Best credit cards for excellent credit in August 2022

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There’s a whole world of credit cards out there, but Creditcard’s knows you’re not trying to fit the world into your wallet. Our experts are dedicated to helping you make the right choice, with the best credit cards of 2022 available from our partners — rewards, cash back, travel, balance transfer, 0 percent intro APR and more. We do the research, so you don’t have to sift through hundreds of options to find the best credit card for you.

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BEST FOR CUSTOMIZABLE REWARDS

U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card

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Reward rate
5

5% cash back on your first $2,000 in eligible net purchases each quarter on the combined two categories you choose.

3

5% cash back on prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center.

-1

1% cash back on all other eligible purchases.

1

1% cash back on all other eligible purchases.

Intro offer

$200 bonus

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

16.74% - 26.74% (Variable)

Recommended credit

Good to Excellent (670 - 850)

The U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card is packed full of bonus rewards categories. It will take more than a little effort to track them all, but people who don’t mind strategizing to earn high rewards for all their purchases will enjoy having this card in their collection.
Pros
  • Multiple rotating and fixed bonus categories, which can make it easier to earn rewards quickly
  • The $200 sign-up bonus (after spending $1,000 within the first 120 days of account opening) increases the card’s first-year value
Cons
  • The $2,000 combined spending cap each quarter for your chosen 5% categories limits your ability to rake in rewards
  • Having to track and enroll in rotating categories can be a hassle for some
  • New! $200 bonus after spending $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 120 days of account opening.
  • 5% cash back on your first $2,000 in combined eligible purchases each quarter on two categories you choose
  • 5% cash back on prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center
  • 2% cash back on one everyday category, like Gas Stations/EV Charging Stations, Grocery Stores or Restaurants
  • 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases
  • 0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 billing cycles. After that, a variable APR currently 16.74% – 26.74%
  • No Annual Fee
  • Pay over time by splitting eligible purchases of $100+ into equal monthly payments with U.S. Bank ExtendPay™ Plan.
  • Terms and conditions apply.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Purchase intro APR
0% Intro APR on purchases for the first 15 billing cycles.

Balance transfer intro APR
0% Intro APR on balance transfers for the first 15 billing cycles.

BEST FOR PERSONAL LOAN ALTERNATIVE

Upgrade Cash Rewards Elite Visa®

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Reward rate
2.2

Earn 2.2% unlimited cash back on card purchases every time you make a payment

Intro offer

$200

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

8.99% - 29.99% (Variable)

Recommended credit

Good to Excellent (670 - 850)

If you value having an incentive for making your credit card payments, you will find a lot to love with this card option. You’ll earn a competitive rate of 2.2 percent cash back on your purchases each time you make a payment. The card is also fairly affordable, skipping the annual fee, foreign transaction fees and many other common maintenance fees.
Pros
  • You won’t need to use your reward earnings to offset any maintenance fees.
  • You’ll earn a bonus after you open a Rewards Checking account and make three purchases with the card in your first 60 days.
Cons
  • The high end APR range is well above average. That could prove costly if you don’t have the credit needed to qualify for the lower range and you end up carrying a balance.
  • You won’t get a break on interest if you carry a balance since there are no intro APR offers on purchases or balance transfers.
  • $200 bonus on your Upgrade Card after opening a Rewards Checking account and making 3 debit card transactions within 60 days.*
  • New Feature: Pay your balance in full early each month and avoid interest with EarlyPay.
  • Earn 2.2% unlimited cash back on card purchases every time you make a payment
  • See if you qualify in seconds with no impact to your credit score
  • No Fees – $0 annual fees, $0 activation fees, $0 maintenance fees
  • Combine the flexibility of a card with the low cost and predictability of a loan
  • Access to a virtual card, so you can start earning while you wait for your card to arrive in the mail.
  • Contactless payments with Apple Pay® and Google Pay™
  • Mobile app to access your account anytime, anywhere
  • Enjoy peace of mind with $0 Fraud liability
  • *To qualify for the $200 welcome bonus, you must open and fund a new Upgrade Rewards Checking Account and make 3 debit card transactions within 60 days of your Upgrade Card account opening. The bonus credit will be posted to your Upgrade Card as a rewards credit within 1-2 billing periods following the third debit transaction on your Rewards Checking account. Your Upgrade Card must be in good standing to receive the bonus.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Purchase intro APR
N/A

Balance transfer intro APR
N/A

BEST FOR GROCERIES

Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express

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Reward rate
6

6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%).

1

6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions.

3

3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations

0

3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations

1

1% Cash Back on other purchases

Intro offer

$350

Annual fee

$95

Regular APR

16.24%-26.24% Variable

Recommended credit

Good to Excellent (670 - 850)

With generous rewards rates in family-friendly categories including purchases at U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations, on-the-go families will have a hard time finding a more rewarding credit card.
Pros
  • The base reward program is uber-lucrative, making this card a good choice for people looking for long-term value.
  • You don’t have to keep track of rotating spending categories or enrollment deadlines.
Cons
  • There is no intro APR offer on balance transfers.
  • You won’t earn the extra rewards for grocery shopping at major superstores and wholesale clubs, as those don’t count as U.S. supermarkets.
  • Earn a $350 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months.
  • Buy Now, Pay Later: Enjoy $0 intro plan fees when you use Plan It® to split up large purchases into monthly installments. Pay $0 plan fees on plans created during the first 12 months after account opening. Plans created after that will have a fixed monthly plan fee up to 1.33% of each purchase amount moved into a plan based on the plan duration, the APR that would otherwise apply to the purchase, and other factors.
  • Low intro APR: 0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases from the date of account opening, then a variable rate, 16.24% to 26.24%.
  • 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%).
  • 6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions.
  • 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations and on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more).
  • 1% Cash Back on other purchases.
  • Cash Back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit.
  • $95 Annual Fee.
  • Terms Apply.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Purchase intro APR
0% on purchases for 12 months

Balance transfer intro APR
N/A

BEST FOR ROTATING CASH BACK CATEGORIES

Discover it® Cash Back

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Reward rate
5

Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations and when you pay using PayPal, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate.

1

Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases – automatically.

Intro offer

Cashback Match™

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

13.49% - 24.49% Variable

Recommended credit

Good to Excellent (670 - 850)

The Discover it Cash Back is a popular choice for cash back rewards because of the rotating bonus categories. It’s an exciting way to earn cash back quarter by quarter and all year-round without committing to a set rewards category.
Pros
  • Discover will match the cash back you earn at the end of the first year.
  • There are a few cash back redemption options, including credit to your account and donations.
Cons
  • You must enroll to take advantage of the bonus categories each quarter.
  • There is a spending limit on your highest cash back category each quarter ($1,500 in combined purchases per quarter).
  • Intro Offer: Unlimited Cashback Match – only from Discover. 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. You could turn $150 cash back into $300.
  • Earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places each quarter like Amazon.com, grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations and when you pay using PayPal, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases – automatically.
  • New! Discover helps remove your personal information from select people-search websites. Activate by mobile app for free.
  • Every $1 you earn in cash back is $1 you can redeem.
  • New Intro APR: Get a 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases. Then 13.49% to 24.49% Standard Variable Purchase APR applies, based on credit worthiness.
  • No annual fee.

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Purchase intro APR
0% for 15 months

Balance transfer intro APR
0% for 15 months

BEST FOR UP TO 2% CASH BACK

Citi® Double Cash Card

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Reward rate
2

Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases.

Intro offer

$200 Cash Back

Annual fee

$0

Regular APR

16.24% - 26.24% (Variable)

Recommended credit

Good to Excellent (670 - 850)

If you make your payments on time each month, it’ll be tough to find a better cash back card than the Citi Double Cash Card. With healthy financial habits, this card effectively becomes a 2 percent flat-rate cash back card (1 percent when you make purchases and another 1 percent when you pay your bill), a rare find in the cash back market.
Pros
  • You can convert your cash back earnings to Citi ThankYou points when paired with a card like the Citi Premier® Card, which can be redeemed for travel, gift cards and more.
  • There are no spending category restrictions or rotating categories
Cons
  • Your rewards can expire with this card if you don’t use it for a year.
  • The sign-up bonus spending requirement is higher than you’ll find on many no-annual-fee cash back cards.
  • Earn 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases.
  • For a limited time, earn $200 cash back after spending $1,500 on purchases in the first 6 months of account opening.
  • Balance Transfer Only Offer: 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 18 months. After that, the variable APR will be 16.24% – 26.24%, based on your creditworthiness.
  • Balance Transfers do not earn cash back. Intro APR does not apply to purchases.
  • If you transfer a balance, interest will be charged on your purchases unless you pay your entire balance (including balance transfers) by the due date each month.
  • There is an intro balance transfer fee of 3% of each transfer (minimum $5) completed within the first 4 months of account opening. After that, your fee will be 5% of each transfer (minimum $5).

ADDITIONAL FEATURES

Purchase intro APR
N/A

Balance transfer intro APR
0% intro for 18 months on Balance Transfers

A closer look at Creditcard’s best cards for excellent credit

Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card: Best for dining and entertainment

  • What we love about the Capital One SavorOne: It’s rare for a no annual fee card to earn such robust rewards rates in these particular categories in dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and grocery store categories.
  • Who this card is good for: Socialites and social butterflies who will make the most out of the SavorOne’s very generous dining rewards.
  • Alternatives: The Discover it Chrome card is another card that offers competitive rewards rates on dining. It also tacks on gas rewards which is great for people who are often on the go, something that the SavorOne falls a bit short on.

Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express: Best overall cash back for families

  • What we love about the Blue Cash Preferred: The rewards categories on this card are some of the most popular spending categories for most consumers so if you play your cards right (pun intended), you’ll have a nice stack of rewards in your cash back match in your first year.
  • Who this card is good for: On-the-go people who spend a fair amount of money at gas stations and restaurants. You can earn 2 percent in those categories on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, then 1 percent.
  • Alternatives: The Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards card outpaces the Discover it Chrome by a lot if your main squeeze is getting the most out of dining rewards.

Citi Rewards+ Card: Best for rewards on small purchases

  • What we love about the Blue Cash Preferred: Thanks to the Citi Rewards+ Round Up feature, every purchase you make will be rounded up to the nearest 10 points. For example, a $4 coffee would be worth 10 points.
  • Who this card is good for: Frequent supermarket and gas station shoppers who want to earn cash back rewards easily without big spending habits.
  • Alternatives: If you want to expand beyond the Citi ThankYou® Points program, the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Card offers unlimited flat-rate rewards on all purchases, casting a wide net on your earning opportunities outside of a designated points program.

What is an excellent credit score?

An excellent credit score is usually considered an 800 to 850 on the FICO scale. VantageScore is a bit more lenient in considering “excellent” to fall anywhere between 750 and 850. VantageScore and FICO both incorporate data from credit bureaus, but their scores are generated with different mathematical models. Despite their differences, if you have excellent credit, both will generally reflect it.

Creditcard's Insight

Is having excellent credit today a reliable indicator of your finances tomorrow? According to Experian, less than 1 percent of people who have Exceptional FICO Scores (800 to 850) are likely to become seriously delinquent in the future.

How to get an excellent credit score

Achieving excellent credit requires a combination of good financial habits and patience. A great way to get started is with the following key steps.

  1. Familiarize yourself with the factors that make up your credit score. Things like your credit utilization ratio, the age of your accounts, your payment history, credit mix and new credit are all major facets that make up your credit score. Understanding these factors and the effects they have on your score is a key part of making sure you know how to build it up.
  2. Dispute any errors you find on your credit report (which is not the same as your credit score). Your credit report is a compilation of your entire history as a credit user, while your credit score can be thought of as a current-day snapshot. You can remove negative items from your credit report by reaching out directly to the credit bureau, and getting rid of these items that are hindering your score can be a game-changer when building credit.
  3. Pay off debts regularly and keep your credit utilization ratiolow. Overspending on the amount of credit available to you sends signals of financial instability to lenders. Paying your bills on time and in full each month and building a positive payment history is one of the best ways to see steady growth in your credit score.
  4. Avoid applying for multiple cards in a short period. Doing so can signal to lenders that you are a riskier candidate. Also, each card application you submit will result in a hard credit check. Hard credit checks can temporarily drive down your credit score.
  5. Have patience. You likely won’t achieve an excellent score within months of opening your first credit card. Also, remember that you don’t need to strive for a perfect 850 credit score. Anyone with a score within the “exceptional” range, which FICO considers 800 and above, should be able to enjoy the same benefits as someone with a perfect score.
Creditcard's Insight

An excellent credit score—qualified as 800 and up according to FICO—isn’t as uncommon as you may think. Twenty-one percent of all consumers’ credit scores fall into the excellent category. On the other hand, only 1.2 percent of Americans have a “perfect” FICO Score of 850. However, an exceptional FICO Score of 800 or above means you already enjoy virtually all the benefits of a perfect score.

How to maintain an excellent credit score

  • Keep up with the positive credit habits you’ve established. If you have excellent credit, odds are you’re already paying your credit card bills on time and in full and keeping your credit utilization low. Continuing with these and other positive credit habits is a solid way to maintain your excellent score.
  • Dive into a credit card strategy. Having excellent credit affords you access to some of the best credit cards on the market. Put your responsibility skills to good use and develop a strategy to use these top-tier cards to reap the highest returns on your most popular purchases while still putting your good credit habits at the forefront to keep you on top.
  • Focus on long-term maintenance over short-term fluctuations. As you continue to build your credit portfolio, you may find yourself applying for new cards or upgrading to better versions of the ones you already have. New credit inquiries of any kind may cause small score dips here and there, but as long as you continue to make smart credit choices, you should be able to maintain your excellent score.

How to choose a credit card when you have excellent credit

Reaching an excellent credit score isn’t an easy feat, and it doesn’t happen overnight. When you have excellent credit, there are so many options available to you when choosing a credit card that it might be difficult to narrow your choices. Determining what’s important to you will help hone in on the right choice when choosing a credit card. Ask yourself:

There’s a credit card to fit almost any financial situation. The first thing you should address when choosing a credit card is how the credit card will benefit you. For example, many consumers want to stock up on travel rewards with their credit cards but don’t travel enough to justify the costs associated with a travel card. In this case, jumping at the first travel card that appears lucrative won’t serve you well if you don’t take an honest look at your travel habits. On the other hand, most consumers will find real value in a cash back card with elevated rewards in a category they spend heavily in like gas or groceries

Most credit cards for people with excellent credit come with premium perks, lucrative rewards and a number of fees to match. Paying an annual fee or a foreign transaction fee isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you’re finding value from your card in other places. If you use a card strategically, you can wind up saving money overall despite the fees.

Understand that excellent credit won’t always be enough when you apply for a credit card. Factors such as income and existing debt will play a part in how likely you are to be approved for any credit card. If you want to increase your chances of being approved for the credit card you want, work on improving your finances overall.

How we chose our best cards for excellent credit scores

Bankrate’s 5-star scoring system evaluates features that offer maximum value and first-rate user experience. For cards in the excellent credit category, we refine the method to focus on a set of particular factors including:
Rewards value

By matching lifestyle categories with the cards most likely to maximize returns, we've made it easy for you to find the card that will offer the best value — points, miles or cash back.

APR

Annual percentage rate (APR) represents interest charges you would face if you didn't pay your balance fully. With excellent credit, you're more likely to qualify for a low APR.

Extras and discounts

On top of earning rewards, each credit card on this list offers features that raise its overall value. Perks like statement credits on travel, access to travel lounges, and free credit score monitoring allow cardholders to maximize the benefits of achieving a strong credit score.

Cost of ownership

Some of these cards come with an annual fee, but in those cases, the earnings potential should outweigh the cost. The travel cards frequently waive foreign transaction fees.

More resources for excellent credit consumers

If you have excellent credit, you can qualify for some of the best cards on the market. Here are some resources to help you get more information about credit cards and credit scores:

  • Do you have an excellent credit score? Here’s why it matters.
  • Learn more about excellent credit scores and what it means.
  • Did your credit score drop? Find out why

Frequently asked questions about credit cards for excellent credit scores

If you’re starting from scratch, be patient. Experian estimates it takes three to six months to develop a score in the first place. It can take years of good habits to reach the excellent range.

Aside from the roughly 100 point difference between the two on the FICO scale, a higher credit score often means better interest rates on life’s big ticket items like mortgages and auto loans.

There is no perfect number of credit cards you can or should have to maintain excellent credit. However, having access to more credit could reflect positively for you, especially when it comes to your credit utilization ratio. The more available credit you have, the better this ratio can be. You should also keep in mind that applying for too many cards in a short amount of time could drive down your score. Keeping a number of cards you can continue to manage responsibly is your best bet.

Excellent-credit credit cards often feature some of the best benefits on the market, including:

  • Lengthy 0 percent introductory APR offers on purchases and balance transfers
  • High rewards rates for cash back, points and miles
  • Valuable sign-up bonuses
  • Low interest rates
  • Travel insurance
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • Car rental insurance
  • Airport lounge access

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