If you’re a college student planning to study abroad, you’re in for a real treat. There’s nothing like living outside the U.S. and immersing yourself in another culture — traveling and exploring different cities virtually every weekend.
But this adventure doesn’t come cheap. For example, you can expect to spend anywhere from $2,000 to $5,000 during a four-month semester abroad in Europe, according to some reports.
The good news? If you’re using a credit card, you can earn some serious rewards on your study abroad expenses. Plus, the right card will help you save money on fees and protect you if your travel plans go awry.
Here’s what you need to know to choose the best credit card for study abroad.
What to consider when choosing a card for studying abroad
As you prepare for your adventure, look for these qualities to help you choose your best credit card for studying abroad.
Welcome bonus
Look for a card that offers a welcome bonus. The extra spending you’ll do on your semester abroad is a great way to meet the minimum spend requirement to earn a bonus on a new credit card.
Foreign transaction fees
Choosing a credit card that doesn’t have foreign transaction fees is the easiest way to save money while you’re abroad. If you use a debit or credit card that charges them, you’ll incur an additional fee of up to 5% on every purchase. Avoid this extra expense by getting a credit card with no foreign transaction fees.
Travel protections
Now more than ever, you want to be protected against travel delays, cancellations and other mishaps. Look for a credit card with travel protections that cover you when something goes wrong.
Become an authorized user
You may not have enough credit to qualify for one of our favorite travel rewards cards yet. If that’s the case, consider becoming an authorized user on a loved one’s account. This will allow you to benefit from the card’s protections and can have the added benefit of boosting your credit score simultaneously.
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Related: Best credit cards for college students
Best cards for students studying abroad
The information for the Discover it Student Cash Back card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Related: Getting started with points, miles and credit cards to travel
Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
If transferable rewards are what you’re seeking, look no further than the Capital One VentureOne Rewards.
Welcome bonus: Earn 20,000 bonus miles after spending $500 on purchases within the first three months from account opening. This bonus is worth $370, according to TPG’s November 2024 valuations.
Annual fee: $0 (see rates and fees)
What makes the card special: The VentureOne doesn’t carry an annual fee (see rates and fees) and earns an unlimited 1.25 miles per dollar on all purchases. Cardholders will also earn 5 miles per dollar on hotels and car rentals booked through Capital One Travel.
You can use your miles in a variety of ways, but the best way is to transfer them to any of Capital One’s 15-plus hotel and airline partners, which is likely your most valuable redemption option.
There aren’t many no-annual-fee cards that allow you to transfer miles to travel partners, so this card is definitely worth a second look for students studying abroad.
To learn more, check out our full review of the Capital One VentureOne.
Apply here: Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card
Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card
If you want to keep your wallet simple, cash back is often the way to go. Consider the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card.
Welcome bonus: Earn a one-time $250 cash bonus welcome bonus after spending $500 on purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Annual fee: $0 (see rates and fees)
What makes the card special: The Savor Cash Rewards is a great way to earn cash back on all your purchases. With it, you’ll earn 5% back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, 3% back on dining, select streaming services and entertainment purchases and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®) and 1% back on all other purchases.
This card doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees (see rates and fees) and is a good choice if you don’t want to pay an annual fee (see rates and fees). While the $250 welcome bonus isn’t lucrative, it does have a relatively low spending requirement. And when you’re looking at the expenses of studying abroad, every little bit helps.
To learn more, check out our full review of the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards.
Apply here: Capital One Savor Cash Rewards
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card is one of our favorite credit cards; it offers excellent value for its annual fee.
Welcome bonus: Earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening.
TPG’s November 2024 valuations value this welcome bonus at $1,230.
Annual fee: $95
What makes the card special: There’s a reason (or 10) everyone you know has this credit card.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred may be out of range if you are just starting your credit card journey, but it’s certainly one to set your sights on if you’re eligible.
It’s a great starter card if you want to get into points and miles because it earns you 3 points per dollar on dining and 2 points per dollar on travel booked outside of Chase Travel℠ — so every time you book a flight on Ryanair or end up at Wok to Walk again, you’ll rack up on fully transferable points.
The welcome bonus is solid, too. There’s a $95 annual fee on this card, but perks like trip delay coverage, trip cancellation insurance, purchase protection and baggage delay insurance easily make up for it.
And when you’re ready to redeem the points you’ve earned with the Chase Sapphire Preferred, you have some great options. Most simply, you can use your points to purchase airfare, reserve hotel rooms and even rent a car at a rate of 1.25 cents per point through Chase Travel.
But you can get even more value from your rewards by taking advantage of the card’s ability to transfer points to any of Chase’s airline and hotel partners. This route takes a bit more time and energy to figure out, but it can help you unlock some incredible value from your rewards.
To learn more, check out our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
Apply here: Chase Sapphire Preferred
The Platinum Card from American Express
The Amex Platinum is one of the most famous cards on the market; even if you’re new to the points and miles world, you’ve certainly heard of it.
What makes the card special: If you have a loved one who is a cardmember of The Platinum Card from American Express, you might have hit the jackpot. They can add you as an authorized user for an additional $195 per year (see rates and fees). Although this may seem steep, you can easily make this up (and then some) through the valuable benefits you’ll unlock.
As an authorized user, you’ll enjoy access to American Express Centurion Lounges, Priority Pass lounges and Delta Sky Clubs* (though the latter only applies when you are traveling on Delta).
You’ll also receive a TSA PreCheck/Global Entry statement credit for your application fee to breeze past lines before and after your trip ($120 for Global Entry every four years, or up to $85 every 4½ years for TSA PreCheck). Plus, you’ll receive Marriott and Hilton Gold elite status. Enrollment is required; terms apply.
You won’t be eligible to earn a welcome bonus on this card as an authorized user, but these travel perks will easily upgrade your study abroad game.
The annual fee for the primary cardmember is $695 (see rates and fees), but it comes with a host of other perks. If you’re not able to get added as an authorized user for the Amex Platinum, it’s definitely a card worth considering once you have a higher credit score and enough income to afford its annual fee.
To learn more, check out our full review of the Amex Platinum.
*Effective February 1, 2025: Eligible Platinum Card Members will receive 10 Visits per Eligible Platinum Card per year to the Delta Sky Club or to Grab and Go when traveling on a same-day Delta-operated flight.
Apply here: Amex Platinum
Discover it Student Cash Back
Lacking a good credit score, or perhaps any score at all? Then a student card like the Discover it® Student Cash Back is your best bet.
Welcome bonus: Get all of the cash back you earned during your first cardmember year matched.
Annual fee: $0
What makes the card special: With the Discover it® Student Cash Back card, you’ll get 5% cash back on your first $1,500 in purchases on quarterly rotating categories after you enroll your card and then 1% cash back on everything else. While it isn’t a fancy earnings structure, receiving 5% back on certain purchases on a student card is fantastic.
Students studying abroad can get outsize value from this card since all earnings during the first year are doubled. The card also has no annual or foreign transaction fees, so you can use it abroad to your heart’s content without being penalized.
And you won’t have to worry about redemption minimums, so you can cash out your rewards at any time.
Related: My experience of getting my first student credit card — and which credit card I want next
Bottom line
Studying abroad will undoubtedly be a significant expense, but with these tips in mind, you’ll be able to offset some of the cost of it — and might even score some free flights or hotels in the process. Hopefully, you’ll find your best match in this roundup of the best credit cards for students studying abroad and make your adventure much sweeter.
Related: Why the Citi Rewards+ is great for college students
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.
