CARD BRANDS

American Express is a world leader in charge cards and credit cards, targeting higher-end consumers and small-business owners with compelling travel and entertainment rewards. We have researched Amex’s most popular cards and applied our objective screening criteria to rate the company’s best cards across multiple categories. Below are our picks for the best in class.

American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us on:

• com/americanexpress
• com/americanexpress
• com/company/american-express
• com/americanexpress
• com/americanexpress.

Mastercard Inc. (stylized as MasterCard from 1979–2016, mastercard from 2016–2019) is the second-largest payment-processing corporation worldwide. 

MasterCard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a technology company in the global payments industry.  We operate the world’s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories.  MasterCard’s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities – such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances – easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone.

Mastercard (originally Interbank then Master Charge)[4] was created by an alliance of several banks and regional bankcard associations in response to the BankAmericard issued by Bank of America, which later became Visa, still its biggest competitor. Prior to its initial public offering, Mastercard Worldwide was a cooperative owned by the more than 25,000 financial institutions that issue its branded cards.

Follow us on Twitter @MasterCardNews, join the discussion on the Beyond the Transaction Blog and subscribe for the latest news on the Engagement Bureau.

Mastercard offers consumers unmatched flexibility, security, and global recognition and acceptance through our family of payment brands.

Electronic payments have the ability to create a world with greater opportunities for all. To take us beyond borders, to new markets. Beyond mere moments, to meaningful experiences. That’s the power of a World Beyond Cash™. And that’s Priceless®.

Visa Inc.

A co-branded card is the result of a partnership between a merchant, network and issuer.

Visa Inc. (/ˈviːzə, ˈviːsə/; stylized as VISA) is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California.[1][4] It facilitates electronic funds transfers throughout the world, most commonly through Visa-branded credit cards, debit cards and prepaid cards.[5] Visa is one of the world’s most valuable companies.

Choose your device, add your credit or debit cards, and you’re all set. Wherever you are — at a store or in an app — you’re ready to use Android Pay.

Forget fumbling through your wallet and handing over a card next time you’re in a store. With Android Pay you can simply unlock your phone, place it near a contactless terminal, and you’re good to go. You don’t even need to open an app. Tap and pay is that fast, that easy.

And when you tap at select merchants, your loyalty points and offers are automatically applied at checkout too.

Visa was founded in 1958 by Bank of America (BofA) as the BankAmericard credit card program.[7] In response to competitor Master Charge (now Mastercard), BofA began to license the BankAmericard program to other financial institutions in 1966.[8] By 1970, BofA gave up direct control of the BankAmericard program, forming a cooperative with the other various BankAmericard issuer banks to take over its management. It was then renamed Visa in 1976

Discover is a credit card brand issued primarily in the United States. It was introduced by Sears in 1985. When launched, Discover did not charge an annual fee and offered a higher-than-normal credit limit, features that were disruptive to the existing credit card industry.

Discover Financial Services is a direct banking and payment services company with one of the most recognized brands in U.S. financial services. Since its inception in 1986, the company has become one of the largest card issuers in the United States. The company issues the Discover card, America’s cash rewards pioneer, and offers private student loans, personal loans, home equity loans, checking and savings accounts and certificates of deposit through its direct banking business. It operates the Discover Network, with millions of merchant and cash access locations; PULSE, one of the nation’s leading ATM/debit networks; and Diners Club International, a global payments network with acceptance in more than 185 countries and territories. For more information, visit www.discover.com/company.