Whats the best credit card?

I'm about to be a college student and I'm looking to start establishing good credit for myself. I have never opened a credit card before and i want to get the best one possible for a student. Does anyone have any ideas which card works great with students? Do you have any advice on them? What criteria should I stick with when it comes to choosing the right card? Do you know what credit card company not to deal with? What do you think?

As the name suggests, a student credit card is specially designed for students and is very different from your regular credit card. Because it may be the first time for college students to apply for a credit card, most credit card companies designed their student credit cards to be a form of secured credit cards.

It will help a student to avoid accumulating high amounts of debt because of reckless spending. If you need groceries, or that recommended book but you don't have the money for it, then it may be time for you to use your student credit card. It is good if you start learning good financial habits from your student life itself. Don't use the card to pay for everything and anything. Use it judicially or it will land you in a debt to repay after the college finishes.

It is not unusual to find the representatives of credit card companies promoting student credit card in college campuses. However, finding a right card will take much more than contacting the representative of credit card company. Develop a habit of shopping around and getting the best deal out there. Though the interest rates on student credit cards are relatively low, they also offer a low credit amount. If used judicially student credit card can become the perfect means to build a credit history and jumpstart your financial wellbeing. Read more or Apply online at: http://www.credit-card-gallery.com/Student_Card.html

- no annual fee
- low interest rate
- some bonus program like mileage or cash back at the end of the year
- get a balance that you can handle
- make small purchases and pay it off in full

I've got all sorts of advice for you!!! : )

First off, DO NOT EVER get store cards such as Target, Kohl's, JCPenney, Macys, Dillards, etc. The interest rates are very high. They entice you by offering you a discount, which makes you want to spend a lot to get the discount on as much as possible, which usually means racking up most of the initial credit limit.

Part of your credit score is based on your debt to credit limit ratio. So for example, if you have 1 card only, with a $500 limit, and you only charge $50.... you are using only 10% of your total open credit. But if you max it out, then you are using 100%. The more of your open credit you are using, the worse your score.

Plus a BIG thing about those cards many people don't know - they are linked to auto insurance companies. If you used department store cards, especially if you are carrying a balance or aren't paying on time - your auto insurance goes up. ("If you charge more than 50% of your available credit on department store credit cards, do you know that that goes on your credit report, the car insurance people will look at it. Don't be surprised to see a 20 or 30% increase in your car insurance premium." Suze Orman - Financial Advisor)

Probably the best type of card to start with would be a gas card. Shell, Exxon, Phillips 66, Chevron. Charge your gas on your car and pay it off each month. After doing this about 6 months or a year, then you will have established some credit with good payment history and no credit debt.

At that point then get a regular credit card. Try looking for one with no annual fee. Also try to find one that has a low interest rate (preferably fixed, although these are hard to find), like around 10% or less.

ALWAYS try to pay off whatever you charge each month. This will keep you out of debt, and will establish a good payment pattern and you will have excellent credit with a great credit score in no time.

Capital One is a good company. Citibank is another. There are others out there. Do your research.

Credit history is important. Once you get a card, let's say you have it for 4 years, and you want another card with a better deal. Fine, you get the new card. DON'T cancel that first card, because that has 4 years of credit history with it. If you did get rid of it, then you are almost starting over with your credit history. Not only that, but now you just got rid of that extra open credit. Remember what I said earlier about that? So say that first card had $500 credit limit, and now you want a new card also with a $500 limit... even if you don't want to use that first card anymore, you will now have $1000 open credit. So if you charge $250 on that new card, you are still only using 25% of your total open credit.... but if you had got rid of that first card, not only are you getting rid of prior credit history, but now you'd be using 50% of your total open credit.

More advice - Go get a book by Suze Orman called "Young, Fabulous and Broke." This book is geared towards people around your age through early 30's mainly. She explains how to establish credit, how to buy your first car, how to handle student loan debt, how to buy your first house, how to save for retirement, etc. She explains what to do first, etc. There is an accompanying website with the book too. She's a world renouned famous financial advisor. She's got her own tv show as well.

More advice - ALWAYS check your credit report and credit score at least once a year. You can do this for free now. The government mandated this just a few years back. (http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/credit/ycr_free_reports.htm)

Make sure you get that book and read it. It will do you right!

: )

american express blue for students is awesome! i got it when i started college too. not only is it no fee, they don't charge interest rate on u at all. once a yr and that's it. if u have a balance left over for the next month, they don't charge u anything. i still have mine and ain't closing it!

First, I've got to refute some of the not-so-great advice others have given you.

- It's actually good for your FICO credit score to get department store credit cards since a part of your credit score is based on the types of credit you have and department store cards count as a different category than normal credit cards. Just don't carry a balance on them and you won't pay interest. (For all the details of how your FICO score is calculated, you can see the June 30th posting at http://www.uthunk.com/ . From that you'll learn why you don't want to cancel card you're not using, etc.)

- You can't get your FICO credit score for free, but you can look at your credit report (i.e. the historical detail) for free once a year at http://www.annualcreditreport.com/ .

- Capital One is not one of the best credit card companies. You can read all about their poor reputation on the web. For example, they don't actually report your credit limit to the credit reporting agencies. Instead they report your limit as your balance, thereby making it look like your utilization is 100%, which hurts your FICO credit score. American Express, Citibank, and Chase are all good, with AmEx leading the pack.

- There are much better student credit cards for rewards than the AmEx Blue for Students. For example, the Citi mtvU card (I wish I could get that for the 5% earnings at restaurants, movie theaters, etc.) and the Citi Driver's Edge for Students. However, to find the student credit card that will pay you the most rewards for your normal spending profile, you can use this rewards calculator:
http://www.creditcardtuneup.com/?card_type=College+Student

Once you've got the rewards card (or even combination of 2 cards) that will pay you the most for your normal spending profile, your strategy should be this:

1. Funnel most/all of your normal spending through your rewards card.
2. Always pay your balance(s) in full every month.

That way, you'll:
1. Build your credit very quickly
2. Avoid interest
3. Earn maximal rewards

That's the strategy I've used for years and it has served me very well. Many others do exactly the same thing.

Don't get a credit card. Get a debit card, on with the Visa or MC logo on it OR get a prepaid credit card. Credit cards are such a trap that I wouldn't recommend any to anyone. If you don't have the cash right there and then to buy something then you don't buy it.

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