6 best credit cards for gamers

Looking to level up your gaming experience? The right rewards credit card can help you score bonus cashback or points on your gaming purchases and potentially unlock perks like introductory interest-free financing and built-in extended warranty and purchase protection, which can be valuable when buying an expensive console or gaming PC.

CNBC Select reviewed some of the best credit cards for gaming purchases and narrowed down our top recommendations based on benefits, rewards and fees. (See our methodology for more information on how we made this list.)

Who’s this for? The Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card is useful for gaming and non-gaming spending because it offers a high flat-rate return on all purchases and the rewards are easy to redeem.

Standout benefits: You’ll earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on every purchase, double the standard 1% back you’ll earn with most cards for spending that falls outside of a special bonus category. This makes it easy to shop around for the best deals on games and accessories because your rewards aren’t tied to a specific brand.

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Who’s this for? The Chase Freedom Unlimited® is an affordable no-annual-fee cash-back card that’s perfect if you want additional protection for an expensive purchase, such as a new gaming console or computer.

Standout benefits: You’re covered by purchase protection and extended warranty benefits. The purchase protection covers eligible purchases for 120 days against damage or theft for up to $500 per item. The extended warranty perk adds an additional year on eligible warranties of three years or less.

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Who’s this for? The Prime Visa is a rewarding cash-back card for Amazon purchases, which makes it a great option if you already have a Prime membership and appreciate the Prime Gaming benefits.

Standout benefits: The Prime Visa earns 5% cash back at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods Market and on travel purchased through Chase Travel^SM. This makes it easy to maximize the rewards you earn on everything from the latest pro controller or gaming chair to the snacks you need to fuel up for your next all-night gaming session.

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Who’s this for? The U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card has no annual fee and flexible bonus cash-back spending categories, making it a great option for anyone who wants to maximize rewards across a variety of purchases.

Standout benefits: The U.S. Bank Cash+ Visa Card has valuable quarterly 5% cash back categories for gamers including, electronic stores and TV, internet and streaming purchases. You choose two categories each quarter and earn 5% cash back on the first $2,000 in combined eligible purchases in those categories that quarter. This allows you to change where you earn the most rewards when your spending habits shift.

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Who’s this for? The Target Circle Card™ is a store credit card, but it’s worthwhile if you frequently shop at Target for games and consoles — or just about anything else.

Standout benefits: You receive a 5% discount at checkout on eligible purchases in-store and at Target.com. You also receive free two-day shipping on eligible orders, an additional 30 days for returns and exchanges and cardholder-exclusive offers.

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Who’s this for? If your go-to gaming platform is the Microsoft Xbox, the Xbox Mastercard gets you a 5% return on eligible Microsoft web, app and console purchases.

Standout benefits: You’ll earn 5X points for every $1 spent on eligible Microsoft purchases through the Xbox Design Lab, Microsoft Store (and Microsoft Store on Xbox), Digital Microsoft Store (console) the Xbox app and the Microsoft Store app. You can redeem these points for one cent each as a credit for eligible purchases (100 points for a $1 credit is the minimum redemption amount).

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Rewards

• Unlimited 2% cash rewards on eligible purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months of account opening.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

The Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card comes with cell phone protection for damage or theft when you pay your monthly wireless phone bill with your card. You can be reimbursed up to $600 per claim for up to two claims per 12 months (subject to a $25 deductible).

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Rewards

• 5% back on travel purchased through  Chase Travel℠
• 5% back on Lyft rides (through March 2025)
• 3% back at drugstores
• 3% back on dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery services)
• 1.5% on all other purchases.

Welcome bonus

Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year) — worth up to $300 cash back.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

Chase Freedom Unlimited® cardholders can enroll to receive three free months of DoorDash DashPass, you must activate this benefit by Jan. 31, 2025. With. DashPass membership you get reduced service fees and $0 delivery fees on eligible orders. You can also take advantage of up to $10 off one non-restaurant DoorDash order every quarter.

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Rewards

• Unlimited 5% cash back at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, Whole Foods and on travel purchased through Chase Travel^SM
• 2% cash back at gas stations
• 2% cash back at restaurants
• 2% cash back on local transit
• 1% cash back on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Receive an instant $150 Amazon gift card upon approval.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

The Prime Visa has a healthy list of shopping and travel protections, including:

• Purchase protection
• Extended warranty protection
• Baggage delay insurance
• Lost luggage reimbursement
• Rental car coverage
• Travel accident insurance
• Travel and emergency assistance
• Roadside assistance

It also has no foreign transaction fees.

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Rewards

• 5% cash back on your first $2,000 in combined eligible purchases each quarter on two categories you choose
• 5% cash back on prepaid air, hotel and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center
• 2% cash back on one everyday category, such as gas stations/EV charging stations, grocery stores or restaurants (excludes discount stores/supercenters and wholesale clubs)
• 1% cash back on all other eligible purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn a $200 bonus after spending $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 90 days of account opening.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

When you’re approved for the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card, look at your budget to see where you spend the most because you’ll have a long list of 5%-cash-back categories to choose from each quarter. These bonus categories include:

• Fast food
• Home utilities
• TV, internet and streaming services
• Department stores
• Cell phone providers
• Electronics stores
• Sporting goods stores
• Gyms and fitness centers
• Ground transportation
• Movie theaters
• Furniture stores
• Select clothing stores

Just remember that you’ll need to opt into categories each quarter manually.

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Rewards

• 5% off at Target and Target.com
• 2% cash back on dining
• 2% cash back on gas
• 1% cash back on all other purchases outside of Target

Welcome bonus

Save $50 on a qualifying purchase of $50 or more when you’re approved for this card.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

The Target Circle Card™‘s 5% discount at Target and Target.com will apply to most purchases that are relevant to gamers. However, there are exclusions such as taxes, delivery and handling fees, Target gift cards, prepaid cards and prescriptions.

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Rewards

• 5X points at the digital Microsoft Store
• 3X points on eligible streaming services, including Netflix, Disney+ and Spotify
• 3X points on eligible dining delivery services, including DoorDash and Grubhub
• 1X points on all other purchases

Welcome bonus

Earn 5,000 bonus points after making your first purchase within the first 180 days of account opening. New Game Pass members can earn three months of Game Pass Ultimate after making their first purchase within the first 180 days of account opening.

Annual fee

$0

Notable perks

If you spend at least $7,000 on your Xbox Mastercard within 365 days of account opening, you’ll receive two three-month Game Pass Ultimate codes to gift to friends or family who want to try the service for the first time. You’ll receive three free months of Spotify Premium after you make your first purchase with this card.

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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 article 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 gamers.

To determine which credit cards offer the best value for gamers, CNBC Select analyzed over 250 major credit cards issued through FDIC-insured banks and NCUA-insured credit unions that are widely available in the U.S.  

We compared each card on a range of features, including rewards (e.g., cash back, points and miles), annual fees, welcome bonuses, introductory and standard APR and balance transfer fees and foreign transaction fees. We also considered additional perks (e.g., ongoing travel or merchant statement credits), cardholder protections (e.g., purchase protection, $0 liability protection and travel insurance), the application process when available (e.g., is there a credit pull or required credit score) and how easy it is to redeem points (e.g., are rewards are tied to a specific brand; if transferable, to how many/which partners, can you redeem for straight cash back).
 
We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.  

For the cards that offered a rewards program, we considered consumer spending data forecasts from location intelligence firm Esri to determine where U.S. consumers are spending the most money, like on dining and travel. We used this to help determine what bonus categories are most useful for consumers. Since the value of a point or mile varies based on what they can be redeemed for, we also considered things like transferability and the ability to redeem for cash-back. 

When choosing the best credit cards for gamers, we gave increased priority to features and rewards that are valuable for gamers, but may not be as universally lucrative for an average consumer.

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