Best Credit Cards to Pay Taxes With [2025]: Give Yourself Time to Pay That Tax Bill

Tax season can be a time of dread, especially if you owe money. How you choose to pay your tax bill can relieve or add to that stress. In some cases, paying taxes with a credit card can be a smart financial move, but you have to make sure that the rewards or benefits you earn outweigh the processing fees and potential interest charges.

Choosing the right credit card is key. The best credit cards to pay taxes can help you earn valuable rewards and welcome bonuses. You could also take advantage of a 0% intro APR offer to give yourself extra time to pay.

When you should pay your taxes with a credit card

In most cases, using a credit card to pay your taxes will cost you processing fees. Those fees are about 1.75% to 1.85% of your tax bill. However, that doesn't mean that you should avoid paying your taxes with a credit card. In fact, there are some occasions when paying your taxes with a credit card may be a good idea.

You should consider paying your taxes with a credit card when:

You want to avoid late fees and penalties: If you don't have enough cash on hand to pay your tax bill in full, putting it on a credit card can help you meet the IRS payment deadline and avoid costly penalties or interest. Just make sure you have a plan to pay off your balance within the month so you don't trade one kind of interest for another.

You're trying to earn a welcome bonus: Many credit cards offer large welcome bonuses when you spend a certain amount within a few months. Paying your taxes with your credit card can help you hit that spending threshold and unlock those rewards.

You'll earn travel points or cash back: This is only a good idea if the rewards you earn are worth more than the processing fees it will cost you to earn them. If you are only earning 1% cash back on paying your taxes that won't even cover 1.75%-1.85% processing fee, making for a net loss.

Compare the best credit cards to pay taxes with

	Great for…	Annual fee	Intro APR offer
Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card(Rates and fees)	Unlimited cash rewards without categories	$0	0% intro APR on purchases and qualifying balance transfers for 12 months from account opening (then 18.74%, 24.74%, or 28.74% Variable)
Wells Fargo Reflect® Card(Rates and fees)	Long intro APR	$0	0% intro APR on purchases and qualifying balance transfers for 21 months from account opening (then 17.74%, 24.24%, or 28.49% Variable)
Discover it® Cash Back(Rates and fees)	Cashback match	$0	0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months (then 17.74% - 26.74% Variable)
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card	Travelers	$0	0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months (then 18.99% - 28.99% (Variable)) Balance transfer fee applies
Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express	Grocery shopping	$0 intro annual fee for the first year, $95 per year thereafter	0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months (then 19.74% - 28.74% Variable)

Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card

With the Wells Fargo Active Cash, you'll earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases, including your tax bill. While this may be less than what some other credit cards offer, you don't have to worry about specific spending categories to earn cash rewards.

Another perk of the Wells Fargo Active Cash card is that it offers an 0% intro APR on purchases and qualifying balance transfers for 12 months from account opening (then 18.74%, 24.74%, or 28.74% Variable). It also provides an easily attainable cash rewards intro bonus:

• $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months.

Apply now | Learn more in our Wells Fargo Active Cash review

Wells Fargo Reflect^® Card

If you want to pay your taxes on a credit card without incurring interest, the Wells Fargo Reflect may be a good option. This card offers one of the longest 0% intro APR periods out there. With the Reflect card, you'll have 0% intro APR on purchases and qualifying balance transfers for 21 months from account opening (then 17.74%, 24.24%, or 28.49% Variable).

However, the Reflect card doesn't offer any cash back or points rewards for your purchases, and there aren't any bonus offers. It doesn't have as many perks as other Wells Fargo credit cards, such as the Wells Fargo Active Cash card, either. The primary benefit to using this card to pay your taxes is that you can meet the IRS deadline and then have quite a bit of time to actually pay down your tax bill without accruing interest on the balance.

Apply now | Learn more in our Wells Fargo Reflect review

Discover it^® Cash Back

Earning cash back on your purchases is great, but doubling your cash back at the end of your first year is even better, and that's precisely what the Discover It Cash Back credit card offers.

This card lets you earn 5% cash back on everyday purchases at different places you shop each quarter like grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, and more, up to the quarterly maximum when you activate. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.. Discover will also match the total amount you've earned at the end of your first year after you open your account.

If you use the Discover It Cash Back to pay your $3,000 tax bill, for example, the 1% cash back you'll earn will be enough to cover some of the processing fees. Then, with Discover's cashback match, you'll earn a little extra cash back in your pocket come the end of your first cardholder year.

You don't have control over the categories that earn 5% cash back. Those categories are set by Discover each quarter and must be activated. For example, from October through December 2025, drugstore and Amazon.com purchases earn 5% cash back. The rewards are also capped at $1,500 in spending each quarter. Once you reach that cap, you earn 1% cash back.

Apply now | Learn more in our Discover It Cash Back review

Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card

Frequent travelers should have a card from Capital One's Venture line in their wallet. The issuer offers some of the best travel credit cards available. All Venture cards earn miles on purchases, which you can use for travel expenses.

With the VentureOne Rewards card, you'll earn 5 miles per dollar on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 1.25 miles per dollar on every purchase, every day. While this reward rate is low compared to other Venture cards, the VentureOne Rewards has the advantage of a $0 annual fee and a 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months (then 18.99% - 28.99% (Variable)), which the other cards don't (Balance transfer fee applies).

The VentureOne Rewards card is offering new customers the following welcome bonus:

• 20,000 miles

Learn more in our Capital One VentureOne review.

Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express

The amount of cash back you earn by paying your taxes with the American Express Blue Cash Preferred may not be enough to cover the fees, but it could qualify you for a nice welcome offer.

Cardholders can earn a $250 statement credit after spending $3,000 on eligible purchases in the first 6 months. This timeframe is longer than the three months most credit cards offer. With the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card, you'll also get {cc_4.balance_transfer_intro_apr}} intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months (then 19.74% - 28.74% Variable), giving you some time to pay off those taxes before you have to pay interest.

The Blue Cash Preferred^® Card from American Express(See rates and fees) is one of the best cash back credit cards available for everyday expenses. While it only rewards you 1% cash back for paying your tax bill, you can earn 6% cash back on U.S. supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year in eligible purchases, after that 1%) and on select U.S. streaming services and 3% cash back on U.S. gas stations and transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more).

Learn how to apply | Learn more in our American Express Blue Cash Preferred review

FAQs

Bottom line

Paying taxes with a credit card can make sense in the right circumstances, especially if you want to earn a welcome bonus, take advantage of a 0% intro APR period, or rack up cash back or travel rewards that offset the processing fees.

If you plan to use a credit card to pay your tax bill, look for one that offers a strong welcome bonus or 0% intro APR. The best credit cards can help you meet your tax obligations on time while also putting a little extra in your wallet.

How we rate products

To determine the best credit cards for paying taxes, we looked at popular cards that could help cardholders either offset IRS processing fees or give them time to pay off their balance without interest. Factors we considered include introductory APR offers, welcome bonuses, annual fees, and cash back or travel rewards provided.