Best Credit Cards for Young Professionals [2023]

According to Experian, millennials have about three credit cards on average, whereas Generation Z individuals have about two. So younger generations are using credit cards, but not quite at the levels of baby boomers and Generation X individuals, who both have more than four credit cards on average.

Fewer credit cards can mean fewer opportunities to build credit, which can restrict your financial opportunities down the road. However, it’s also important to balance more credit cards with responsible credit card use. There’s no point in getting a credit card if you don’t plan on paying off the balance.

So as you learn about the best credit cards for young professionals, remember that credit cards are designed to help you reach your financial goals. Your situation is unique, so the best credit card for you may not make sense for someone else. This line of thought will help you align a card’s features and benefits with your spending habits and lifestyle.

Best credit cards for young professionals

• Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card
• Chase Freedom Flex℠
• Citi^® Double Cash Card
• Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express
• Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card
• Discover it^® Secured Credit Card
• Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card

What’s the best credit card for a young professional?

The best credit card for a young professional is the one that could help you achieve your goals. If your main goal is to build credit without worrying about specific card rewards or benefits, basically any credit card can help do that. However, it likely makes more sense to consider multiple factors when choosing a credit card.

As a young professional, your considerations for credit cards may differ from someone else’s. Your credit history may be fairly limited, so a credit card can help you build credit. Or you want to earn rewards on everyday purchases to save money and fuel future vacations. You may have existing credit card debt, so a balance transfer card can help you avoid high interest rates while you get your finances in order.

Whatever your considerations, you have plenty of options to choose from. However, some credit cards may align perfectly with your financial needs, some get close, and others aren’t anywhere near the mark. Thinking about your needs and financial situation beforehand can make it easier to find the best fit for your wallet.

7 best credit cards for young professionals

Each of the listed cards can provide significant benefits depending on what you’re looking for. They’ve been picked specifically for young professionals, which can sometimes mean young adults applying for one of their first credit cards. To find the card best suited for you, browse the table and then dig deeper into the details below.

Card name	Best for...	Reward details	Annual fee
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card	Frequent travel	5X points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®; 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and eligible online grocery purchases; 2X points on all other travel purchases, and 1X points per $1 on all other eligible purchases	$95
Chase Freedom Flex℠	Takeout and drugstores	5% cash back on rotating quarterly categories (on up to $1,500 spent) and travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal; 3% cash back at restaurants (including takeout and delivery) and drugstores; and 1% cash back on all other purchases	$0
Citi® Double Cash Card	Balance transfers and unlimited cash back	2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases	$0
Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express	Groceries and streaming services	6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets (for first $6,000 per year, after that 1%) and on select U.S. streaming services, 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations and on eligible transit, and 1% cash back on other eligible purchases	$0 intro annual fee for the first year, $95 per year thereafter (terms apply)
Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card	Average credit	Unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase; plus 5% unlimited cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel	$39
Discover it® Secured Credit Card	Bad or limited credit	2% cash back on purchases at restaurants and gas stations (up to $1,000 quarterly), and 1% cash back on all other purchases	$0
Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card	Entrepreneurs	Unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase	$0

Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card: Best for frequent travel

If you travel for work or fun, the Chase Sapphire Preferred is one of the best travel credit cards to have. It has a low $95 annual fee and earns 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®; 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and eligible online grocery purchases; 2X points on all other travel purchases, and 1X points per $1 on all other eligible purchases. In addition, the points you earn are worth 25% more when redeemed for travel through the Chase travel portal.

Earning points in the Chase Ultimate Rewards program can be beneficial for young professionals who travel often. It’s easy to book award flights and hotel stays through Chase, or you can transfer points to more than a dozen Chase transfer partners. These include major hotel and travel partners like JetBlue, Marriott Bonvoy, and World of Hyatt.

It’s also helpful knowing the Sapphire Preferred is one of the best Visa credit cards. Because Visa is accepted in hundreds of countries and territories worldwide, you know your card will generally be accepted everywhere you travel. Plus, this card doesn’t have any foreign transaction fees, so you’re free to make purchases abroad without worrying about this additional cost.

For more information, check out our Chase Sapphire Preferred review.

Chase Freedom Flex℠: Best for takeout and drugstores

The Chase Freedom Flex is an ideal option for young professionals who want a cash rewards credit card with a $0 annual fee. This card earns 5% cash back on rotating quarterly categories (on up to $1,500 spent) and travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal; 3% cash back at restaurants (including takeout and delivery) and drugstores; and 1% cash back on all other purchases.

The bonus categories are common, which makes them incredibly useful. So if you often make purchases at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery) and drugstores, it’s easy to earn loads of cash back. Plus, the rotating categories can help you earn more rewards. Chase Freedom categories have included everyday bonus categories like grocery stores, gas, PayPal, Walmart, Amazon.com, and more.

Once you’ve earned enough cashback rewards, redeem them for a statement credit, a direct deposit into your eligible bank account, shopping trips on Amazon, gift cards, or to book travel through Chase.

Additional benefits with this card include cell phone protection, purchase protection, extended warranty protection, trip cancellation/interruption insurance, and an auto rental collision damage waiver. Not everyone will use these benefits, but they can come in handy when you need them. It can hurt to have to pay for repairs on an expensive phone, but a benefit like cell phone protection could help mitigate eligible costs.

For more information, check out our Chase Freedom Flex review.

Citi^® Double Cash Card: Best for balance transfers and unlimited cash back

The Citi Double Cash Card is one of the best cashback credit cards available. It earns 2% on every purchase with unlimited 1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases. There’s no worrying about which type of purchase earns what percentage of cash back. Rather, you make a purchase and on-time payments and earn up to 2% cash back. It’s simple and straightforward with a $0 annual fee as well.

This type of card makes it easy to earn cash back, which could appeal to young professionals. You already have plenty to worry about, like furthering your career or working on a side hustle, so an uncomplicated cashback card might be a good fit. Cashback rewards can be redeemed for statement credits, a direct deposit, a mailed check, or converted to Citi ThankYou points.

In addition, the Citi Double Cash is also one of our picks for the best balance transfer cards. This means you can transfer existing debt to this card and receive 0% intro APR on the transfer for 18 months (then 18.99% - 28.99% (Variable)). So that gives recent college grads, new car owners, and plenty of people in other situations 18 months to avoid interest on a transferred balance.

For more information, check out our Citi Double Cash Card review.

Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express: Best for groceries and streaming services

For a cashback credit card that earns rewards on multiple everyday expenses, consider the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express. You can earn 6% cash back on purchases from U.S. supermarkets (for first $6,000 per year, after that 1%) and on select U.S. streaming services, which is one of the best rates available for these categories. But you also get 3% bonus cash back for purchases at U.S. gas stations and eligible transit. Eligible transit includes ride-share services, like Uber and Lyft.

These are typical expenses for everyone, but young professionals could use the accelerated cash back to save up money for big purchases, like a down payment on a house or a new laptop.

Keep in mind, the Amex Blue Cash Preferred does have a $0 intro annual fee for the first year, $95 per year thereafter, but the earning potential can outweigh this cost. For example, spending $6,000 on purchases in the 6% category would net you $360 ($6,000 x .06 = $360) in cash back. That’s a net profit of $265 ($360 - $95 = $265).

For more information, check out our Amex Blue Cash Preferred Card review.

Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card: Best for average credit

The Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is an excellent option for young professionals who have average credit. You likely don’t need more than fair credit to qualify for this card, which translates to a FICO Score between 580 and 669. So if you’re building credit and lengthening your credit history, this could be an ideal card to help you open up more financial opportunities down the road. 

Do note that numerical credit scores are provided as guidelines only and are not a guarantee of approval.

Also, the Capital One QuicksilverOne’s earning potential is surprisingly decent for its less-than-strict credit requirements. Cardholders can earn an unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase; plus 5% unlimited cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. It does have a $39 annual fee, but the cost is likely worth it to build your credit and earn rewards at the same time.

Your cashback rewards can be redeemed for a statement credit, to cover recent purchases, and for gift cards. As you use your credit card, Capital One will periodically conduct automatic credit line reviews to determine whether you warrant a credit line increase.

Discover it^® Secured Credit Card: Best for bad or limited credit

If you’re a young professional with bad credit or no credit history, a $0 annual fee card like the Discover it Secured could make sense. The Discover it Secured is a secured credit card, which means you have to make a security deposit to be able to use the card. Your security deposit then serves as your credit limit. This is different from unsecured credit cards that offer you credit without having to make a security deposit. Most typical cards are unsecured credit cards.

The Discover it Secured earns 2% cash back on purchases at restaurants and gas stations (up to $1,000 quarterly), and 1% cash back on all other purchases. As you use your card and pay off your balance in full, you’ll earn rewards and get the opportunity to build your credit. Using a credit card responsibly, including a secured credit card, reports useful information to credit bureaus and helps increase your credit score and credit history.

If you pay off your balance and close your credit card account, you’ll have your security deposit refunded. You’ll also receive your security deposit back if Discover reviews your credit card history and thinks you no longer need to have the deposit in place.

Ink Business Unlimited^® Credit Card: Best for entrepreneurs

For entrepreneurial-minded young professionals, the Chase Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card is a good starting point. It is one of the best business credit cards available, which can be helpful if you’re starting your own business or running a side hustle.

The Ink Business Unlimited has a $0 annual fee and earns a solid Unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase. So on top of being able to separate your business expenses from your personal expenses, you also get to earn valuable rewards. In addition, this business credit card offers purchase protection, extended warranty protection, and auto rental collision damage waivers.

If you want to earn bonus points on common business expenses, consider pairing the Ink Business Unlimited with the Ink Business Cash^® Credit Card and Ink Business Preferred^® Credit Card. These cards provide different ways to earn more points, so you can maximize your earning potential between all three cards.

For more information, check out our Chase Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card review.

Why we chose these cards (methodology)

Young professionals are typically at a point in their lives where they’re learning about financial products and then implementing what they’ve learned. They may be recent college graduates or well into their careers. Some of them are making large purchases and investments, like buying a car or house.

Overall, the situations will vary, but most young professionals aren’t likely getting ready for retirement or sitting on heaps of savings. This presents an opportunity for credit cards to help these individuals reach financial goals they otherwise wouldn’t be able to attain.

We picked the credit cards in this guide based on their usefulness for different situations that a young professional might find themselves in, whether it’s paying down debt, building credit, saving up for travel, or saving money on everyday expenses. We didn’t want any cards with steep annual fees, but we also wanted each card to have helpful benefits a young professional could take advantage of.

FAQs about the best credit cards for young professionals

The bottom line

Finding the perfect credit card for your financial situation can be challenging, especially when you’re learning about credit cards as a young adult. But if you think about your specific goals, spending habits, and lifestyle, it becomes easier to see what credit card features may be beneficial to you. Then you can align your goals with a credit card that will offer you the most value.

Keep in mind, every credit card can help you build credit, but it’s better to consider credit cards that can help you in other ways too. That way you can also earn valuable rewards or take advantage of other benefits at the same time as you take care of your financial future.