Best online payment cards?

Hm, does nobody know?

Does anyone have a solid recommendation for the best card to use for online shopping? I was leaning toward grabbing one of those Chase Visa cards designed for young adults. I’m 21 and currently navigating life as a college student. Honestly, these prepaid cards seem pretty slick because they give you total control over your spending—I’d just load up a specific amount and then use that for my online purchases. Does that actually work the way I think it does, or is there some hidden catch I'm missing? I’m a bit of a novice when it comes to this stuff. What would you all suggest?

granitecrane13 said:Does anyone have a solid recommendation for the best card to use for online shopping? I was leaning toward grabbing one of those Chase Visa cards designed for young adults. I’m 21 and currently navigating life as a college student. Honestly, these prepaid cards seem pretty slick because they give you total control over your spending—I’d just load up a specific amount and then use that for my online purchases. Does that actually work the way I think it does, or is there some hidden catch I'm missing? I’m a bit of a novice when it comes to this stuff. What would you all suggest?

I've used one of these on eBay before and it worked perfectly fine for me.

Hope I'm not posting this in the wrong subforum. So, I've got a PayPal's Mastercard and was wondering—which ATM or bank is actually the best bet for pulling out cash here in the States? Do all the banks charge the same kind of fees for converting USD... or what?
Thanks!

Hey,

I currently have a checking account at JPMorgan Chase with a Maestro card, but I need a dedicated card just for online shopping.
My idea is to simply transfer whatever amounts I need from my main account to this specific one before making purchases online.
Can anyone help me pick the right card for this? Thanks...

Quick question. I'm currently using a Chase student package with a Maestro card. It works fine for daily stuff, but it’s useless for anything online. I need something that actually works with PayPal and other sites. Which of these should I pick if I want the lowest fees? Ideally, I want something without an overdraft limit—just zero balance.

Mastercard student

Visa International

Visa checking account

Any clarification would be appreciated. Thanks.

Steven Rogers9 said:Quick question. I'm currently using a Chase student package with a Maestro card. It works fine for daily stuff, but it’s useless for anything online. I need something that actually works with PayPal and other sites. Which of these should I pick if I want the lowest fees? Ideally, I want something without an overdraft limit—just zero balance.

Mastercard student

Visa International

Visa checking account

Any clarification would be appreciated. Thanks.

Since I can't edit, I just went with the Visa International. Foreign currency account.

I could use some help here 🙂

I’m currently using a student package from Bank of America—it includes a Visa checking account, a Visa debit card, and an American Express specifically for students.

I'm assuming none of these cards will actually work on Amazon (whether it's the .de, .co.uk, or .com sites)? ...I've been digging through Amazon's own instructions where they mention accepting Visa, but I've heard rumors that it still doesn't go through, so I'm a bit confused 🙂

I actually called both Citigroup and Wells Fargo to ask about their web-based prepaid cards, but neither of them could give me a straight answer on whether those prepaid options would be accepted by Amazon... I get that they can't possibly know exactly which specific portals accept which types of cards, but I was wondering if anyone here has had any luck successfully shopping on Amazon using a prepaid card from a major bank?

You might want to check out this thread.

It’s been ages since I picked up a game on Amazon. Last time I actually went through the trouble was forever ago, but if I recall correctly, I used my Bank of America Visa. You should give it a shot.

Thanks!
I just saw someone else on the Amazon thread mention (back in 2010 😁) that they successfully placed an order using their Bank of America Visa... I think I'll give it a shot myself, and if it actually works, it works 🙂

I’m a college student currently using a student checking account at JPMorgan Chase. I have a debit card and a standard Visa account.
I'm looking to do some shopping exclusively on eBay (not really interested in anything else), so can anyone tell me which of these cards actually works there, or if I should just open a different one to get the job done?
Thanks 🙂

Lisa Bennett30 said:I’m a college student currently using a student checking account at JPMorgan Chase. I have a debit card and a standard Visa account.
I'm looking to do some shopping exclusively on eBay (not really interested in anything else), so can anyone tell me which of these cards actually works there, or if I should just open a different one to get the job done?
Thanks 🙂

Use that one, but keep in mind it’s a newer feature they just rolled out at JPMorgan Chase (up until now, only the Mastercard worked online). Honestly, your best bet is to just ask someone at the local branch.🙂

I went ahead and grabbed a Visa Classic prepaid card from Citigroup. It’s actually a full Visa Classic, not just a basic Visa debit card, which I think is a nice touch.
It works perfectly with PayPal, too—you can even receive funds directly onto it, or if you prefer, just top it up through online banking from any of your usual banks.
Plus, I guess you can withdraw cash for free whenever you need at Citigroup ATMs or even at some local service points.
It costs about $17 and it's good for three years.
And honestly, there aren't really any extra monthly maintenance fees or anything like that.

I have both a checking account and a savings account over at Bank of America.
My savings account is strictly for online shopping—nothing too frequent—but it’s been such a headache. I didn't have online banking set up, and honestly, I just couldn't deal with the hassle of driving down to the branch, waiting in line just to deposit some cash, and then having to go out and actually make a purchase right after...

At the end of October, they set up a recurring transfer from my savings to my checking. Because there wasn't any money in the savings account yet, I couldn't buy anything online. They told me the transfer wouldn't kick in until November 1st. Well, it's November 1st now, and I stopped by the bank today to check on it. The teller assured me everything was activated and told me not to worry.
I even explained to her exactly why I need the savings account for things like eBay..

But here we go again! I'm trying to buy something right now, and I'm getting an error message saying I don't have enough funds and that I should add a different card!

The thing is, I don't want to add a new card; I want to use my savings account that has the automatic transfer set up to my checking!! Is it me? Am I going crazy here?🙂

I'm not entirely sure I follow... why set up a standing order from the checking account to the savings if you actually need the cash in checking?? Shouldn't it be the other way around—from checking to savings?

Is your card even active?

It’s just because my paycheck goes straight into my checking account, and there’s nothing in my savings unless I actually need to buy something—then I have to deal with the hassle of heading down to Bank of America, waiting in line, and making a deposit. It would be so much more convenient this way. And what do you mean by "is it active"? If you're asking if it lasts until 2016, then yes, it does. 🙂

Once your card arrives, you’ll need to activate it. Every bank does things differently; with JPMorgan Chase, for instance, I either have to head into a branch to get it sorted at the counter or just call their customer service line to do it over the phone.

Regarding the transfer order—if the funds land in the checking account, shouldn't the transfer then move from checking to savings?

That’s exactly the issue. I’ve been using this same card for years without any trouble, and now, all of a sudden, it just won't work. 🙂

Since you just set up your autopay recently, it might not actually kick in until next month. 🤷 I switched my utility bills over to automatic payments, but it took a little while for everything to sync up and start working smoothly.
I don't quite get it—if you're only making occasional purchases, won't the money just sit there in your checking account?