First Credit Card

[deleteduser]

I'm finally going to get my own credit card, currently a college student with little income. With all the different types of cards out there what is best for your typical student? I really don't even know where to start, online, phone, the junk that comes in the mail? Any help would be great!

[hlacheen]

I just asked my bank where I have a checking account (BoA.) They gave me a $500 limit, %19.80 and no annual fees or anything.

After I had that for a few months, I got an offer from Capital One for a $500 limit visa with the same rate and no annual fees, which I accepted.

So I only have $1,000 total credit but its a start (18 and no job.)

[Dazarath]

Probably screw the junk that comes in the mail. I think getting one from the bank you use is a good idea. It makes it easier to pay off the credit card a lot of the time. No annual fee is a MUST. High interest rate is not too big of a deal, IMO, because you really shouldn't be using it as a loan, rather just for convenience and to build credit. AKA, pay it off every month.

[gull]

Make sure that if you do get a credit card, you don't fall into the trap of carrying a balance. Credit cards are great only if you pay the balances off entirely every single month. Many people don't do this and get into thousands of dollars of debt.

Creditcards.com might help you compare cards. I would recommend getting a card with no annual fee, and good rewards. And since you won't be carrying a balance, ignore the interest rate and 0% teasers. Be aware that without a good credit score/history, you may be rejected from the cards with bigger rewards. If that happens, shoot for some college student cards with mediocre rewards.

[wmspringer]

Avoid Capital One if you can; my first credit card was from them, but they're a real hassle to deal with. FWIW, from what I've heard AMEX tends to have very good customer service.

[mwgr5]

I just got an MTVU Visa credit card through city. You get rewards points for purchases and extra points for purchasing things like books and movie rentals. You also get points for getting good grades. The card was recommended on lots of sites for 1st time card users in college. It has no annual fee also. There are some other visa cards that offer good rewards for college students if you check out the website.

[jba]

bankoffers.com seems to be a decent site that lets you compare features and fees and stuff. also, they kick back some money for signing up for them -- I got a $40 check for getting an amex blue cash.

[Badger]

With very little income and (I assume) very little spending, the rewards out there won't matter a whole lot. If you're very financially responsible the interest rates shouldn't matter either, as you won't be carrying a balance. If you think you might be carrying a balance this should probably be your deciding factor.

I'd try to find something with good customer service to make it easy to deal with any of the hassles that may come up with using a credit card. I had an MBNA card and they were fantastic about removing fees for me. I always paid my balance on time, but there were a couple instances where I didn't due to being out of the country or forgetting or whatever. I called them up and it was literally as easy as saying, "hey I was kinda busy and forgot to take care of this." I haven't run into that since switching to other companies, so I don't know how they'd compare.

Once you're out there making some more money you'll want to do some research as to what kind of rewards program you want. You should be able to get 1-2% of your spending back in some form. If you're responsible in respect to paying off this card any one time sign up offers will probably be your biggest incentive for which card you choose, that or which card has the coolest picture on it.

[Big Boiler Dawg]

Question - Why do you want a credit card? Are you going to be renting a car?

Suggest you read "Total Money Makeover" by Dave Ramsey before proceeding.

If you then decide you must have a credit card, I suggest getting one from your local credit union or USAA Savings Bank. They tend to be less predatory than the big banks (esp. the evil BOA).