Which credit cards do you guys use?

[indesertum]

I've been wanting to get my first credit card so I can build up so credit before I go to graduate or med school, but I feel like most of the sites out there that review credit cards are sites from companies with a commercial interest.

I've heard AmEx is the best for customer service and various rewards, but not a lot of places here take it. I was thinking of some Visa card that gave some mixture of travel mileage and cashback and purchase insurance, but I haven't been able to find anything that would be useful for the shops that I use on regular basis for purchase (mainly the sufu, sf affiliated/often visited shops)

What do you guys use to buy your purchases?

[jonathanschley]

i have an AMEX plat, AMEX blue, and a BMW credit card. AMEX is by far the best, i only use my visa when someone doesn't take AMEX.

[Sayword]

in addition to which credit cards you use, what numbers are on the front? also the 3 digit number on the back and date it expires

[Dead_Wizard]

Amex blue is fantastic; I've saved almost 1k on flights over the past year.

[kunk75]

amex platinum and business platinum. regular credit cards are the devil. have paid them off like 5 times in 5 years, only to have kept racking them up until recently.

if a merchant doesn't take amex, i use my mastercard debit. if they only take visa, they can fuck themselves.

[pantheist]

amex clear

usaa mc credit

usaa mc debit

used in that order.

[ProfMonnitoff]

diners (best rewards but nobody ever takes it)

visa (taken everywhere)

i only use them for the convenience of cash-free transactions. they are always paid off.

[gramps]

I am not that involved enough to really comment on the benefit/detractors of my Amex card, but all I can say is that on a recent trip across Europe I found it really wasn't accepted very widely. In the future when traveling I'm definitely packing a Visa.

[docnbhd]

AMEX for sure. My girlfriend's card got stolen and whoever stole it charged close to $600 on it. AMEX took it all off, and gave her fraud protection for free. Their customer service is top-notch.

Stay away from Capital One

[m1sterko]

is it a good idea for me to get one?

i plan on using for internet purchase i know i can afford.

(and a cellphone)

but quick question... if im 17 can i still get one? or would my parents have to get one for me.

[kunk75]

seconded. capital one really sucks.

[docnbhd]

is it a good idea for me to get one?

i plan on using for internet purchase i know i can afford.

(and a cellphone)

but quick question... if im 17 can i still get one? or would my parents have to get one for me.

I think you can get one, a student card - Chase should have one. Your parents would probably have to co-sign.

[gre]

i personally use a visa card issued by an italian bank, here amex isnt widely accepted at all.

[m1sterko]

I think you can get one, a student card - Chase should have one. Your parents would probably have to co-sign.

you sure about that one? my dad hates chase... they call about 2 times a day. wtf!

credit cards are pretty tricky.....

[DüM]

CAPlTAL ONE MASTERCARD.

[whitney]

my mom got me my first citi cc at sixteen and I liked it so much I opened my own account, also because neiman marcus didn't accept anything but amex and cash back then I opened an Amex one too.

I don't think you need a lot of credit cards, just one or two that gives you a high credit limit and cash rewards (unless you like carrying lots of cash on hand, writing/carrying checks or have a tendency to max any limit given) and both citi and amex does that.

EDIT i've earned a couple hundred cashback, spent that too , cos I buy all major items on my cc if they take credit..my laptop, iPods, iPhone and of course clothes, books, magazines and tea/cookies.. the latter I purchase almost on a daily basis so it racks up :s

I also pay my bills via cc because either way I gotta pay right? might as well get a few cents to dollars back. doesn't seem much but it does add up.. recent I noticed some gas stations charging you less if you pay cash versus a card so I guess some merchants are really cutting corners so to speak

[eastcoastrider27]

I'm using some Platinum Visa.

I don't know what the difference between regular, gold, and platinum is. I don't get any rewards, and my APR is like 14%.

At least I don't have any fees to worry about.

[prideffle]

life takes visa

[kunk75]

and visa takes lives.

[Spastic_Koala]

AMEX Platinum. I also still have a Discover that I rarely use.

[bigsteve101]

i'm thinking of getting an AMEX jetblue, is the $40 annual fee worth it? i think i'll only spend about 15-20k each year

[idrawdinosaurs]

Platinum Visa

American Express Gold

Discover (5% cash back for Hotel and Gas for the Summer)

[Kodiak]

Chase/Amazon Visa

[enojy]

I've been wanting to get my first credit card so I can build up so credit before I go to graduate or med school

honestly, your best bet for this purpose is to go to your local credit union and find out if they offer secured credit cards. if you're unfamiliar, the way this works is you bring in a certain amount of money and deposit it into a new account created for the card. this money gets locked for a set amount of time (usually a year) and acts as your limit before you have to make a payment. after a year (or however long) transpires, the money you originally deposited is refunded to you. there's no approval process and no need for a co-sign, since all you're really doing is opening a savings account with the bank.

this is pretty much the best and safest way to build credit if you're starting from scratch (or worse.) i was in the same boat some years back, got a $300 secured visa from the local bank and used it mainly just for gas and cigarettes, and a year later my credit rating is in the 600s.

if you'd rather go the "regular" credit card route, just make your payments on time and never buy anything you aren't certain you could pay for on the spot with cash, and you'll be fine. some people claim you build credit faster if you don't pay your balance in full all the time (thus paying interest) but this isn't surefire AFAIK so i don't bother. avoid debit cards because they do absolutely nothing for your credit score.

[eastcoastrider27]

some people claim you build credit faster if you intentionally make your payments late (thus paying interest) but this isn't surefire AFAIK so i don't bother.

This would absolutely kill your credit score. There's a difference between not paying the full amount and paying late.

Late payments are terrible for your score.

[enojy]

This would absolutely kill your credit score. There's a difference between not paying the full amount and paying late.

Late payments are terrible for your score.

oh woops! you're totally right, i messed that up pretty badly so i'll edit it.

[rome1]

Amex blue ......ftw.

[kunk75]

i dunno-amex blue feels like buying diffusion.

[Guest jmatsu]

amex

mastercard

jcb

i have a discovery which i used only once in college. after that, no activity whatsoever. for some reason they gave me a 10k credit line. still never use it.

[dismalfuture]

I don't have a credit card. mrip says I'm 14.

I had my own platinum Visa issued from the family set of cards, until I racked about $60K on it, and then it was time to stop. Citibank is pretty convenient for traveling.