7 Best Credit Card Features to Look at Before Applying
Credit cards can offer a wide range of benefits, and figuring out which card is best for you often starts by comparing cards' features. Whether you need a card for an upcoming purchase, want one for emergencies or are looking for your new go-to rewards card for everyday spending, here are seven of the top features you could look for in a new card.
1. Rewards
Many credit cards offer rewards, which can add significant value to purchases you make. The best rewards credit cards offer plenty of opportunity to earn and redeem rewards. You'll want to think about which type of rewards program best fits how you'll use the card. Generally, you can earn rewards in one of three ways:
- Flat-rate rewards cards give you the same rewards rate no matter where you shop.
- Tiered rewards cards have bonus categories. You'll often earn 1% to 1.5% as a baseline rewards rate, plus bonus rewards on purchases in select categories (such as gas, dining or travel).
- Changing rewards rates cards also have a base rate and bonus rewards, but the bonus rewards categories change. The issuer may change the categories quarterly, or you may be able to pick your card's bonus categories.
In addition to the rewards-earning rates, you'll want to compare cash back rewards cards with cards that offer rewards program points, airline miles or hotel points. Cash back can be the simplest to use, but depending on the program, rewards points or miles may offer higher-value redemption options—and may be of higher value to you if you want to use your new card to help pay for travel.
Best credit cards of 2026
Compare cards from our partners with intro bonuses, cash back or points offers, and annual fees as low as $0.
Offers from our partners
Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express
Intro bonus:You may be eligible for as high as $200 cash back after spending $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in the first 6 months. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Cash back is received as Reward Dollars, redeemable for statement credit or at Amazon.com checkout. Terms Apply.
Intro APR:0% on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 15 months
Ongoing APR:19.49%-28.49% Variable
Rewards:1% - 3% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$0
Wells Fargo Reflect® Card
Intro APR:0% intro APR for 21 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers
Ongoing APR:17.49%, 23.99%, or 28.24% Variable APR
Rewards:N/A*
Annual Fee:$0
Discover it® Chrome
Intro bonus:INTRO OFFER: Unlimited Cashback Match for all new cardmembers. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year! There’s no minimum spending or maximum rewards.
Intro APR:0% intro APR for 6 Months on Purchases and 0% intro APR for 18 Months on Balance Transfers
Ongoing APR:17.49% - 26.49% Variable APR
Rewards:1% - 2% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$0
Revel® Platinum Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:35.90% Fixed
Rewards:N/A*
Annual Fee:$75 - $125
Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card
Intro APR:0% for 21 months on Balance Transfers and 12 months on Purchases
Ongoing APR:16.49% - 27.24% (Variable)
Rewards:N/A*
Annual Fee:$0
FIT™ Platinum Mastercard® - $400 Credit Limit
Ongoing APR:35.90% Fixed
Rewards:N/A*
Annual Fee:$99 first year; $125 thereafter
The opensky® Secured Visa® Credit Card
Ongoing APR:23.89% Variable
Rewards:10% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$35
Credit One Bank American Express® Card for Rebuilding Credit
Ongoing APR:29.74% Variable
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$75 First year. $99 thereafter, billed monthly at $8.25
Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express
Intro bonus:You may be eligible for as high as $300 cash back after spending $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in the first 6 months. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Cash back is received as Reward Dollars, redeemable for statement credit or at Amazon.com checkout. Terms Apply.
Intro APR:0% on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 12 months
Ongoing APR:19.49%-28.49% Variable
Rewards:1% - 6% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95.
American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® Card
Intro APR:0% for 15 months on Balance Transfers
Ongoing APR:19.49% - 29.49% (Variable)
Rewards:2x (Miles per dollar)
Annual Fee:$0
Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi
Ongoing APR:18.74% - 26.74% (Variable)
Rewards:1% - 5% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$0
American Express® Gold Card
Intro bonus:You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.
Ongoing APR:See Pay Over Time APR
Rewards:1x - 4x (Points per dollar)
Annual Fee:$325
First Latitude Secured Mastercard® Cash Back Rewards
Ongoing APR:27.49% Variable
Rewards:1% - 10% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$0
Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:19.49% - 29.49% (Variable)
Rewards:2x (Miles per dollar)
Annual Fee:$99, waived for first 12 months
Avant® Cashback Rewards Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:35.99%*
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$75*
Citi® / AAdvantage® Globe™ Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:19.49% - 29.49% (Variable)
Rewards:1x - 6x (Miles per dollar)
Annual Fee:$350
Avant® Cashback Rewards Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:35.99%*
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:Introductory fee of $75 for the first year. After that, $99 annually.*
Avant® Cashback Rewards Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:35.99%*
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$39*
Credit One Bank® Platinum X5 Visa® Metal Card
Ongoing APR:29.74% Variable
Rewards:1% - 5% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$95
First Progress Prestige Secured Mastercard® Cash Back Rewards
Ongoing APR:13.49% Variable
Rewards:1% - 10% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$49
First Progress Select Secured Mastercard® Cash Back Rewards
Ongoing APR:17.49% Variable
Rewards:1% - 10% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$39
Credit One Bank® Premier American Express® Credit Card
Ongoing APR:29.74% Variable
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$39
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card
Intro bonus:Earn 200,000 Marriott Bonvoy® bonus points after you use your new Card to make $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 5/13/2026.
Ongoing APR:19.49%-28.49% Variable
Rewards:2x - 6x (Points per dollar)
Annual Fee:$650
Discover it® Miles
Intro bonus:UNLIMITED BONUS: Unlimited Mile-for-Mile match for all new cardmembers. Discover gives you an unlimited match of all the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year. There’s no signing up, no minimum spending or maximum rewards. Just a Miles-for-Miles match. You could turn 35,000 Miles into 70,000 Miles.
Intro APR:0% intro APR for 15 months on Purchases and Balance Transfers
Ongoing APR:17.49% - 26.49% Variable APR
Rewards:1.5x (Miles per dollar)
Annual Fee:$0
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
Intro bonus:Earn 70,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $3,000 in purchases with your new Card, and an additional 20,000 bonus miles after you make an additional $2,000 in purchases on the Card, both within your first 6 months. Ends 04/01/2026.
Ongoing APR:19.49%-28.49% Variable
Rewards:1x - 2x (Miles per dollar)
Annual Fee:$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150.
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
Intro bonus:Earn 130,000 Bonus Points plus a Free Night Reward after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 4/15/2026.
Ongoing APR:19.49%-28.49% Variable
Rewards:3x - 12x (Points per dollar)
Annual Fee:$150
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card
Intro bonus:Earn 10,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
Ongoing APR:19.49%-28.49% Variable
Rewards:1x - 2x (Miles per dollar)
Annual Fee:$0
One Key+™ Card
Intro bonus:Earn $350 in OneKeyCash™ after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. OneKeyCash is not redeemable for cash and can only be used on Expedia®, Hotels.com® and Vrbo®. To learn more, please refer to the One Key Terms and Conditions at www.expedia.com/one-key-terms.
Ongoing APR:18.49%, 23.49%, or 28.49% Variable APR
Rewards:2x - 3x (Points per dollar)
Annual Fee:$99
Avant® Cashback Rewards Mastercard® - With A Higher Credit Limit
Ongoing APR:35.99%*
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$125*
Avant® Cashback Rewards Mastercard®
Ongoing APR:35.99%*
Rewards:1% (cash back)
Annual Fee:$0*
See all our best credit cards for 2026.
2. Intro Bonuses
Some rewards cards may offer significant introductory bonuses. It can be wise to review the minimum spend requirement for different intro offers. Also, look at the fine print to ensure you'll qualify for the intro bonuses.
3. Annual Statement Credit Offers
Some credit cards offer annual statement credits to cardholders. These cards tend to have annual fees, which may make them seem expensive. But consider the overall value after accounting for annual statement credits and other card benefits.
Statement credits are often for specific categories of purchases or purchases at certain merchants.
4. Intro 0% APR Periods
Intro 0% annual percentage rate (APR) offers may apply to purchases, balance transfers or both. These offers can give new cardholders the opportunity to make big purchases or transfer debts to the card, and then pay off the balance over time without accruing interest.
Once the promotional period ends, any remaining balance will accrue interest at the card's standard APR rate. Consider how long of a promotional period you'll need to pay off the balance, and the card's other benefits.
5. No Annual Fee
An annual fee is one of the few credit card fees you can't avoid based on how you use the card. There are a lot of great credit cards without annual fees, including cards that offer rewards, welcome bonuses and intro 0% APR offers.
However, you might not want to rule out a card simply because it has an annual fee. If you can afford the upfront expense, the cardholder benefits and card's rewards program may more than offset the cost.
6. No Foreign Transaction Fees
You may want a card that doesn't charge foreign transaction fees on international purchases if you frequently travel outside the U.S. or make purchases in a foreign currency. Many travel credit cards don't charge foreign transaction fees. There are also some card issuers that don't have foreign transaction fees on any of their credit cards.
7. Cardholder Benefits
Credit cards may also come with a variety of benefits that aren't related to rewards, interest rates or fees. These can include:
- Travel-related benefits, such as travel insurance, lost baggage coverage, trip cancellation insurance and collision damage waivers on rental cars.
- Purchase protections, such as extended warranties and return protection.
- Cellphone protection that covers lost and damaged phones.
- Free access to airport lounges.
- Loyalty status in an airline or hotel loyalty program.
- Vouchers for free hotel stays or free companion tickets on flights.
Review the requirements for receiving the benefit to make sure you don't accidentally miss out. For example, you may need to use the card to pay your cellphone bill to receive the cellphone protection, or activate your membership in a third-party program, such as Priority Pass, to get access to free airport lounges.
There are also sometimes differences in the same type of benefit depending on the card. If you think you may use these benefits, look over the terms closely to know when you'll be covered.
Compare Cards and Card Offers
There are a lot of potential features to compare when choosing a new credit card. But you can look for best-of lists and use tools like those from Experian to narrow in on the top choices. With these tools, you can quickly filter and compare cards from Experian partners—perhaps narrowing the choices to cards that don't have an annual fee or ones that offer intro bonuses. You'll also see the suggested credit requirement and, if you sign in, you can get matched with personalized offers based on your credit profile.
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About the author
Louis DeNicola
Louis DeNicola is freelance personal finance and credit writer who works with Fortune 500 financial services firms, FinTech startups, and non-profits to teach people about money and credit. His clients include BlueVine, Discover, LendingTree, Money Management International, U.S News and Wirecutter.
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