12 Best Visa Credit Cards in 2024

A Visa credit card is a card that runs on the Visa credit card processing network. Visa credit cards carry a Visa logo and are accepted in more than 200 countries and territories around the world.

Visa doesn’t actually issue credit cards, but instead serves card issuers, merchants and cardholders by providing the technology and infrastructure to run card transactions. Visa also offers benefits and protections for Visa cardholders.

Visa works closely with credit card issuers — lenders that offer credit cards — to make lending decisions and send funds to merchants to cover cardholders’ purchases. Many card issuers, including Bank of America, Citi and Chase, offer Visa credit cards.

Of the four major credit card payment networks, two — Visa and Mastercard — rely solely on banks and other card issuers to offer their credit cards. The other two — American Express and Discover — act as both credit card processing networks and card issuers for all of the cards they offer.

• Visa Traditional

  Visa Traditional Cards are entry-level credit cards with basic benefits. These benefits include emergency card replacement, travel assistance and zero liability for unauthorized transactions. Visa Traditional cards are also known as Visa Classic, Visa Gold and “Visa Platinum” cards, and they may include other benefits that are specific to the card issuer.

• Visa Signature

  Visa Signature cards are Visa’s middle-tier cards. Visa Signature cardholders receive trial offers and discounts for services like Shipt and Sofar. They also have access to exclusive perks through the Visa Signature Luxury Hotel Collection and Visa Signature Rental Car Privileges.

  Cardholders also enjoy benefits at participating Sonoma wineries or when booking golf outings through Troon Rewards. Many Visa Signature cards will also include Priority Pass lounge access, rebates for airline fees and travel and purchase protections.

• Visa Infinite

  Visa Infinite credit cards are Visa’s highest level of credit card. In addition to many of the same excellent benefits as the Signature tier, Visa Infinite also provides exclusive offers, luxury perks and travel benefits that cater to the Infinite customer. Visa Infinite cards offer 24/7 concierge service, access to the Visa Infinite Luxury Hotel Collection and enhancement of some benefits found in Signature and Traditional cards.

  	Visa Traditional	Visa Signature	Visa Infinite
  Emergency card replacement and cash disbursement
  Extended warranty
  Price protection
  Purchase protection
  Concierge services			Visa Infinite concierge services
  Visa Luxury Hotel collection
  Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
  Rental car insurance
  Baggage insurance
  Travel insurance
  Airport lounge access
  Travel statement credits
  Luxury hotel collection added benefit
  Car rental privileges

Many banks offer both Mastercard® and Visa cards to meet their customers’ needs. You’ll find that most major issuers, including Capital One, Chase and Citi, offer Visa credit cards. In contrast, American Express and Discover run their own payment networks and only issue credit cards on their networks.

Looking to get a Visa card? If you’ve got your sights set on the best Visa credit card for your needs, check out these tips on how to apply to boost your odds of approval:

1. Check your credit and fix errors. Before you apply, take a look at your credit reports. A recent study found that 1 in 4 Americans has an error on a credit report that’s serious enough to affect their credit score. Access your credit reports for free at AnnualCreditReport.com to look for errors, then submit corrections.
2. Reduce any existing balances. Carrying a balance on an existing credit card? Your amounts owed make up 30% of your credit score. By reducing your balances, you can boost your credit score before applying for new credit.
3. Gather your personal information. Make sure you have all your personal info on hand when you apply. At a minimum, you’ll need your address, phone number, date of birth, Social Security number and income. If you’re applying for a hotel or airline credit card, you’ll also need your loyalty number to link accounts.
4. Check for preapproved offers. You can find preapproved credit card offers on many issuers’ websites. First, you’ll need to fill out a short form with some personal info so the card issuer can perform a soft credit check, which won’t affect your credit. Then the issuer will recommend credit cards best suited to your credit profile. There won’t be a hard inquiry on your credit report until you formally apply for a Visa credit card.
5. Apply for a Visa credit card that matches your credit. You can significantly lower your chances of rejection by making sure your credit score is in the recommended range for a specific credit card before you hit the apply button. (Note that you’ll find recommended credit ranges for the offers on this page.) But first, you’ll need to know your credit score. Many banks and websites offer free credit scores, including LendingTree Spring. If your score isn’t high enough for your preferred card, continue to improve it by paying down balances and making on-time payments until you qualify. Need more help? Follow our tips on how to improve your credit score quickly.

To bring you the list of best Visa credit cards, we use an objective rating and ranking system that compares features across a large set of credit cards (over 200 of them from over 50 issuers). We use calculations to estimate the value of each card for the average cardholder, based on LendingTree and U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics.

• Balance transfer cards: We calculate the savings on a balance transfer, based on the length of the introductory period. We assume a transfer amount of $6,000 and a monthly payment of $300. We subtract balance transfer fees, annual fees and the amount paid on interest for any amount left over after the introductory period expires.
• Rewards credit cards: We calculate the rewards earned for the average cardholder using Bureau of Labor statistics data and an annual spend of $20,000, minus the annual fee. This value includes sign-up bonus and annual bonuses (including annual free night certificates). For travel cards, this value includes travel perks like lounge access and travel credits. We look at the average rewards earned over two years to balance out a card’s ongoing value with its first-year value.
• Credit cards for building credit: We calculate how much the average cardholder can save with the card on a yearly basis. If it’s a rewards card, we use U.S. Bureau of Labor data and $300 in monthly spend (the typical starting credit limit for an introductory card) to calculate how much the average cardholder can earn in rewards. We then subtract fees — including annual fees and maintenance fees — from this amount.

Depending on the category, we also look at the flexibility of rewards, features for building credit and how the card’s overall list of benefits compares to other cards.

Note that our ratings are a starting point for comparing and choosing the best credit card.

However, your needs may be different from the average cardholder’s. You should consider the amount you’re likely to spend in a card’s rewards categories and which benefits you value to choose the best card for you.