Which Credit Card brands are most loved?

As we saw in last year’s report, credit cards have for some time been more than merely a mechanism for making a payment, they are also a way to earn rewards (even cashback), plan travel, gain access to events, and build credit scores.

Barclaycard offers a range of benefits beyond its attractive rates, such as an accessible app, and is ever present on our highstreets through partnerships reaching across the hospitality, leisure, and wellness sectors.

With the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, consumers have often turned to familiar well-known brands and it is within this context that it is perhaps unsurprising that the three most loved credit card brands in 2021 are those that held the first, second and third positions in 2020, offering both innovative services and rewards, alongside a reassuringly familiar market presence.

Barclaycard is once again the category winner, with a very similar overall position to that held last year; just outside the top 20 group of overall most loved brands. Barclaycard’s position remains entrenched through extremely high customer awareness (one of the top 20 most known financial service brands) and a legacy built on continuing to innovate and offer best in market deals.

Barclaycard offers a range of benefits beyond its attractive rates, such as an accessible app, and is ever present on our highstreets through partnerships reaching across the hospitality, leisure, and wellness sectors. It is perhaps in part due to these associations that despite being the UK’s oldest credit card provider, it is particularly loved by the youngest credit card users, with Gen Z and millennials disproportionately ‘loving’ Barclaycard.

In addition to the attractive rewards offered, the brand is committed to helping customers keep on top of card payments, manage credit card debt and create repayment plans, firmly placing them as a much-loved credit card in customers minds. Second place again goes to American Express. An iconic name with attractive rewards, American Express has maintained very high levels of awareness, despite not being a universally accepted credit card in the UK. Often associated with travel, American Express has maintained its position despite the limitations Covid-19 placed on foreign travel. This is perhaps a sign of the brand solidifying a reputation for delivering appealing loyalty schemes, and building customer love through rewards, all whilst offering underlining security.

Capital One remains in third place, with a strong level of awareness, although not quite hitting the highs of Barclaycard and American Express. With a reputation as a credit builder, having no card fees and speedy eligibility checks, Capital One delivers accessibility to customers looking to grow their credit scores. However, despite these attributes and potentially due to the limitations placed on negative credit habits by several waves of lockdown, Capital One, whilst in third place for this category, sits just outside the Top 100 Most Loved Financial Services brands in 104th position this year.

Download the report here to see the full list of the Top 100 Most Loved Financial Services Brands and find out what it means for a customer to be ‘in love’ with your brand.