Black Friday has become one of the biggest shopping times of the year, attracting large crowds and even greater online traffic. What started as a single in-store event has evolved into a multi-day package across retailers, including in-person discounts and online promotions.
With so many great deals available – often available from the comfort of your phone, tablet or laptop – the key question is how to get the most out of your spend. One of the easiest ways to earn cash back, points, or miles on every purchase is by choosing the right credit card.
To help you maximize your rewards, we’ve created this guide to the best credit cards to use during Black Friday sales, whether you’re in store or browsing online.
American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card
If you’re looking for an entry-level cash back card to use this Black Friday, American Express Blue Cash Everyday® Card Worth considering.
Welcome bonus: Earn $200 in statement points after you spend $2,000 in purchases within the first six months of card membership.
Annual fee: $0 (see rates and fees)
Yield:
- Earn 3% cash back* on groceries at U.S. supermarkets, online at U.S. retailers, and 3% cash back at U.S. gas stations (on the first $6,000 in each category in a calendar year, then 1% until the next year)
- 1% cash back on other qualifying purchases
*Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars, which can be redeemed as statement points or at checkout on Amazon.com.
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When to use this card: You can earn 3% cash back on the first $6,000 in online purchases from U.S. retailers each year. If you’re shopping online during Black Friday or Cyber Monday, this is undoubtedly one of the best credit cards for your shopping.
To learn more, read our full review of the Blue Cash Everyday card.
Apply here: American Express Blue Cash Everyday Card
Capital One Entrepreneurship Rewards Credit Card
The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is one of the best mid-tier cards on the market.
Welcome bonus: Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 in purchases within three months of account opening.
This offer is worth $1,388 based on TPG’s November 2025 valuation.
Annual fee: $95
Yield:
- Earn 5 miles for every $1 you spend when you book hotels, rental cars, and vacation rentals with Capital One Travel
- Earn 2 miles per $1 spent on all purchases
When to use this card: The Venture Rewards card earns at least 2 miles per dollar spent on every purchase, no matter where and when you spend it, so it’s great for purchases that don’t earn you category-specific bonuses with other rewards credit cards. It also means you’ll earn great rewards in-store and online.
Capital One miles can be redeemed for statement points on qualifying purchases or transferred to one of the issuer’s many airline and hotel transfer partners, which can provide great value on your next vacation.
To learn more, read our full review of Risk Reward.
Learn more: Capital One Entrepreneurship Rewards Credit Card
Chasing freedom and flexibility
this Chase Freedom Flex® (See Rates & Fees) A great card for both beginners and experienced credit card enthusiasts.
Welcome bonus: Get a $200 bonus when you spend $500 in the first three months after opening an account.
Annual fee: $0
Yield:
- Get 5% cash back on quarterly rotating categories when you activate and book travel with Chase Travel℠
- 3% rebate on restaurants and pharmacies
- 1% rebate on other purchases
When to use this card: The Chase Freedom Flex is a great all-around money maker. Cardholders will earn 5% cash back on combined purchases of up to $1,500 in the fourth quarter across several different categories, including department stores and Old Navy.
Additionally, during the month of December, cardholders will receive 5% cash back through PayPal. This makes it perfect for last-minute holiday shopping at department stores that accept PayPal. (Quarterly earnings require activation.)
To learn more, read our full review of the Freedom Flex card.
Apply here: Chasing freedom and flexibility
Citi Customized Cash Card
While it may not get as much attention as other no-annual-fee cards, the Citi Custom Cash® Card deserves your attention this holiday season.
Citi Custom Cash Card information is independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Welcome bonus: Earn $200 cash back when you spend $1,500 in purchases within the first six months of account opening.
Annual fee: $0
Yield:
- Earn 5% cash back (then 1%) on your first $500 of purchases each billing cycle in the following list of your highest qualifying spending categories: Drug Stores, Health Clubs, Gas Stations, Grocery Stores, Home Improvement Stores, Live Entertainment, Restaurants, Select Streaming Services, Select Transportation, and Select Travel
- Earn 1% unlimited cash back on all other purchases
When to use this card: This is a card that caters to your lifestyle, whether you’re traveling the world this month or shopping at home next month. If you reach your $500 spending limit each billing cycle, you’ll receive a $25 cash back reward each month (with the potential for up to $300 in rewards per year).
Versatility is key. Even if your Black Friday purchases don’t fall into the normal high-spending categories, you can still get 5% back if they make up the majority of your bill this month and are in an eligible category.
To learn more, read our full review of the Citi Custom Cash Card.
Citi Double Money Card
If you are looking for an all-round card that can be used for daily spending, then your best choice is Citi Double Cash® Card (See Rates and Fees).
Welcome bonus: Earn $200 cash back when you spend $1,500 in purchases within the first six months of account opening.
Annual fee: $0
Yield:
- Get 5% cash back when booking attractions, rental cars and hotels with Citi Travel
- 2% on every purchase (1% cash back on purchase, plus an additional 1% on payment)
When to use this card: If you’ve looked at our list of the best cards for each bonus category and decided that your purchase didn’t qualify for any bonus earnings, this is a great card to use for everything else.
To learn more, read our full review of Citi Double Cash.
Apply here: Citi Double Money Card
Discover it Cash Back
Fans of rotating bonus categories will appreciate what Discover it® Cash Back has to offer.
Discover it cash back information is independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Welcome bonus: While this card doesn’t offer a traditional welcome bonus, Discover will match all the cash back you earn within the first 12 consecutive billing cycles of opening a new account, effectively doubling your first-year earnings.
Annual fee: $0
Yield:
When to use this card: If you plan to shop online on Amazon, Discover It Cash Back might be a good option since Amazon is one of its fourth-quarter categories. The retailer is known for its holiday shopping deals, making it a prime location for Black Friday and Cyber Monday shoppers.
To find out more, read our full review of Discover it Cash Back.
Premium visa
If you’re a regular Amazon Prime subscriber, you’d be remiss not to consider it Premium visa.
Welcome bonus: Immediately upon approval receive a $250 Amazon gift card, exclusive to Prime members.
Annual fee: $0 (but you need to be a Prime member, which costs $139 per year to get this card)
Yield:
- Earn 10% or more back on a rotating selection of products and categories on Amazon.com (with a qualifying Prime membership)
- Earn 5% back on purchases at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, Chase Travel and Whole Foods Market
- 2% back at gas stations, local transportation (including ride-hailing services) and restaurants
- 1% back on everything else
When to use this card: Prime Visa is only open to those with Amazon Prime membership. While the card has no annual fee, you do have to pay an annual fee of $139 for an annual Prime account.
But for those who think Prime is worth it and use it regularly, the advantage of this card is that it offers 5% off on a variety of items and groceries at Amazon and Whole Foods.
To learn more, check out our full review of Prime Visa.
Apply here: Premium visa
How to maximize your Black Friday spending
Don’t forget shopping portals
When shopping online on Black Friday or Cyber Monday, in addition to using a good credit card, make sure you shop through a shopping portal to get double (or maybe even triple) rewards.
All you have to do is shop on your favorite sites through their links. We recommend starting with a shopping portal aggregator like CashbackMonitor.com and comparing the profitability of these sites.
Please note that these bonuses will be in addition to the standard earn rates for the cards listed above. You should also be able to stack them with discounts or bonuses.
This way, you can earn rewards from your shopping portal, earn rewards from your credit card, and potentially use rebates from your credit card issuer—it’s the perfect combination.
Meet the welcome bonus spending requirements
If you just signed up for a new card with a welcome bonus spending requirement, holiday shopping is a great opportunity to help you hit those spending thresholds.
For example, let’s say you apply for the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. Venture X earns 2 miles per $1 spent on all non-reward spending. Currently, new Venture
Earning 2 miles per $1 on everyday purchases is a solid rate of return, especially for shopping categories that don’t typically earn any kind of rewards through other credit cards. But it’s an even better deal if you also lower the spending requirement by $10,000 to earn 100,000 bonus miles.
Use credit card offers
The major credit card issuers have programs that offer targeted offers that you can use to earn extra rewards or bonus cash back on your purchases. Because these offers are targeted, not every offer is available to everyone or to every credit card you hold from this bank.
Options include Amex offers, BankAmeriDeals, Capital One offers, Chase offers and Citi Merchant offers. Many of the deals are available for both in-store (Black Friday) and online (Cyber Monday) purchases.
These offers can make a card that typically doesn’t offer bonus rewards at some stores worth using when you’re shopping for non-travel Black Friday deals.
By adding an offer to your card and then shopping at that merchant (you’ll need to pay with the card with the offer added), you can earn cash back or reward points on top of your regular earnings.
Related: Earn Points, Miles or Cash Back: How to Make the Most of Your Online Shopping Portal Purchases
bottom line
Black Friday is a huge shopping day in the United States and a great opportunity to score rewards.
Whether you prefer to brave a store or shop online while curling up with hot cocoa—or even do both—there are plenty of ways to make the most of your shopping this holiday season.
The best credit cards for Black Friday shopping will offer extra cash back, earn more reward points or miles, and even unlock valuable welcome bonuses.
RELATED: How to Make the Most of Black Friday and Holiday Deals at Your Shopping Portal
For rates and fees on the Amex Blue Cash Everyday Card, click here.
