Credit Cards Ratings

In a survey of more than 36,000 cardholders conducted by Consumer Reports, five of the largest MasterCard and Visa issuers, JPMorgan Chase (Charts, Fortune 500), Bank of America (Charts, Fortune 500), Citibank, Capital One (Charts, Fortune 500), and HSBC (Charts) — which together control about 80 percent of the market — earned mediocre rating scores.

Consumer Report’s survey on the best and worst credit cards found that five of the largest MasterCard and Visa issuers earned so-so ratings. The card issuer USAA Federal Savings, which scored 95 points out of a possible 100, earned the highest rating. The Navy Federal Credit Union and other credit unions followed suit with high scores. The top three rated issuers charged interest rates between 9 percent and 11 percent.

That’s much lower than the two lowest-rated issuers, Direct Merchants (scoring 67 points) and Washington Mutual’s Providian (earning 61 points), which both charge 17 percent. And there is good news for anyone shopping for a card. Until recently the USAA Federal Savings card has been limited to members of the military, retired military personnel and their families. It’s now opened up its membership policy so that almost anyone can join.