As a medical student, you have a lot on your plate. You’re studying for exams, managing a hectic clinical schedule, and trying to keep your head above water financially.
One way to ease the financial burden is to use a credit card that offers rewards and perks for your spending.
To help you find the best credit card for your needs, we’ve compiled a list of the best options for medical students.
Whether you’re looking for a card with no annual fee, a low-interest rate, or generous rewards, we’ve got you covered.
Best for Rent: Bilt Mastercard® (review)
Best Beginner Travel Card: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (review)
Best for Daily Spending: Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card (review)
1. Bilt Mastercard®
Best for Rent Payments
- Pay Rent Without Fees and Earn 1 Point Per Dollar on Rent (up to 50,000 Points Per Calendar Year)
- No Annual Fee
- 3x Points on Dining
- 2x Points on Travel
- Transfer Rewards to Airlines and Hotels
- Cell Phone, Primary Rental Car, and Trip Delay Insurance
Bilt Mastercard® is a no-annual-fee credit card that allows you to pay rent without a transaction fee and earn 1 point per dollar on rent (up to 50,000 points per calendar year).
You also earn 3x points on dining, 2x points on travel, and 1x points everywhere else.
The Bilt Rewards card also has great benefits for a no-annual fee card, including cell phone insurance, primary rental car insurance, 90-day purchase protection, trip delay insurance, trip cancellation insurance, and no foreign transaction fees.
Plus, you can transfer your points to airline and hotel partners such as United Airlines, American Airlines, and World of Hyatt. Or redeem the points for travel or at Amazon.
2. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Best Beginner Travel Card
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- 5x Points on Travel Booked Via Chase
- 3x Points on Dining and Eligible Delivery Services
- 2x Points on All Other Travel Purchases
- 10% Anniversary Points Boost
- Trip Delay and Trip Cancellation Insurance
- Primary Rental Car Insurance
- $95 Annual Fee
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (review) is one of the best rewards cards for travelers who want solid earning rates for travel and dining expenses.
For only $95 per year, this card earns 5x Chase Ultimate Rewards points on travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal, 3x points on dining, online groceries, and streaming services, and 2x on all other travel purchases.
Cardholders will also get a 10% anniversary points bonus, a 12-month DoorDash DashPass subscription when activated by December 31, 2024, and a $50 anniversary hotel statement credit.
Plus, it provides extensive travel protections, including trip delay, primary rental car, baggage, and purchase protection plans.
3. Chase Freedom Unlimited®
Best for Dining & Drug Store Purchases
The Chase Freedom Unlimited® (review) is a good no-annual fee credit card option that offers 5% cash back on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 3% cash back at restaurants, takeout, eligible delivery services, and on drugstore purchases. Plus it offers 1.5% cash back on all other eligible purchases.
The card also offers nice benefits such as purchase protection, extended warranty, trip cancellation/interruption insurance, and secondary rental car insurance.
4. Citi® Double Cash Card
Best for Simplicity
The Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer boasts a strong 2% rewards rate on purchases, where you get 1% back when you buy and 1% when you pay.
This zero-annual-fee card offers a solid earning potential as long as you pay your balance on time, and it provides a simple way to rack up points with no bonus categories to track.
You can also boost your rewards by also holding the Citi Premier® Card (review), which allows you to transfer points to airline and hotel programs. This combination effectively allows you to earn 2 airline miles per dollar on all spending with the Citi Double Cash.
5. Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
Best for Earning Miles on Everyday Purchases
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- Unlimited 5x Miles on Hotels and Rental Cars Booked Via Capital One
- Unlimited 1.25x Miles on All Other Purchases
- Secondary Rental Car Insurance
- Extended Warranty
- No Annual Fee
The Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card is a no-annual-fee travel card, which allows cardmembers to earn unlimited 1.25X miles on every purchase, every day.
These miles can be used for travel purchases and are fully transferable to Capital One’s airline and hotel partners.
The VentureOne also offers nice benefits like no foreign transaction fees, rental car insurance, and extended warranty protection.
6. Citi Custom Cash℠ Card
Best for Flexible Spending Categories
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- 5% Cash Back on Purchases in Your Top Eligible Spend Category Each Billing Cycle up to $500 (1% after that)
- 0% Intro APR for 15 Months on Purchases and Balance Transfers ($5 or 5% fee). After that, reg_apr,reg_apr_type.
- No Annual Fee
The Citi Custom Cash is a no-annual-fee card that earns 5% cash back in your top spending category each billing cycle.
Eligible 5% cash back categories, among several others, include:
- Restaurants.
- Gas stations.
- Grocery stores.
- Select travel.
- Home improvement stores.
- Drug stores.
- Fitness clubs.
This allows you to turn the Custom Cash into your 5% cash back card for your favorite category.
7. Capital One SavorOne Cash Rewards Credit Card
Best for Restaurants, Entertainment, & Grocery Stores
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- 8% Cash Back at Capital One Entertainment
- 3% Cash Back on Dining, Entertainment, Streaming, and Grocery Stores
- No Annual Fee
The Capital One SavorOne is a no-annual-fee card that earns 3% cash back in four popular categories: dining, entertainment, popular streaming services, and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®).
The SavorOne also has nice perks such as no foreign transaction fees and extended warranty protection.
Plus, cardholders earn 10% cash back on purchases with Uber and Uber Eats and complimentary Uber One membership statement credits every month through November 14, 2024.
