Best credit card for online shopping

Online shopping is broad: everything from Amazon to small retailers. Some cards have a dedicated "online shopping" or "online retail" category; others treat it like general spend. The best card depends on the merchant and whether a co-brand or category bonus applies.

Chase Freedom Flex: 5% in rotating quarters

Chase often includes "PayPal" or "online grocery" or other online spend in its quarterly 5% categories. When the quarter includes a category you use, you earn 5% on up to $1,500 in combined spend. Activate the category each quarter.

Best for: People who can align big online purchases with the right quarter. Requires paying attention to the calendar.

Flat 2% and 2x cards

Cards like the Citi Double Cash (2%), Wells Fargo Active Cash (2%), or Capital One Venture (2x miles) earn the same rate online as in-store. No category to activate. Reliable for any merchant that doesn't have a co-brand or special category (e.g. Amazon Prime Visa for Amazon, which we cover in a separate guide).

Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards: 3% on a chosen category

You pick one category for 3%, including "online shopping." Cap applies (e.g. $2,500 per quarter in combined 2% and 3% categories). Online shopping is defined by the issuer; read the terms. Good if you concentrate a lot of spend in one place.

Overlap with merchant-specific cards

For Amazon, Whole Foods, and a few other big merchants, a co-branded or dedicated card often beats a generic "online" category. Use cashew to search the merchant. The app will show your best card for that specific merchant, which may be a 5% co-brand or a 2% catch-all.

How cashew handles this

Search the merchant by name. cashew maps it to a category (e.g. online_shopping, grocery) and shows your top card. If the merchant isn't in the database, you can still get a recommendation by category.