Best credit cards for families

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Raising kids isn’t cheap. But one silver lining of your expenses increasing is that your credit card rewards can, too. Plus, when you add a spouse or older child as an authorized user, you can help them build credit, and you get to accumulate rewards from their spending, too. Here are our picks for the best cards for families, based on your most common costs and how you want to redeem rewards.

Top credit cards for families

Compare the top cards for households

*Up to 100,000 points annually. Subject to spending $1,000 in purchases on your card in the same statement period as your mortgage payment.

How to choose a credit card for household expenses

Getting rewarded for your family’s expenses doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are three easy ways to choose the right card.

• Look at your budget to find your top spending categories. Try writing down a list of the monthly expenses that make up your budget. Then, look at your highest spending categories and compare those to the boosted rewards rates on the cards above. You could also use multiple cards to pay for their respective highest rewards category purchases — like swiping the Amex Blue Cash Preferred for groceries and the Mesa Homeowners card for mortgage payments.
• Do the math to justify any annual fee. Not all the cards above charge an annual fee, but some do, and you’ll want to make sure it’s worth it. Estimate your annual total expenses in one of the card’s top rewards categories, multiply the total by the percentage of cash back or number of points you’ll earn and divide it by 100. Is that number higher or lower than the annual fee? If it’s higher, it means your rewards will outweigh the fee. But if it’s lower, you might not earn enough to justify the fee.
• Compare authorized user options. Many credit cards let you add an authorized user for no fee, but check first before planning to add your partner or child. Some issuers also require children to be at least 13, 15 or 18 years old.

What to do with your family credit card rewards

Once you have a stockpile of rewards, what should you do with them? And how should they work for your family? Here are some ideas of what you can do with your family credit card rewards to stretch their value outside of simple cash back redemption.

• Pay for gifts or entertainment. If you earn cash back, you could keep things simple and redeem it for statement credits or gift cards that fund your family’s fun purchases. Birthday and holiday gifts, movie tickets and water park days are even better when they’re “free”!
• Redeem for travel. If you earn travel points or miles, those rewards could cover some or all of your next family vacation. But even if your card earns cash back, some issuers let you convert cash back to travel rewards or transfer it to travel partners. You can often get more value out of your rewards that way.
• Invest in a 529 plan. You can add credit card rewards to a 529 — a tax-advantaged savings plan for college — either automatically or manually. Some cards will deposit your rewards directly into the account. Or, you can transfer the rewards yourself.
• Build an emergency fund. It’s always a good idea to have an emergency fund, especially when you have littles at home. By depositing your rewards into a high-yield savings account that earns interest over time, you could eventually build up three to six months’ worth of expenses for your fund.

What’s next?

The bottom line

Your family could use credit card rewards to fund activities, vacations or college fund investments. You can maximize your rewards strategy by picking a card that aligns with your household’s top expenses. Then, you can “spend and forget” with the card until you tap into your stash of rewards.

*Information about the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card and Mesa Homeowners Visa® Signature Preferred Credit Card has been collected independently by Bankrate. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.

Frequently asked questions

• Do travel cards make sense for large families?
  

  If your family takes flights or stays in hotels often, a travel card makes sense for your spending. You could earn travel points or miles on your everyday household purchases to put toward future trips.

  If you choose a co-branded airline or hotel card, you can tap into perks like free checked bags, companion passes or loyalty status for your family. Or, a top-tier general travel card could get you lounge access, expedited airport security and more perks.

• What age can I add my child as an authorized user?
  

  The age at which you can add your child as an authorized user on a credit card varies by issuer, but tends to range from 13 to 18. Check your card’s terms and conditions or call the issuer to find out.

• Should I get a cash back or travel card for my family?
  

  Whether you choose cash back or travel rewards for your family depends on your most common types of spending and how you want to redeem rewards.

  For example, families who tend to stay at home and spend a lot on groceries and streaming might benefit more from a cash back card. You can redeem your cash back for family fun nights or put it toward a college fund or another practical investment.

  But families who travel often — and like to do so in style and comfort — could enjoy a travel card for its generous welcome bonus, rewards for future trips and luxury perks.