Quick answer: yes, you can get a credit card at 18, but until you turn 21 you need your own income, or a parent can add you to their card as an authorized user. Our top two picks are the Chase Freedom Unlimited® if you have a paycheck of your own, and the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, which a parent can add you to now or you can get later. No income or credit yet? Open a checking account first, then start with a student or secured card.
Our top two picks
Chase Freedom Unlimited®
No annual fee, cash back on everything
Best for: 18 year olds with their own income
- $200 bonus after $500 in purchases in the first three months
- At least 1.5% back on every purchase
- Under 21, you need your own income to qualify
Blue Cash Preferred® Card
6% back at U.S. grocery stores
Best for: parents adding a teen, or later on your own
- As high as $300 back after $3,000 in purchases in the first 6 months
- 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months
- $95 a year after the first year
Continue securely on American Express’s site
Welcome offers vary. American Express sets the terms.
The Best Credit Cards for 18-Year-Olds, Compared
| Card | Annual fee | Best for | Rewards | Credit needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase Freedom Unlimited® | $0 | Students with income | 1.5% to 5% | Some history |
| Blue Cash Preferred® Card | $0 first year, then $95 | Parents adding a teen | 1% to 6% | Good, or via a parent |
 Discover it Student Cash Back | $0 | College students | 5% rotating, 1% | No score needed |
| Chase Freedom Rise® | $0 | New to credit | 1.5% back | New to credit OK |
 Petal 2 Visa Credit Card | $0 | Avoiding fees | 1% to 1.5% | No check to pre-approve |
 Platinum Secured from Capital One | $0 | Getting approved | None listed | No score needed |
| Capital One Venture X Rewards | $395 | Parents who travel | 2X to 10X miles | Excellent |
Tap a card name to jump to the full review.
7 Best Credit Cards for 18-Year-Olds
The first two are our top picks: one for an 18 year old with a paycheck, one for a parent who adds their teen. Picks 3 to 6 are student credit cards, a no-fee card and a secured card, all built for people starting with little or no credit. The last is a travel card for parents.
1. Chase Freedom Unlimited®
A no-fee cash back card you can keep for years
Best for: 18 year olds with their own income
If you have a paycheck of your own, start here. No annual fee, at least 1.5% back on everything, and a card you can keep for years.
- 5% on travel booked through Chase Travel, 3% on dining and drugstores, 1.5% on the rest
- $200 bonus after $500 in purchases in the first three months
- 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers
- Under 21, approval depends on your own income
- With no credit history at all, the Chase Freedom Rise® below is built for you
- No bonus if you got one on this card in the last 24 months
2. Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express
A cash back card for family grocery spending
Best for: parents adding a teen, or later on your own
This one is mostly for the parent. Add your teen as an authorized user and they get a card of their own on your account.
- 6% at U.S. grocery stores on up to $6,000 a year, then 1%
- 6% on select U.S. streaming subscriptions, 3% at U.S. gas stations and on transit
- As high as $300 back after $3,000 in purchases in the first 6 months
- 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 12 months
- $0 the first year, then $95 a year
- At 18 it’s usually a card a parent adds you to, or one to get once you have income and some history
- Welcome offers vary, and you may not be eligible
Continue securely on American Express’s site
American Express sets the terms.
Related: Best American Express Promotions
3. Discover it Student Cash Back
A student cash back card with no annual fee
Best for: college students getting a first card
This is the classic first card for a college student. You don’t need a credit score to apply, and the first-year match doubles whatever you earn.
- 5% back in categories that change each quarter, up to the quarterly maximum, once you activate
- Discover matches all the cash back you earn in your first year, dollar for dollar
- 0% intro APR on purchases for six months
- You have to activate the 5% categories every quarter
- Forget to, and you’re mostly earning 1%
Discover sets the terms.
4. Chase Freedom Rise®
A flat-rate cash back card from Chase
Best for: people new to credit and students
Chase built this one for people who are new to credit. A part-time job helps a lot here, and so does already banking with Chase.
- 1.5% cash back on every purchase, nothing to track
- $25 statement credit when you set up autopay in the first three months
- With no credit history, approval leans on your own income
- Keep autopay on for at least 90 days in a row to get the $25
Tip: Chase says having at least $250 in a Chase checking or savings account increases your chances of being approved. See the Chase Secure Bankingâ„ offer below.
Chase sets the terms.
5. Petal 2 Visa Credit Card
A no-fee cash back card you can check for with no credit pull
Best for: avoiding fees while you learn
Petal lets you see if you’re pre-approved without a credit check, which makes it a real option when you don’t have a score yet.
- No annual fee, late fee or returned payment fee
- No foreign transaction fees
- Petal reports to the major credit bureaus
- No late fee doesn’t make a late payment harmless; it still hurts your credit
- You still owe interest on any balance you carry
Petal sets the terms.
6. Platinum Secured Credit Card from Capital One
A secured card backed by a refundable deposit
Best for: getting approved after a turndown
If you keep getting turned down, start here. A secured card is about the easiest card to get because your deposit backs it.
- Credit line of at least $200
- Considered for a higher line in as little as six months
- Use it well and you could get your deposit back and move to the unsecured Platinum card
- You put down $49, $99 or $200 up front
- Capital One lists no cash back on it; it’s a credit builder
Capital One sets the terms.
7. Capital One Venture X Rewards
A premium travel card
Best for: parents who already fly a few times a year
A travel card for parents, not a starter card. It earns on everything and a lot more on trips booked through Capital One.
- 2X miles on everything
- 10X on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- 5X on flights and vacation rentals booked there
- The $395 annual fee only pays off if you use the travel perks
- Check the authorized user terms before adding your 18 year old
Capital One sets the terms.
How to Get Approved for a Credit Card at 18
The Credit CARD Act changed the rules for anyone under 21. Under the CFPB’s Regulation Z, a card issuer can’t open an account for you unless you show you can pay on your own, or someone 21 or older signs on as a co-signer or joint applicant.
So what counts? Income you earn yourself, like a job or a paid internship. Your parents’ income doesn’t count just because you live with them.
You’ve got three paths:
- Apply on your own with your own income. With a steady paycheck, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® is a strong first card; with a smaller one, a student card or the Freedom Rise® is the place to start.
- Apply with a co-signer or joint applicant who’s 21 or older, if the issuer allows it. That person is on the hook for the debt, and they have to agree in writing before the credit line goes up while you’re under 21.
- Become an authorized user on a parent’s card. The under-21 rule doesn’t apply here because you aren’t liable for the balance.
Bottom line: if you have no income yet, the authorized user route is the easiest first step. Once you have a job, apply for a card in your own name.
Set Yourself Up Before You Apply
A card issuer wants to see that you can handle money before it hands you credit. Three things help at 18: a checking account in your name, a paycheck going into it, and some credit history. If you’re new to this, our guide on how to open a checking account walks through it, and there’s more on how old you have to be to open a bank account if you’re helping a younger sibling too.
Chase Secure Bankingâ„
A low-cost checking account from Chase
Best for: students and young adults 17 to 24
Start here if you want a Chase card later. Money sitting in Chase checking is one of the things Chase says helps a Freedom Rise application.
- $175 after 10 qualifying transactions in 60 days
- $0 monthly service fee while an owner is 17 to 24
- No minimum deposit to open
- $4.95 a month after 24, unless you get $250+ in qualifying electronic deposits
- The bonus is for new Chase checking customers only
Continue securely on Chase’s site
For new Chase checking customers. Chase sets the terms.
Current
A mobile bank account from a fintech, not a bank
Best for: anyone getting a first paycheck
Got a first job? Point the paycheck here and the $75 bonus comes with it. Our Current review has the full rundown.
- $75 bonus with code WELCOME75 after $1,500 in payroll direct deposits within 35 days
- Paycheck Advance up to $1,000 once you qualify
- The bonus is for new Current users only
- Current is a fintech, not a bank; partner banks hold the money
Continue securely on Current’s site
Banking by Choice Financial Group or Cross River Bank, Member FDIC.
Kikoff
A credit builder account, not a credit card
Best for: building credit history before your first card
No luck with a card yet? Kikoff builds a payment history first. Here’s our Kikoff review, and a few more options in the best credit builder loans.
- Sign up with no credit check
- Payments are reported to all three major credit bureaus
- No interest, plus a 45 day money back guarantee
- It’s a monthly plan, so it costs money every month
- It only helps if every payment is on time
Want to compare more banks first? Our list of the best checking accounts covers the rest.
Tips to Build Credit With Your First Card
Pay the full statement balance every month. Turn on autopay for at least the minimum so one busy week doesn’t turn into a late payment on your report.
Want a head start before your own card? Ask a parent to add you as an authorized user on a card they pay in full every month, like the Blue Cash Preferred® Card.
Keep your balance low compared to your limit. On a $500 limit, that means not running it up close to $500 even if you pay it off later.
Use it for small stuff you’d buy anyway, like a streaming subscription or gas. Don’t apply for a pile of cards at once, either. Each application can ding your score a little. You can watch your score for free with one of the best credit score apps.
And keep that first card open. An old account with a clean record helps your score for years. Our credit card safety tips and the guide on how to pay off credit card debt are worth a read before you swipe, and so is our breakdown of credit score ranges.
More: How to improve your credit score
FAQs
Yes. Under the CARD Act rules, an 18 to 20 year old needs to show their own income, like a job, or apply with a co-signer or joint applicant who is 21 or older. Becoming an authorized user on a parent’s card is the other option, and that route has no income test.
Yes, if you apply on your own. Until you turn 21, the issuer has to see that you can pay from your own income or assets, like a job or a paid internship. Your parents’ income doesn’t count just because you live with them. Without income, apply with a co-signer the issuer accepts or become an authorized user.
A secured card, like the Platinum Secured Credit Card from Capital One, is usually the easiest because your refundable deposit backs the credit line. Student cards such as the Discover it Student Cash Back and cards for new credit like the Chase Freedom Rise® are also built for people with little or no history.
With your own steady income, the Chase Freedom Unlimited®: no annual fee and at least 1.5% back on everything. With no credit history and a small income, start with the Discover it Student Cash Back or the Chase Freedom Rise®. If you’ve been turned down, a secured card is the way in.
It can. Many issuers report authorized users to the credit bureaus, so the parent’s account history can show up on the teen’s report. It works both ways, though. If the parent pays late or carries a high balance, that can hurt the teen too.
Nobody starts with a score. You get one after you have an account that has been open and reporting for a while. Paying on time from the first statement is what gets that first score off to a good start.
Only if the card issuer allows co-signers or joint applicants, and not every issuer does. The co-signer has to be 21 or older and is responsible for the debt. While the cardholder is under 21, the co-signer also has to agree in writing before the credit line can go up.
