Credit Cards

The very best credit cards require good credit or better, which means a 700+ credit score. There are credit cards for people of all credit levels, though, including people with bad credit or no credit. Knowing where you stand will help you identify the right cards to consider, and you can check your latest credit score with PFM Verify.

If you plan to pay your bill in full every month, focus on comparing the cards’ rewards and annual fees. If you want to avoid interest, concentrate on credit cards offering 0% introductory APRs on purchases or balance transfers, depending on whether or not you already owe the money. And if you’re just trying to build or rebuild your credit, aim for low fees and high approval odds.

Ongoing features such as annual fees and regular rewards rates become more and more important the longer you plan to have the card. On the other hand, there are times when it will make more sense to capitalize on short-term deals like initial rewards bonuses and low intro APRs. When it comes to initial bonuses, you’ll also want to make sure you’re in a position to spend enough to trigger the bonus in the allotted time frame without overburdening yourself.

Applying for a new credit card account usually results in a hard inquiry into your credit history, which can cause your credit score to drop a bit temporarily. This shouldn’t be a problem unless you plan to apply for a mortgage or an auto loan in the near future, however. At the end of the day, picking the right credit card for your needs might seem a bit daunting, but we’ve done the research to make things as easy as possible for you.