Best Virtual Credit Cards of January 2025

This eliminates the fear of losing or misplacing physical cards, leaves space in your wallet and reduces the detrimental effect human development of plastic has on the environment. The main downside to a virtual credit card is that it can usually only be used online, so it is not usable in all scenarios. However, in some cases virtual card numbers can be used over the telephone. As an example, someone using virtual card technology could create unique Citi Virtual Account Numbers for each of their most frequently used smartphone payment apps.

American Express® Gold Card

Frequent travelers with excellent credit may benefit from this credit card that offers a lot of bells and whistles. Our seasoned and experienced team brings years of expertise in the credit card and travel sectors. Committed to integrity, we offer data-driven guides to help you find the card(s) that best fit your requirements. See details on our intensive editorial policies and card rating methodologies. Though we can’t review every available financial company or offer, we strive to make comprehensive, rigorous comparisons in order to highlight the best of them. The compensation we receive may impact how products and links appear on our site.

So using virtual credit cards is the same as using your actual credit card, only more secure. Every transaction made with them will appear on your monthly statement along with your regular credit card transactions. To get a virtual credit card without an SSN, you will first need to get one of the credit cards available to people without an SSN that also offers virtual cards. If you get approved for the credit card account, you’ll be able to access the virtual card through the issuer’s website or app. A virtual credit card is a temporary digital version of your physical credit card. It allows you to shop online safely by masking your card’s sensitive information with a uniquely generated card number, expiration date and security code.

Virtual credit cards make your online shopping safer, but you don’t want to use them for everything.

In addition, traditional credit cards can be costly to operate as physical equipment is required to process payment and the card reader may be more vulnerable to tampering and malfunction. The Capital One VentureOne card is the entry-level product that Capital One offers within the Venture family. This card can create virtual credit cards via Eno, which is a huge plus.

Once a card program administrator or issuer activates a card, a cardholder can set customized PINs (personal identification numbers) possibly required to make purchases. The issuer maintains oversight of encrypted transmission of data, including the primary account number (PAN), the PIN, expiration date and individual CVV (card verification value). Forbes Advisor’s guide to corporate credit cards reviews the benefits offered to middle-market businesses and large corporations, including optimized spending controls, an enhanced payables process and long-term value. Corporate credit cards, sometimes known as a “P-card” or purchasing card have online programs and account management tools that serve as a central hub to monitor company spending and streamline the payment process. Digital payments are becoming the norm and virtual card numbers are one way to manage funds and purchases while minimizing security risks from both ends of a transaction.

This allows your information to stay private while approving your transaction. Virtual credit cards are designed to function just like regular credit or debit cards. They have a unique 16-digit card number, expiration date, and CVV code that is different from your physical plastic card.

You can also add secondary cardholders to your account, which grants them authorized access to your credit limit. Electronic payments are safer with virtual credit cards than physical cards. They use encryption to limit how much data is shared, reducing the likelihood of fraud or chargebacks. With no magnetic strips or visible card numbers, there are fewer ways for hackers to gain access to your card info.

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is the premium Capital One travel rewards card on the block. This card comes with zero fraud liability, access to Citi Entertainment, and no authorized user fees. While it’s critical to find the best corporate card program or mix of cards for your company, it’s equally important to create a policy to govern the use of these cards. Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.

They are just an option offered by several issuers for better protection against fraud when shopping online or over the phone. But a number of major credit card issuers offer the ability to instantly get a virtual credit card, including Capital One, Chase and Wells Fargo. Some of the best instant virtual credit cards are Masterpass by Mastercard and Visa Checkout, as they both support credit cards from any network. In other words, they function just like a virtual card from a credit card issuer, but anyone can sign up. Since virtual cards are only available with your existing credit card, there’s no application process or credit check you’ll have to go through. You can get as many virtual card numbers as you want, and they’re all stored for you so you don’t have to memorize the numbers.

Earn an additional 1.5% cash back on everything you buy (on up to $20,000 spent in the first year). There are several options for redeeming Membership Rewards points, but you’ll get the best value by transferring them to airline and hotel partners. You can add up to four authorized users to your account no fee and they can each receive their own Priority Pass airport lounge membership (enrollment required). If groceries make up a large chunk of your family’s budget, you can stretch your dollars with the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express thanks to its high cash-back rate on purchases at U.S. supermarkets. Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select’s editorial staff.

Some popular digital wallets include Zoro Card Apple Pay, Samsung Wallet, G Pay (Google), PayPal, and Garmin Pay. This technology isn’t limited to credit cards, either – you can add your debit card or prepaid card to many of these services. The process of getting a virtual credit card may differ slightly depending on the issuer. Most major credit card issuers now have virtual credit card options that you can quickly and easily add on to your existing account. A virtual card and a digital wallet both keep your physical card number and card details private, but a virtual credit card only works for an online transaction. A digital wallet can work for any seller who accepts digital wallets, either online or in person.

It’s also better to have a card that rewards you for things you usually spend money on, like gas and groceries. Earning 10X points for hotels is nice, but if you don’t spend a lot on hotel stays, you won’t accumulate as many points as you would getting 3X points every time you go to the grocery store. The Citi Double Cash Card offers virtual account numbers linked to your regular credit card account for use when shopping online. The benefit of using a virtual credit card for online purchases versus your regular card is it protects your personal and account information if there is a data breach.