Capital One Classic Platinum for Young Adults MasterCard Review

A high annual fee, a high APR, and no rewards make this an easy card to ignore.

• Young adults.

Credit Rating Required

• Fair and up (660+).

Pros

• Nine-month zero percent introductory period on purchases.
• No balance transfer fee.

Cons

• High annual fee.
• High APR.
• No rewards.

Rewards

• None.

APRs

• Zero percent on purchases for first nine months, then 19.8 percent.

Fees

• Annual fee: $39.
• Balance transfer fee: none.
• Late payment fee: Up to $39.
• Over limit fee: Up to $29.
• Returned payment fee: $39.

The Capital One Classic Platinum for Young Adults MasterCard is almost identical to Capital One's No Hassle Cash Rewards Card for Young Adults: same APR, same zero percent intro period on purchases, same $39 annual fee. There's just one giant difference: this card doesn't pay any rewards like the No Hassle card does.

So why would anyone choose this card over Capital One's other student cards that pay rewards? We're not sure. It could be that people who apply for those cards but get turned down are offered this card instead. But the fact that this is a platinum card would normally imply that this card is tougher to get. We don't get it.

Bank of America, US Bank and others have similar no-frills student cards that don't pay rewards, but at least they don't charge an annual fee. Their APRs are a lot less than this one, too.

Like the No Hassle card, there's no balance transfer fee. But with a 19.8 percent APR, you shouldn't be transferring any debt to this card unless you're paying an even more outrageous interest rate somewhere else.

The $39 annual fee, high APR, and no rewards make this a no-brainer. Take a pass.