Find the Right Card for You

When shopping online, your credit card features can protect you and your items when used to pay for purchases. These are the critical factors we think you should consider when evaluating credit cards for online shopping.

• Protection from unauthorized use: Although federal law limits losses from credit card fraud to $50, the best credit cards for online shopping offer $0 liability for unauthorized purchases.
• Texts for unusual activity: This customer service security feature can alert you immediately should your card be used without your permission or knowledge.
• Online chat: Being able to easily communicate with a customer service representative is important for quickly resolving any security concerns.
• Ability to freeze or lock your account: This feature lets you lock down your credit account so no one can use it, in case you believe it has been compromised.
• Virtual card numbers: One-time user credit card numbers protect you in case someone steals your data when shopping online. If they try to use the number to make additional purchases, their transaction will be declined.
• Bonus rewards for online spending: The best cards for online shopping provide bonus rewards for purchases made with certain online retailers or in particular spending categories.
• Access to online shopping portals: Some card issuers have created online shopping portals that provide extra rebates or discounts for merchandise and services.

Before making a purchase online, ensure that the website has an HTTPS in front of its domain name. This signifies that the transaction is using a secure connection, which reduces the chance of someone stealing your information.

Unfortunately, there are still other ways for hackers to steal your credit card number, so the best way to keep your information safe when shopping online is to use a virtual credit card number. These are temporary credit card numbers that cannot be used by someone else and are issued for use by your credit card provider. The card numbers are typically restricted to a specific merchant for a set amount or number of transactions, including for a single-use. This prevents the need to use your actual credit card number that can be stolen or compromised.

Several third-party services offer virtual card numbers to protect your online shopping, like Albine Blur, Privacy, and Divvy. Some banks offer virtual card numbers free to their customers, such as Capital One virtual card numbers from Eno and Citi’s own virtual account service.

When you have bad credit, the number of credit cards that you are eligible for are limited compared to someone with excellent credit. However, you can still get approved for a credit card to make online purchases. Depending on your personal circumstances, it may have to be a secured credit card that requires a deposit before being approved.

Store credit cards offer many benefits when online shopping, such as free shipping, discounts, and exclusive sales. However, they are typically restricted to purchases at the store brand that issued them. Unless the card has a Visa, Mastercard, or American Express logo on it, the store card may not be used for purchases at other stores.