A lot of people are critical of them, but the truth of the matter is that student credit cards are one of the best ways for young adults to establish their credit. Building a solid credit history will make it easier to borrow money down the road… whether it be for a car, a home, or graduate school. Plus, good credit often makes it possible to borrow at lower interest rates. The top 3 myths about credit cards for college students:
- Myth #1: Student cards are out to get you. As with any type of credit, if used recklessly it will lead to problems. But the bottom line is that if you pay your balance in full each month, there won’t be any interest to pay.
- Myth #2: You need to carry a balance to build up your credit. What’s reported to the credit bureaus is your card’s balance at the end of a billing cycle (when the bill is issued). That means you do not need to carry a balance to build up your credit history. The amount due on the bill will still be reported whether you pay it in full or not. So pay your balance in full and avoid interest altogether.
- Myth #3: They don’t offer rewards or worthwhile benefits. It's true that most do not, but the best credit cards for college students will give great rewards as well as other valuable benefits.
Discover Mix Tape Student Card
- What's so unique about this is that it's the student version of the popular Discover More card. It gives you the same popular rewards but unlike the original, students with little to no credit may qualify.
- You get 5% in categories which change throughout the year. Examples include gas stations, clothing stores, restaurants, fast food and more. On all other spending you earn 0.25% to 1.00%.
- Best of all you earn 5% to 20% cash back at the top online stores through ShopDiscover. There are almost 200 online retailers participating such as Urban Outfitters, Walmart, iTunes, Apple Store, Target, Foot Locker, Groupon, American Eagle, Gap, Eastbay and tons of others.
- Choose from dozens of designs, including the sweet vintage mix tape pictured above
- No annual fee
Citi Forward (Student Version)
- No annual fee and no cosigner required
- Very high rewards on food and entertainment: 5x points on restaurants, fast food, music stores, movies (both theaters and rental stores), and bookstores. 1x points on everything else.
- You can get rewarded with extra points for simply paying on-time, not going past your credit limit, and enrolling in paperless statements.
- Other free benefits include retail purchase protection, extended warranty coverage, travel accident insurance, collision damage waiver for eligible car rentals, and decent interest rates considering it's a student credit card.
Discover Open Road for Students
- When you get the version for college students (versus the regular) the approval requirements are more relaxed.
- You get a full 2% cash back on up to $250 in combined spending on restaurant and gas purchases each month. For beyond that amount you still earn the regular cash back (same as you get on other purchases).
- The regular cash back is 0.25% on the first $3,000 spent per year and then 1.00% for everything after that. The year period starts when you open the account and resets on that anniversary date each year.
- Like the other Discover card, you can score cash back of 5% to 20% for online shopping through the ShopDiscover program.
- No annual fee