What Are You Looking for in a Student Credit Card?

Choose the option that fits you best:

I want the easiest way to get approved. I want cash back on what I already buy. I just want something simple.

Best for building credit from scratch

If you don’t have any credit history yet, approval odds matter more than rewards.

The Discover it® Student Cash Back doesn’t require a prior credit score, and Discover matches all the cash back you earn during your first year. No annual fee. It’s one of the most common first cards among students starting from zero.

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Best for everyday spending

If dining out, streaming, and groceries already make up most of your monthly spending, this card turns that spending into 3% cash back.

It accepts students with little to no credit, or fair credit. No annual fee.

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Best for simplicity

If you don’t want to track categories or remember which one is active this quarter, this card earns a flat 1.5% cash back on every purchase.

No annual fee, and it accepts students with fair or limited credit history.

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No. All three issuers let you check if you qualify first. No hard inquiry shows up on your report just for checking.

By law, applicants under 21 need independent income or a cosigner over 21. Most issuers no longer accept cosigners. So your own income, even leftover scholarship money after tuition, is usually the real path to approval.

Not with any of these three cards. They’re approved based on your own income or credit history, not a parent’s.

Each card has a different eligibility bar. If one doesn’t approve you, checking the other two costs nothing and won’t affect your score.