The best credit cards for seniors and retirees of 2024

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Now that you've got more time on your hands, it's time to set off on that once-in-a-lifetime trip you've been dreaming about, splurge on some new home decor or take on a few of those home improvement projects you've been meaning to do. At this point in your life, you're the boss of your retirement adventure, and it's up to you how to best spend your time, money and energy during your golden years.

Below, CNBC Select details the best credit cards for seniors and retirees who want to save money on the things they love most, whether it's traveling, dining, shopping or going on road trips — as well as more practical purchases such as groceries, medical expenses and retirement savings.

Who's this for? The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express is a great cash-back credit card because you'll earn extra rewards on the grocery, gas and online shopping you're likely doing anyway, especially if you (or your grandchildren) are also a fan of streaming services.

Benefits for seniors: Cardmembers receive statement credits for subscriptions such as the Disney Bundle (up to $84 annually after you spend $9.99 or more each month on an eligible subscription to the Disney Bundle using your enrolled card; subject to autorenewal; enrollment required) and Equinox+ (up to $120 annually; subject to autorenewal; enrollment required), *purchase protection, return protection, car rental loss and damage insurance and more.

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Who's this for? With a modest annual fee and a robust array of travel benefits, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card makes a great choice for seniors and retirees looking to spend their golden years traveling.

Benefits for seniors: Whether you're visiting friends and family in other cities or venturing abroad, this card has your back with no foreign transaction fees, primary rental car insurance, baggage delay insurance, trip cancellation and interruption insurance and other protections meant to provide peace of mind during your travels.

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Who's this for? If you're planning to spend some time road-tripping around the country, you can earn points to put toward even more travel with the U.S. Bank Altitude® Connect Visa Signature® Card.

Benefits for seniors: Cardholders can enjoy perks such as no foreign transaction fees, trip cancellation and interruption coverage, travel accident insurance, trip delay reimbursement, cell phone protection and up to $100 in statement credits toward your TSA PreCheck® or Global Entry® membership.

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Who's this for? If you can swing the $250 annual fee (see rates and fees), the American Express® Gold Card is a great option for seniors and retirees who tend to spend most of their money at grocery stores and restaurants. Its large welcome bonus also provides a great head start if travel is among your retirement goals.

Benefits for seniors: The card includes a variety of travel and dining perks. You'll get up to $120 worth of Uber Cash annually ($10 per month) and up to $120 worth of annual dining credits ($10 each month) when you pay for dining via Grubhub, Milk Bar, Wine.com, Goldbelly, The Cheesecake Factory and certain Shake Shack restaurants (enrollment required).

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Who's this for? If you have medical expenses or drugstore purchases to navigate, the AARP® Essential Rewards Mastercard® from Barclays could be a good fit.

Benefits for seniors: Medications and medical expenses can quickly add up, and this is one of the few cards to offer bonus rewards for both of these types of purchases.

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Who's this for? The Chase Freedom Flex is a great pick if you're interested in a no-annual-fee card that also lets you earn cash back on certain categories each quarter — think grocery shopping, gas stations and select online retailers. Check Chase's quarterly cash-back calendar for details before using your card so you don't miss out.

Benefits for seniors: The card offers perks such as purchase protection and extended warranty protection, auto rental collision damage waivers, trip cancellation and interruption insurance, cell phone protection and travel and emergency assistance.

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Who's this for? If you've been putting off an especially large purchase (think major home repairs, new furniture or pricey electronics), the Wells Fargo Reflect® Card is a good choice, with one of the longest introductory 0% APR offers available on the market.

Benefits for seniors: As long as you continue to make your monthly payments on time, the card provides a whopping 21 months from account opening with 0% APR on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, a variable 18.24%, 24.74%, or 29.99% APR applies afterward. Balance transfers you make within 120 days from account opening qualify for the intro rate, the balance transfer fee is 5% ($5 minimum).

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Who's this for? The Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card is for anyone hoping to add to their current retirement savings balance.

Benefits for seniors: The Premise of the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card is simple, you'll earn 2% back on every purchase and that money can be deposited into any eligible Fidelity account. This includes brokerage accounts, retirement accounts, HSAs or 529 College Savings plans.

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The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express has some of the highest cash-back rates for purchases at U.S. supermarkets and eligible U.S. streaming services.

Rewards

• 6% back on up to $6,000 in purchases per year at U.S. supermarkets
• 6% back on select U.S. streaming services
• 3% back on transit
• 3% back at U.S. gas stations
• 1% back on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn $250 cash back after spending $3,000 on purchases with your card in the first six months.

Annual fee

$0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95 (see rates and fees).

Notable perks

Cash-back rewards are the name of the game with this card — they're awarded as "reward dollars," which you can then redeem for statement credits. 

To sweeten the deal, this card has an introductory 0% APR for 12 months from account opening for purchases and balance transfers (after, a 19.24% - 29.99% variable APR applies*), making it a solid choice if you've got some major purchases coming up. To qualify for the intro APR, balance transfers must be completed within 60 days of account opening and a balance transfer fee of 3% ($5 minimum applies)*.

Cardholders can also take advantage of two ongoing statement credit offers:

• Up to $120 in Equinox+ credit annually ($10 a month, enrollment required)
• Up to $84 in Disney bundle credit ($7 a month, enrollment required)

*See rates and fees

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The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of the top travel and rewards credit cards available with an annual fee under $100.

Rewards

• 5X points on Lyft rides (through Mar. 31, 2025)
• 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel^SM
• 5X points on eligible Peloton purchases over $150 through Mar. 31, 2025 (maximum of 25,000 total points)
• 3X points on dining
• 3X points on select streaming services
• 3X points on online grocery purchases (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
• 2X points on travel
• 1X points on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

75,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

Annual fee

$95

Notable perks

Cardholders receive a $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit, which applies to hotels you book through the Chase Travel^SM. Every card anniversary, you'll also receive a 10% bonus on the points you earn from purchases the previous year. Card members are also eligible for various travel and shopping protections, as well as special deals with DoorDash and Instacart.

Chase Ultimate rewards points can be redeemed for cash back or gift cards at a rate of one cent per point. Points are worth 1.25 cents apiece when you redeem them toward travel through Chase Travel^SM. You may be able to get even more value by transferring your points to any of Chase's hotel or airline partners, such as Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, United Airlines MileagePlus, Air Canada Aeroplan, Marriott Bonvoy, IHG One Rewards and World of Hyatt.

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The U.S. Bank Altitude® Connect Visa Signature® Card is especially rewarding for gas and EV charging purchases and has a handful of benefits normally associated with cards that have higher annual fees.

Rewards

• 5X points for rental cars and prepaid hotels booked through the Altitude Rewards Center
• 4X points on travel and at gas stations and EV charging stations through September 8, 2024, after that 4X on your first $1,000 each quarter (wholesale clubs and discount stores/supercenters excluded) 
• 2X points at grocery stores and on grocery delivery (discount stores/supercenters and wholesale clubs excluded effective September 9, 2024)
• 2X points on dining
• 2X points on streaming services
• 1X points on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 in the first 120 days from account opening.

Annual fee

$0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95

Notable perks

Cardholders can earn up to in $30 credit from annual subscriptions with Apple TV+, Netflix and Spotify®, among other streaming services, after making 11 months of streaming purchases. Other perks include up to four free visits to Priority Pass airport lounges each year, various travel protections, cell phone protection and a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit.

The points you earn with this card can be redeemed at a rate of one cent each toward travel, statement credits, gift cards or merchandise through the Altitude Rewards Center. You'll also have access to Visa Signature benefits including complimentary concierge services and special perks at luxury hotels.

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The American Express® Gold Card is a powerhouse for earning travel rewards on dining at restaurants, on groceries and flights.

Rewards

• 4X points at restaurants
• 4X points on up to $25,000 in purchases at U.S. supermarkets
• 3X points on flights booked directly with the airline or through Amextravel.com
• 1X points on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn 60,000 points after making $6,000 in eligible purchases within the first six months of card membership.

Annual fee

$250 (see rates and fees)

Notable perks

Cardholders can receive two monthly statement credits. There's an up to $10 monthly dining credit to use through partner vendors, plus an up to $10 monthly Uber Cash credit, which can be used for rides or food orders in the U.S. Terms apply.

Cardholders also have access to other perks, such as *car rental loss and damage insurance and baggage insurance. Terms apply.

You'll get the most value from the Membership Rewards® points you earn with the Amex Gold card when you transfer them to one of American Express' many airline and hotel partners, such as JetBlue TrueBlue, Delta SkyMiles, Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors. You can also redeem them for statement credits, gift cards, or travel through the Amex Travel portal, but they'll generally be worth less this way.

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The AARP® Essential Rewards Mastercard® from Barclays is one of the only cards that offers additional rewards for medical expenses.

Rewards

• 3% back at gas stations and drugstores (excluding Target and Walmart)
• 2% back on eligible medical expenses
• 1% back on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn a $100 cash bonus if you spend $500 on purchases in the first 90 days of card membership.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

Rewards earned with this card can be redeemed for cash back or an AARP membership — whether for yourself or as a gift. This card also offers an intro 0% APR for 15 months on balance transfers completed within the first 45 days of opening the account, after a variable 21.99%, 25.99%, or 29.99% APR applies. The balance transfer fee is 5% of the amount you transfer with a $5 minimum.

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The Chase Freedom Flex is a top-tier cash-back card if you enjoy making the most of rotating bonus categories.

Rewards

• 5% back on up to $1,500 in combined purchases in rotating quarterly categories
• 5% back on travel purchases through the Chase Ultimate Rewards site
• 5% back on Lyft rides (through Mar. 31, 2025)
• 3% back on dining
• 3% back at drugstores
• 1% back on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn a $100 bonus after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

Cardholders receive an intro 0% APR for 15 months from account opening on purchases and balance transfers, then a variable 20.49%–29.24% APR applies. There is an intro balance transfer fee of 3% of the amount you transfer ($5 minimum) for transfers you make within 60 days of opening the account. After that, the balance transfer fee increases to 5% of the amount transferred ($5 minimum).

While this card is ideal for those seeking cash-back rewards, you could also redeem the points you earn for travel or gift cards. If you happen to have another card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (mentioned above) or the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, you're able to convert your cash back into transferrable Ultimate Rewards® points, opening up a plethora of redemption opportunities with the issuer's 14 airline and hotel partners.

Cardholders can also enroll to take advantage of special partner deals with DoorDash and Instacart.

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The Wells Fargo Reflect® Card stands out for having one of the most generous intro-APR offers available with any credit card.

Rewards

None

Welcome bonus

None

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

The Wells Fargo Reflect® offers a 0% intro APR for 21 months for purchases and balance transfers (then, a variable 18.24%, 24.74% or 29.99% APR applies). To qualify for the intro balance transfer period, you need to complete any balance transfers within 120 days from account opening, BT fee of 5%, min $5.

Cardholders also receive perks such as cell phone protection ($25 deductible, up to $600 per claim and two claims per 12 months) and access to 24/7 emergency roadside assistance, though service charges apply.

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The Fidelity® Rewards Visa Signature® Card provides a solid flat-rate return for all purchases, which makes it a great card to use for transactions that don't earn bonus rewards.

Rewards

• 2% back on all purchases

Welcome bonus

None

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

Additional perks include roadside dispatch, purchase security and lost luggage reimbursement. Cardholders can also take advantage of special benefits with Avis, Budget and hotels that are part of the Visa Signature® Luxury Hotel Collection.

You can earn additional cash back on all purchases (up to 1% more) if you qualify for Fidelity Rewards+. However, to enroll in Fidelity Rewards+ you need at least $250,000 in professionally managed assets with Fidelity.

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Credit card issuers usually require you to have good credit or excellent credit — a score above 670 — to sign up for a new card. For that reason, it's important to check your credit score before applying. They'll also be keeping a close eye on the number of cards you already have or have recently applied for. Chase's notorious 5/24 rule prevents those who have applied for five cards within the last 24 months from being approved for a new one with them, so be aware that you could end up being rejected because of it.

Additionally, it's worth doing the math and making sure you'll be able to use enough of the card's included benefits to justify paying the annual fee, especially if it's a higher one. And as always, keep an eye on your budget to ensure you can hit any minimum-spending requirements responsibly.

It's never too late to start your points and miles journey, whether you're planning to redeem them for flights, hotels or other parts of a future trip or prefer to receive cash-back rewards to cover other expenses. If you tend to spend more of your money on medical expenses, dining or trips to the supermarket or drugstore, there's a card for you, just as there is for anyone hoping to boost their retirement savings balance. By spending within your means and keeping track of your credit score, it's possible to save some money with these cards and ensure the benefits work best for your needs.

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every credit card review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit card products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best credit cards for seniors.

To determine which cards offer the best value for seniors and retirees, CNBC Select analyzed over 230 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.

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For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here.  

For rates and fees of The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, click here.

*Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/ benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.