Which card should I use?

Add the cards you already carry, pick where you're paying, and we'll tell you which one to swipe.

On your phone it does more: one tap names the store you're standing in and the card to pay with.

Your cards

Favorite cards

Where are you paying?

Your card list stays on this device. We don't store it, and you don't need an account.

How to use it

Three steps, no account

1

Add the cards you carry

Search your wallet into the left list. That list is the whole point — a ranking of cards you don't have is trivia, and a ranking of the ones in your pocket is an answer.

2

Add the ones you're eyeing

The right list is for cards you don't have yet. They rank next to everything else, so you can see what a card you're considering would actually have earned you at the places you pay.

3

Pick where you're paying

Search a store by name, or a category like groceries or gas when the store isn't listed. The ranking appears as soon as you choose — nothing else to press.

Reading the answer

What the list is telling you

The answer comes in three parts: the best card you actually carry, any cards that would beat it, and then the rest of the field. Each row shows what that card earns here — a percentage for cash back, a multiplier for points and miles.

I have this one

Tap the circle on any row to claim a card without scrolling back up to search for it. It turns into a filled check, and if it's the best one you carry it moves up to “Your best card”.

One I'd like

Tap the heart to save a card you're considering. Favorites are not promoted above better cards — a card you don't carry can't be today's answer, though it can appear under “Better than yours”.

See the whole card

The art, the name and the link icon all open that card's page, with every category it pays on, its annual fee and the caveats behind the number.

Why this order

Ranked on what it's worth, not the biggest number

A card advertising 5x can be worth less than one advertising 4x, because a point is not a cent. Every rate here is converted to its cash-equivalent value first, using the conservative valuations published in our methodology, and the ranking runs on that. Ties break alphabetically.

Read the methodology

Cards the store won't take

Where a merchant only accepts certain networks — Costco in store is Visa-only — those cards are marked and sorted to the bottom. The best card you can't pay with isn't the best card.

This never leaves your browser

Your cards and favorites are stored on this device only. We don't have an account for you, we don't send the lists anywhere, and we're not paid to put any card above another — there are no affiliate links on this site.

Get the app

The app knows where you are

This page answers the question when you already know the store. On your phone, SwipeCaddy works out the rest — what you're standing in front of, what's around you, and what to pay with before you reach the counter.

Swipe Spot

One tap tells you which store you're in and which of your cards to pay with. Three free looks, then Pro.

Nearby

A map of the places around you, each already answered. Free — Pro skips the ad.

Swipe Scope

Point your camera at the street and every store in view is tagged with your best card. Pro.

Swipe Signal

A notification when you arrive somewhere your wallet has a better answer than the obvious one. Pro, in beta.

Free to download, and it works without an account — same as this page.

Rather browse?

Every store and category has its own page with the full ranking already worked out.