Every day is Black Friday this year: Save more money while you shop with these 9 credit cards

The holiday season is filled with friend and families reconnecting. But while our hearts are filled with joy as we get to reunite with loved ones, our wallets are feeling the squeeze.

And while more consumers are planning to shop on Black Friday this year than last, most (78%) are still doing the majority of the shopping online, according to Morning Consult's 2021 holiday shopping survey. And 62% of consumers said they will wait for these big seasonal sales to get their holiday shopping done.

Retailers started rolling out sales earlier than ever this year, but it's not too late to take advantage of the best deals.

To make your Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping experience less stressful and more affordable, we rounded up nine credit cards that can help you save at popular online marketplaces like Amazon, Target and Walmart, plus department stores and other retailers.

• Best for department stores: U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card
• Best for Amazon.com: Discover it® Cash Back
• Best for Walmart: Capital One Walmart Rewards® Mastercard®
• Best for Target: Target RedCard™
• Best for wholesale clubs: Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi
• Best for general shopping: Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card
• Best for entertainment: Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card
• Best welcome bonus: Chase Freedom Flex℠
• Best for intro 0% APR period: Amex EveryDay® Credit Card

Who's this for? Holiday shoppers who like do most of their buying at department stores will want to check out the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card. The card offers 5% cash back on two categories you choose quarterly (on your first $2,000 in combined eligible net purchases each quarter, then 1%); 2% cash back on one everyday category; 1% cash back on everything else.

You can choose to make department stores a 5% bonus category, which includes Bloomingdale's and Macy's. And for your second 5% bonus category, you can opt for select clothing stores, which includes GAP and Old Navy.

You also get 2% cash back on one everyday category, such as grocery stores or gas stations, and 1% cash back on all other purchases. Cardholders can update their preferences every quarter, so you can change categories based on your needs.

This card also comes with no annual fee and a generous welcome bonus of $200 cash back bonus after you apply online and spend $1,000 within the first 120 days of account opening.

You can also enjoy no interest on balance transfers for 15 billing cycles (after 19.49% - 29.49% variable APR), so if you need to pay off high interest debt, this may be the card for you.

Who's this for? If you do most of your shopping online at Amazon.com, you'll want to consider the Discover it® Cash Back. Cardholders earn 5% cash back in various categories each quarter after they activate bonus categories (on up to $1,500 in purchases, then 1%). Plus, unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases automatically. Read the full Discover cash-back calendar.

This card has no annual fee and a unique welcome bonus where new card members in the first year only have all the cash back they've earned at the end of their first year automatically matched by Discover.

Who's this for? If you're looking for a card that will earn you a high rewards rate on your in-store and online Walmart.com purchases, you should consider the Capital One Walmart Rewards Card. The card offers 5% cash back at Walmart.com; 2% cash back on Walmart® in-store purchases, at restaurants and on travel, and 1% cash back everywhere else Mastercard is accepted. 

While you might want a higher rewards rate for your in-store purchases, Walmart also gives cardholders a welcome bonus: 5% back on in-store purchases when using Walmart Pay for the first 12 months of card membership (after, earn 2%).

In other words, if you're signing up for the card for the first time, you can get 5% cash back on both in-store and online purchases during the holiday shopping season. Walmart Pay is also easy to use. Cardholders just need to download an app, add their preferred payment method — a credit card, debit card or gift card — and then scan the QR code that you get at checkout.

Who's this for? You won't receive cash back or rewards points, but the Target RedCard does offer a 5% discount on every purchase made (excluding some items like prescriptions and Target Optical™ eye exams; read our full review of the Target RedCard for the full list of exclusions). So every time you purchase a gift, you'll automatically receive the discount when you pay with the RedCard.

And if you're doing your holiday shopping online at Target.com, you'll receive free two-day shipping without the $35 minimum purchase amount required for non-cardholders. Just keep in mind that if you upgrade your shipping method, shipping fees will apply. 

Who's this for? Loyal fans of Costco may want to open a Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi to use when holiday shopping this year. Cardholders enjoy many perks, such as a robust rewards program and no fees charged on purchases made abroad.

You can earn 4% cash back on eligible gas and EV charging purchases for the first $7,000 per year, then 1% (ideal for those road-tripping it this holiday season); 3% cash back on restaurants and eligible travel purchases; 2% cash back on all eligible purchases from Costco and Costco.com; 1% cash back on all other purchases.

There is no annual fee, but a Costco membership is required, which starts at $60 for Gold Star and Business levels, then doubles in price to $120 for Gold Star Executive and Business Executive members.

Who's this for? If simple cash rewards card is what you're looking for, the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card has you covered with unlimited 2% cash rewards on all eligible purchases. This is the highest flat cash-rewards rate available among Wells Fargo credit cards, and it can certainly add up to great earnings on your spending.

The cash-back program is straightforward and simple, so you don't have to worry about tracking bonus categories or activating each quarter.

Plus, new cardholders of the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card can currently earn a $200 cash rewards welcome bonus when they spend $500 in purchases in their first three months from account opening.

This card provides a 0% intro APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, (after, 19.99%, 24.99%, or 29.99% variable APR; balance transfers made within 120 days qualify for the intro rate and fee of 3% then a balance transfer fee of up to 5%, min: $5) so that you can finance a large buy or have more time to pay off your credit card debt without accruing additional interest.

Who's this for? If you prefer to give the gift of experiences, an entertainment rewards card can provide valuable rewards in this category. Sports fans, movie buffs and adventure seekers will all find a common reason to like the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card: unlimited 4% cash back on entertainment purchases. Compared to other rewards cards, this is the highest unlimited rewards rate on entertainment spending, whether you're buying movie tickets, taking a family trip to the zoo or spending the evening bowling with friends.

Cardholders can also benefit from exclusive access to entertainment events, such as the iHeartRadio Music Festival and the Capital One JamFest.

Beyond entertainment perks, there's also 4% cash back on dining and popular streaming services, 3% at grocery stores and 1% on all other purchases. Plus, you can enjoy foodie-centric perks, such as exclusive access to premium reservations with OpenTable.

This card does come with a $95 annual fee, but it can be offset by the cash back you earn.

Who's this for? The Chase Freedom Flex℠ has one of the best welcome bonuses around: Earn $200 cash back after you spend $500 on purchases in your first three months from account opening. That's like earning 40% back.

This card can help you maximize cash back in a variety of rotating categories. Cardholders earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate (then 1%) and 1% cash back on all other purchases. The cash-back calendar changes every quarter. (Learn more about how Chase classifies bonus category purchases.)

In addition to rotating rewards, you can earn 5% cash back on travel booked through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® portal, 3% cash back on dining at restaurants and at drug stores and 1% cash back on all other purchases.

Beyond rewards, you can take advantage of no annual fee and a competitive no-interest period for the first 15 months from account opening on new purchases and balance transfers (after, 19.74% to 28.49% variable APR). There's an intro balance transfer fee of either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater, on transfers made within 60 days of account opening. After that it's either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.

The Freedom card also provides cell phone protection and select partner benefits, such as 5% cash back on Lyft purchases through March 31^st, 2025 and complimentary three months of DashPass, plus 50% off for the next nine months when you activate by December 31^st, 2024. This perk provides you with free delivery on DoorDash orders over $12 and lower service fees.

Who's this for? If you want to maximize savings with an interest-free financing period, consider a card that has no interest for over a year, such as the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card. You can benefit from no interest for 15 months from the date of account opening on purchases (then 14.49% to 25.49% variable APR; see rate and fees). This is a longer-than-average intro period, providing extra time for you to pay off gifts and other new purchases when you make sizeable, monthly payments toward your balance.

This card also has no annual fee (see rates and fees) and a strong rewards program: Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1X) and 1X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on all other purchases. And when you make 20 or more purchases in a billing period you receive 20% extra points.

Cardholders can also take advantage of premium Amex perks, including discounts at select merchants via Amex Offers, car rental loss and damage insurance, free two-day shipping at select online retailers with ShopRunner and cell phone protection.

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To determine which cards offer the best value for shoppers during Black Friday or Cyber Monday, Select analyzed 234 of the most popular credit cards available in the U.S. We compared each card on a range of features, including rewards, welcome bonus, introductory and standard APR, balance transfer fee and foreign transaction fees, as well as factors such as required credit and customer reviews when available. We also considered additional perks, the application process and how easy it is for the consumer to redeem points.

We also estimated how much the average consumer would save over the course of a year, two years and five years, assuming they would attempt to maximize their rewards potential by earning all welcome bonuses offered and using the card for all applicable purchases. All rewards total estimations are net the annual fee. Our final picks are weighted heavily toward the highest five-year returns, since it's generally wise to hold onto a credit card for years. This method also avoids giving an unfair advantage to cards with large welcome bonuses.

Select teamed up with location intelligence firm Esri. The company's data development team provided the most up-to-date and comprehensive consumer spending data based on the 2019 Consumer Expenditure Surveys from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. You can read more about their methodology here.

Esri's data team created a sample annual budget of approximately $22,126 in retail spending. The budget includes six main categories: groceries ($5,174), gas ($2,218), dining out ($3,675), travel ($2,244), utilities ($4,862) and general purchases ($3,953). General purchases include items such as housekeeping supplies, clothing, personal care products, prescription drugs and vitamins, and other vehicle expenses.

Select used this budget to estimate how much the average consumer would save over the course of a year, two years and five years, assuming they would attempt to maximize their rewards potential by earning all welcome bonuses offered and using the card for all applicable purchases. All rewards total estimations are net the annual fee.

It's important to note the value of a point or mile varies from card to card and based on how you redeem them. When we calculated the estimated returns, we assumed that cardholders are redeeming points/miles for a typical maximum value of 1 cent per point or mile. (Extreme optimizers might be able to achieve more value.)

For rates and fees of the Discover it® Cash Back, click here.

For rates and fees for the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card, click here