- Amazon's Prime Day has grown into a major shopping holiday with a huge number of deals.
- When shopping at Amazon, use a credit card that earns valuable cash back or travel rewards on each purchase, such as the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card or the Chase Freedom Unlimited.
- If you choose the right card, you can earn big rewards on purchases you make on Prime Day or any other day of the year.
Prime Day 2019 is almost here, and it's a great time to assess which card you use to get the best results from one of Amazon's biggest days of the year. Whether you're scoping out the best deals in electronics, home goods, fashion, kids, or anything else, you're bound to find a tempting deal on Prime Day, which lasts for two days starting on July 15.
If you plan on making a purchase on Amazon on Prime Day, or at any other time, you may want to use one of these top four cards for the best rewards. If you're going to spend the money anyway, you might as well get rewarded for it!
Picking the best credit card to use on Prime Day
When choosing a credit card to use on Prime Day, the most important things to look at are the rewards and the benefits. For many people, the rewards are by far the top priority. Some people want cash back while others prefer points or miles. There's no right or wrong; just choose based on what you value most.
If you want to sign up for a credit card to get the best rewards and start working toward a sign-up bonus, you'll do well with any of the cards below.
Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card
If you're a big spender at Amazon and a Prime member, you'll want the Amazon Prime credit card. This card gives you 5% cash back on all purchases at Amazon and even more on some products with occasional bonuses.
This credit card, issued by Chase, allows you to redeem cash back just like a gift card on Amazon.com purchases. You have other redemption choices too, but if you do a lot of shopping at Amazon anyway, redeeming for an Amazon purchase is as good as cash in your pocket.
It has no annual fee, and new card holders get an $80 Amazon gift card upon approval.
Chase Freedom Unlimited
The Freedom Unlimited card from Chase gives you 1.5% cash back on all purchases. However, if you also have any Chase Ultimate Rewards card, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or the Chase Sapphire Reserve, you can convert that cash to points making them even more valuable.
You can convert one cent into one Ultimate Rewards point. Points are worth 1.25 cents apiece with the Sapphire Preferred or 1.5 cents with the Sapphire Reserve when redeemed through the Chase website. You always get at least a 1:1 ratio (there are occasional bonuses) if you transfer to airline or hotel partners. When redeeming for premium travel like a first-class flight, you can often get even more value per point.
The Freedom Unlimited has no annual fee. If you're a new card holder, you'll get 3% back on all purchases the first year up to $20,000 spent (that's up to $600 back). So you could get 3% back on all your Prime Day purchases.
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
The Venture card gives you 2 miles per dollar on every purchase you make, including online shopping at Amazon. Points are worth 1 cent each when you redeem for travel using the Purchase Eraser. You can also transfer miles to airline partners like Air Canada and Emirates, and this is often a more valuable option.
The Purchase Eraser makes Venture miles some of the easiest rewards to redeem. Log in to your Capital One account within 90 days of any travel purchase with the card and you can erase the purchase cost from your statement.
If you sign up for the Venture card, you can get 50,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 on purchases within the first three months. The card has a $95 annual fee.
Read more: Everything you need to know about Amazon Prime Day 2019
PayPal Cashback Mastercard
The PayPal Cashback Mastercard gives you 2% cash back on all purchases with no limits to what you can earn. You can redeem rewards to your PayPal account, where it is as good as cash. You can transfer it to your linked bank account, send a transfer, or use it for purchases anywhere PayPal is accepted.
The card includes price protection in case something is available at a lower price within 60 days of purchase. If you buy something, don't like it, and the store won't take it back, the satisfaction guarantee will reimburse you up to $250. This card has no annual fee.
Get rewarded for every purchase
No matter where you shop, you have a choice with how you pay. If you use a debit card, you have fewer fraud protections and likely get nothing in return for your spending. As long as you can pay off your bill every month in full and it doesn't tempt you to spend more than you can afford, a credit card is the best way to buy.
Find out which credit cards offer price protection to ensure you get the best deal on Prime Day »
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