Sara Rathner

Secured credit cards can also serve anybody who is rebuilding their credit.

And if you want to save on interest on existing credit card debt or you're anticipating a really large purchase that you need to pay back over a long period of time, there are 0% interest cards for purchases or balance transfer cards that can be helpful if you're paying off debt.

Now, if you tend to carry a balance in alternative to a 0% card, because those are limited time promotions that do eventually end, there are also credit cards that offer lower interest rates.

Typically, credit unions offer these types of cards, so those are worth exploring too.

And so this is just to name the main kinds of credit cards you may encounter as you're making a decision as to what your next credit card will be.

Yeah, what you're talking about we call store credit cards.

So those are cards that are co-branded, there's that word again, for specific retailers.

Those cards are interesting because they tend to be easier to qualify for at a variety of different credit score ranges.

So for many people, this could be one of the first credit cards they're able to get, but they notoriously charge high interest rates.

Absolutely.

So you do want to be mindful of, you know, are you going to get a meaningful discount at a store that you spend a lot of money at?

But are you also able to pay those bills in full and on time and avoid that high interest debt?

So airline cards are often a better option if you fly a particular airline a lot.

If you live in a city that's a hub for a specific airline, think Miami or Dallas for American Airlines or Chicago for United or Atlanta for Delta, then you might fly one particular airline most of the time you travel.

And that's a really great way to tell if that card might be a good fit for you.

But if you live in a city like I do that's not predominantly served by one particular airline and you tend to hop around on different airlines,

You might want to consider something with a little bit more flexibility because you're not going to do the bulk of your flying on one particular airline.

But there are other things to consider, too.

Like I said, I don't live in a hub city.

I still carry airline cards because they do have other perks that I find valuable and meaningful.