The best credit card for beauty and cosmetics
On beauty purchases, Wells Fargo Attune comes out ahead at $4.00 per $100 spent, $0.00 more than the next card down.
Every card below is scored the way Cardful scores it at a checkout: the rate is multiplied by what that issuer's points are actually worth, so a points card and a cash-back card can be compared in the same unit. Counts as: Sephora, Ulta, Bath & Body Works.
The short version
- Earns the most: Wells Fargo Attune — rewards worth $4.00 per $100 of beauty purchases, with no annual fee.
- No annual fee: the top pick already has none.
| # | Card | Earns | Point value | Per $100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Attune
Wells Fargo · No annual fee
Self-care — gyms, exercise classes, salons and spas
|
4% | 1.00¢ / pt | $4.00 |
| 2 |
Blue Business Plus
American Express · No annual fee
2x on every purchase, with no bonus categories to track · Up to $50,000 per year, then the base rate
|
2x | 2.00¢ / pt | $4.00 |
| 3 |
Venture Rewards
Capital One · $95/yr
Base rate — no bonus category applies here
|
2x | 1.80¢ / pt | $3.60 |
| 4 |
Venture X
Capital One · $395/yr
Base rate — no bonus category applies here
|
2x | 1.80¢ / pt | $3.60 |
| 5 |
Double Cash
Citi · No annual fee
Base rate — no bonus category applies here
|
2x | 1.60¢ / pt | $3.20 |
| 6 |
Freedom Rise
Chase · No annual fee
Base rate — no bonus category applies here
|
1.5x | 2.00¢ / pt | $3.00 |
| 7 |
Freedom Unlimited
Chase · No annual fee
Base rate — no bonus category applies here
|
1.5x | 2.00¢ / pt | $3.00 |
| 8 |
Robinhood Gold Card
Robinhood · $50/yr
Base rate — no bonus category applies here
|
3% | 1.00¢ / pt | $3.00 |
Cards that pay more here with a condition attached
Left out of the ranking above because each one needs something from you — a category chosen in the card's settings, or buying at one particular store. If that condition fits how you shop, these can beat everything in the table.
- Strata (Citi) — 3x if you choose Beauty as your category.
How to use this list
- Check the store codes as beauty and cosmetics. Issuers pay by the category the merchant registers under, not by what you bought. This page counts: Sephora, Ulta, Bath & Body Works.
- Start with the cards you already have. Find the highest one of yours in the table — that is your card for beauty purchases today, no application needed.
- Read the small print under each card. A spending cap or a "US only" note can change the answer if you spend a lot here or shop abroad.
- Only then think about a new card, and weigh the whole year: a card that wins one category can lose on the rest of your spending.
Why dollars and not multipliers
A multiplier is not a number you can compare with a cash-back percentage until you know what a point is worth. Every rate here was converted using a published valuation before the cards were sorted, which is why the order sometimes differs from the one the advertised multipliers suggest.
Point values: published industry valuations, most recently read 2026-09. We track The Points Guy, Upgraded Points, NerdWallet, Frequent Miler and AwardWallet.
Particular stores
Related guides
Worth reading next
Your wallet, not this list.
This ranks the whole catalogue. Cardful ranks the cards you actually carry, at the store you are actually on.