of your credit limit. If you have a $5,000 credit limit and your balance is $1,000, for example, your utilization is 20%. Young adults looking to boost their credit score should strive to keep their utilization below 30%. Staying under 10% is even better.

An important point to understand about utilization is that it has no “memory” in terms of its effect on your credit score. Your credit score reflects what your utilization is right now and is not influenced by your past utilization. So if your credit score is suffering because you’re using, say, 80% of your available credit, you can reverse that damage pretty quickly if you can pay your balance down to 30% or less.

Even if you’re not currently focused on your credit score, there are other reasons to keep your balance in check:

• If your balance has gotten to the point that you’re carrying debt from one month to the next, rather than paying in full, you’ll be bearing the brunt of credit card interest. 

• Charging more than you can afford to pay off each month is a strong sign of living beyond your means.

Sometimes you have no choice but to finance a big expense — such as a necessary car repair or medical bill you can’t cover with an emergency fund. But if you’re carrying debt for “stuff,” it’s time to focus on your budget. 

The credit habits you develop in young adulthood can stick with you for the rest of your life. Resist the temptation to overspend just because you have the ability to overspend.