The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
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The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Katie Genter is a digital nomad who has traveled full time since June 2017. She writes and edits stories about points and miles, and loyalty programs, often letting her personal experiences color these stories.
Credit card writer Danyal Ahmed is an avid traveler, averaging about 100,000 aeronautical miles per year. He regularly applies that knowledge and his expertise in credit cards to his role as a credit card writer at TPG.
also contributed to this story
August 19, 2024 • 16 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
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Quick summary
Couples traveling together need more points and miles but also have greater opportunities to earn rewards through coordinated credit card strategies.
Each partner can apply for cards independently, and adding a partner as an authorized user may help build credit and share select benefits.
Joint credit card accounts are rare, so most couples use individual accounts with the option to add authorized users for shared expenses or perks.
Choosing whether to open separate or shared accounts depends on financial management style, travel habits and which benefits can be shared.
What to consider
Authorized users can make purchases but are not responsible for repayment, so trust and communication are essential.
Some cards charge a fee for adding authorized users, while others extend most benefits or allow sharing of perks like lounge access or elite status.
Recent applications and account openings may affect eligibility for new cards due to rules like the 5/24 rule.
What you'll miss from the article
Detailed guidance on maximizing rewards as a couple, including tips for managing accounts, organizing cards and deciding when to add authorized users.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
When you travel as a couple, simple math shows you’ll need more points and miles than when traveling solo. After all, even if the lodging costs are the same, you’ll still need double the airline miles to get there. Luckily, couples have twice the opportunity to earn rewards from travel credit cards.
However, you may have questions about managing and maximizing credit cards as a couple. Today, I’ll discuss several credit card strategies you and your partner can use to leverage your credit and your two-player relationship.
How credit cards work for couples
When deciding whether to approve you for a card, credit card issuers don’t care whether you’re married. Specifically, as long as you’re an adult, you can apply for a credit card — regardless of whether your spouse or partner has the same card. And you’ll be approved or denied for a card based on yourcredit score and history, independent of your partner’s credit score and history.
However, you can include all household income to which you have access when applying for a new card. So if you and your partner manage your finances jointly, you may be able to include their income on your credit card application.
Primary account holders can make their partner (or anyone else) an authorized user on their account. Authorized users can make purchases on the account, but they generally can’t fully manage the account, make changes to the account or redeem rewards. However, depending on your card's benefits, they may enjoy certain perks.
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If one person in a couple has a higher credit score than the other, the person with the higher credit score may have more success when applying for new cards. As such, the person with the higher credit score may want to apply for cards and then add the person with the lower credit score to the account as an authorized user. Doing so could boost the authorized user’s credit score.
However, you’ll only want to add your partner as an authorized user if you trust them to use credit responsibly. After all, authorized users aren’t responsible for repayment. So you’ll be on the hook for charges made by authorized users on your account. It’s also possible that having an authorized user card will give you temporary trouble with Chase's 5/24 rule (covering how many accounts you’ve opened in the last two years), but this can be resolved with a reconsideration call.
Best credit card strategies for couples to maximize rewards
Maximizing rewards will look different for each couple. After all, each couple has their own travel goals, credit scores and financial management strategies. That said, these are some of the most common questions couples ask about maximizing credit card rewards:
Should we each sign up for the same card?
To answer this question, consider the following aspects:
Do you manage your finances jointly or separately? Couples who manage their finances separately will generally want separate credit card accounts. However, even if you manage your finances separately, you may want one or two shared credit card accounts for shared expenses. Likewise, even if you generally manage your finances jointly, having one or two separate cards can be nice for purchasing surprise gifts.
Is the welcome offer exceptional? Some offers remain pretty consistent for years on end. But limited-time offers may disappear as soon as you leave the page.
Can the cardholder benefits be shared? Many of the best rewards credit cards offer valuable perks. For these cards, consider whether you and your partner can share the benefits. For example, some airline credit cards offer a checked baggage benefit you can share with others but a lounge benefit available only to the primary cardholder.
Are you mainly interested in the bonus earning categories? If so, you may want to add your partner as an authorized user. If there’s a fee to add an authorized user, you may want to load their card in your mobile wallet and tap to pay whenever possible.
Is adding an authorized user or applying for a second card better? Some cards allow you to add authorized users for free, while others charge a fee. While some cards extend most of the primary cardholder’s benefits to authorized users, others don’t offer many benefits to authorized users. For example, many couples have one primary Platinum Card® from American Express in the family while the spouse (and potentially parents, kids, etc.) has an authorized user card that confers many of the same perks but costs $195 a year instead of paying the full $895 annual fee (see rates and fees) all over again.
If you are only applying for 1 card, who should apply?
If only one person will open a new card account, consider who is more likely to use the card’s benefits exclusively. For example, if you travel without your partner more than they travel without you, you should open most of the hotel and airline cards. This way, you can use the benefits when you travel solo. Likewise, if you are loyal to different airlines or hotels than your partner, this will dictate which cards you open.
When signing up for a new card, consider four main questions:
How will we use this card’s sign-up bonus?
How will this card improve our earning rates?
Does this card have any notable benefits that will improve how we travel?
Can we easily hit the spending requirement to trigger the full bonus?
By answering these questions before applying for new cards, you can create a mix of cards between you and your partner. This is true even if you’re not jointly managing your finances, although you may miss out on maximizing some earnings if your partner holds the card with the best earnings for a particular purchase you want to make.
In couples where one person travels more than the other, it may make sense for the frequent traveler to focus on travel rewards cards and the other person to focus on cash-back cards. If one person in the couple doesn’t want to remember the best card to use for each purchase, it might be best for that person to apply for and use one of the best cards for everyday spending.
Some banks offer joint credit card accounts, which you apply for together and are jointly responsible for the bills. But joint accounts are relatively rare and may not be the best idea.
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
$595 (see rates and fees)
$175 for up to 3 authorized users and $175 for each authorized user thereafter
Access to American Airlines Admirals Clubs (plus either immediate family members or up to two guests) with a same-day boarding pass for an eligible flight
25% off inflight purchases with American Airlines
The Platinum Card® from American Express
$895 (see rates and fees)
$195 each (see rates and fees)
Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee ($120 for Global Entry every 4 years or up to $85 for TSA PreCheck every 4.5 years)
*Upon enrollment, accessible through the Capital One website or mobile app, eligible cardholders will remain at that status level through the duration of the offer. Please note, enrolling through the normal Hertz Gold Plus Rewards enrollment process (e.g. at Hertz.com) will not automatically detect a cardholder as being eligible for the program and cardholders will not be automatically upgraded to the applicable status tier. Additional terms apply
Of course, depending on your situation and preferences, adding your partner as an authorized user on a different card may be better. And applying for a joint account may be preferable for some couples.
You may have additional questions about credit card strategies for couples. Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions.
How to determine the right accounts for your relationship?
If you’re in a committed relationship, you may commingle finances. As you decide what new card(s) to add to your wallets and whether to add each other as authorized users on some of your cards, be sure to consider the points discussed above to create a good mix of cards. In particular, ensure you’re maximizing your earnings on most purchases, and working toward obtaining the right points, miles or other rewards to reach your goals.
As mentioned above, many banks don’t offer joint credit card accounts, and joint credit cards may be a bad idea. You should weigh the pros and cons of having a joint account against adding each other as authorized users.
But if you want a joint account, ensure your partner is on the same page financially. This is essential since you’ll both be fully responsible for any charges on the account and have access to the full credit line. Monitor the account closely and consider closing the account if your partner is irresponsible or if a separation occurs.
When should couples add each other as authorized users?
If you trust your partner to make responsible financial decisions, consider adding them as an authorized user on cards that don’t charge any additional fees for authorized users. Even if you manage your finances separately, having one or two accounts for shared expenses can be useful. However, remember that you’ll be responsible for any charges made by an authorized user on your account. It also may not be necessary or beneficial to be authorized users on every card your partner holds, so only add each other for specific reasons — not as an automatic process.
MINISERIES/GETTY IMAGES
In some cases, it can make sense to pay an authorized user annual fee. For example, I’m an additional cardholder on my husband’s Amex Platinum, even though the card carries a yearly fee of $195 for each additional Platinum cardholders (see rates and fees). We believe the expense is well justified by the elitelike benefits provided to authorized users, including Centurion Lounge access and hotel elite status.
You should maintain individual accounts if you manage your finances separately or have different financial priorities than your partner. Even if you manage finances jointly, each partner should have several accounts on which they’re the primary cardholder. After all, having your own accounts will allow you to build your credit history and snag welcome offers on new cards.
Here are some final tips for managing cards successfully as a couple.
Managing your partner’s account
If one person in the couple manages accounts for both individuals, they may face some difficulty. After all, only the primary account holder can make changes to an account. You can use the secure messaging or chat feature for most simple inquiries and requests. But your partner will need to call the bank in some situations and has to be comfortable sharing their login details. For example, the primary cardholder usually must call to report fraudulent transactions, inquire about retention offers or report a lost card.
Before leaving on a trip, you’ll want to remove cards with foreign transaction fees (when traveling overseas) and add travel-related cards. For example, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (see rates and fees)is a great card to carry if you’re going to stay at a Hilton property and use the Hilton Aspire’s annual up to $400 resort statement credit (given as up to $200 biannually).
Organization
Maintaining a spreadsheet or utilizing a website or app that tracks your cards, application dates and other important information is potentially a good idea. If you or your partner commonly forget which card to use for particular expenses, placing sticky notes on each card may reduce confusion. You also might like using a money management app. My husband and I use Quicken to track our finances, but there are many other popular options for keeping track of all your accounts.
For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the benefits may be provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.
For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum Card, click here. For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Aspire Card, click here.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
