When it comes to choosing a credit card these days, there are lots of factors to consider. First of all, you have to make sure that you qualify for credit in various places, but once you know that you do, then the options start to open up in terms of what you want from that card, company, or brand exactly.
Some of the bonuses that you can get from various cards include getting cash back, getting airline miles, having some sort of financial protection associated with the card (like overdraft or fraud protection, for instance), lower interest rates, or getting points so that you have choices across the board.
The Cash Back Bonus
Some cards offer cash back as their main incentive. If you use the card and make sure that you pay it off every month, then you’ll essentially be getting a small amount of your purchase cost back regularly. This isn’t always substantial, for example it usually ranges from 1-3 percent, but it can add up over time if you spend a lot of money on your card. And, quite simply, it’s certainly better than no cash back!
Airline Miles
Other credit cards specialize in getting you airline miles. For people who fly a lot, or for people who generally can’t afford to fly, this can be a great benefit. Just by using your credit card regularly, you’ll amass the number of miles required in order to head to some fun (or practical) destination. There are also double bonus days or double bones purchases that you’ll run across too where you get even more miles for you standard purchases.
Financial Protection
Some credit cards (or credit card companies) specialize in fraud protection or overdraft protection. Basically, you can set things up in advance so that they notify you if any usual activity happens on your card, or you can set up things in advance so that if you overdraft another bank account, it tacks your purchase onto your credit card instead of charging you a fee to your main account.
Low Interest Rates
Many people just want to make sure their card has the lowest interest rates possible. Especially if you know that you’re going to carry some debt around for a while, this is definitely a good focus to have. You can ultimately save yourself hundreds if not thousands of dollars by being smart about interest rates.
Choices Across The Board
And finally, some options for credit cards allow you to accrue just general points when you use your card. These points can then be turned in for anything that they have in their catalog of benefits. These redeemable options range from everything between clothes, to coupons, to admission discounts for events!