Visa Gift Cards

I think we all know what a credit card is for: they are great for online and personal transactions, along with bill payments and leisure activity purchases. They are akin to borrowing money and, like all loans, must be paid back in a timely manner. They can help or hurt your credit score. Gift cards, however, are a little different.

Like credit cards, gift cards are good for buying things online or in person, or for simple leisure activities. Unlike credit cards, however, the amount of money already on the card has already been paid, so it is less like borrowing money and more like spending money you already have. There is a very definite limit to the amount of money you can spend (obviously, you can only spend what is on the card), and so you never have to worry about going over. One downside, however, is that it can't help your credit score like credit cards paid on time can. As there are two sides to every coin, however, there is a good side to this: if your credit score can't be helped, you can't hurt it, either. This is a very good option for people who have a tendency to buy more than is really necessary.

With Visa, gift cards can be replaced if lost or stolen, and the recipients are guaranteed a wide variety of choices for their gift: the Visa Gift Card is accepted wherever Visa credit cards are accepted, and since Visa is one of the biggest credit card companies in the world, you are pretty much guaranteed great service anywhere in the world. And some Visa gift cards are even reloadable! This makes for a great present for teens, as they can learn the responsibility of credit cards with the safety net of parental controls!

So, gift cards, though limiting, have many of the same benefits of a credit card, while being safer for young adults to start to explore the wide world of credit cards.