Rent is likely your biggest expense every month, but it seems like virtually every landlord prefers just one payment method: Money from your checking account via paper checks or online transfers.
With all of those miles and points you can earn for credit card rewards, you may be wondering if you can pay rent with the plastic in your wallet. Unfortunately, landlords, property managers and third-party services will likely charge a fee for paying rent with a credit card. These fees often eat into, and sometimes erase, the rewards you might be seeking.
Read on to find out how to pay rent with a credit card, and whether or not that makes sense for you.
- Pros and cons of paying rent with a credit card
- Methods to pay rent with a credit card
- Checking the math of using a credit card to pay rent
- Paying rent with your credit card is a smart move… for some
Pros and cons of paying rent with a credit card
Before you learn how to pay rent with a credit card, it’s important to decide if you should pay rent with a credit card. Everyone has different habits when it comes to credit cards, and getting into debt to pay the rent can be a big personal finance mistake.
If you want to pay rent with a credit card, you need to pay off your bill every month in full and on time to avoid finance charges. This will ensure you use rent payments to improve your credit, not hurt it, and don’t end up spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on interest and fees.
If your history with credit cards is anything but perfect, you should seriously consider whether or not this is worthwhile for you. If there’s a chance that paying your rent with a credit card will lead to future money problems, don’t risk it. You can always revisit the strategy once your finances are on firmer ground.
| Pros and cons of using a credit card to pay rent | |
|---|---|
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ● Potential credit card rewards ● Rent payments would help build credit your credit history ● Convenient way to pay ● Erases possibility of bounced check ● Option to avoid payday loans |
● Rewards could be offset, undone by fees ● Increased credit utilization could decreased your credit score ● Having more cash in your checking account could spur spending, complicate your budget ● Risk of high-interest credit card debt if you don’t pay your monthly bill |
Methods to pay rent with a credit card
Paying your rent with a credit card may not be as simple as paying with a check, but the rewards can be well worth your while. In general, there are two methods to pay your rent using a credit card: through your landlord’s payment center or through an online credit card bill payment platform.
Using your landlord’s payment system
If you rent from a property management company or have a landlord using an online tenant management platform, you might already be able to pay your rent with a credit card.
| Real-life example of (not) paying rent with plastic |
|---|
|
I live in an apartment managed by a company that operates throughout Southern California and Nevada, and they use RentPayment. I can pay my rent directly from my bank account for $4.95, with a debit card for a 0.95% fee, or a credit card for a 2.95% fee. Going with their credit card option would leave me with nearly $70 in fees every month, but using my bank’s bill pay is free, so that’s how I pay my rent. — Eric Rosenberg, from 2017 |
However, if you have access to a service that doesn’t charge fees for paying rent with a credit card, you might do it even for just a month or two to earn a card’s sign-up bonus or other benefit.
Trying a third-party service
If your landlord does not offer online rent payments or you would have to pay a high fee like the example above, there are other options available.
Companies such as PlacePay (formerly RentShare) and RentTrack give you the option to pay your rent with a credit card. When you do, the vendor will charge your card and either mail your landlord a check or direct deposit the funds to your landlord’s bank account.
| Companies that facilitate rent payments via credit card |
|---|
| AppFolio |
| Avail |
| ClickPay |
| Cozy |
| PlacePay |
| Plastiq |
| RentMoola |
| RentTrack |
| Rentler |
| Zego |
At PlacePay, for example, you would be responsible for 2.99% of the monthly rent if you pay with a credit card. Your landlord could elect to cover the fee for you, though that would seem unlikely in most cases.
Your landlord might be willing to cover the fee if they have a merchant account on a general payment service like Paypal, Square or Venmo.
One of the most popular options for paying rent with a credit card is Plastiq. Plastiq generally charges 2.85% for credit card payments, but there are often promotions where you can pay even less.
You will need to plan ahead with this method no matter which third-party service you use. There can be a delay between the time you hand over your credit card information and when that company actually pays your landlord. Ask about this payment timeline to ensure you’re never late on your rent payment.
Checking the math of using a credit card to pay rent
Like with paying student loans with a credit card, it’s certainly possible to pay rent using a credit card.
But are those 2% to 3% fees worth it? Let’s do the math and find out.
For a simple example, assume your rent is $1,000 per month. If you were to pay your rent directly to your landlord with a check, your annual cost for rent is $12,000 per year.
Using Plastiq, you would pay an additional 2.85% in fees, assuming you didn’t use a promotion. That’s $28.50 per month, or $342 per year, in fees.
If you use the Chase Sapphire Preferred® card, one of the top cards for travel hacking, you would charge $12,342 per year for rent to your card. Assuming you get two cents per point for the card’s reward program, you would earn 12,342 points worth $247.
It’s a narrow margin, but you would be losing money by paying with a credit card in this case. It would cost you $342 to use your credit card, but you’d only earn $247 back in rewards. To break even, you have to get more value from your miles and points to make it worthwhile.
The decision to use your rewards credit card to pay your rent should be made carefully. Consider what card you want to charge rent to, study its rewards program and decide how to use your miles and points to your biggest advantage.
In some cases, you’ll get a great deal. In others, you could end up losing money paying your rent with your credit card.
Paying rent with your credit card is a smart move… for some
Paying your rent with your credit card is not only possible, but in some cases it can make a lot of sense. Even if you would lose money paying your rent with your credit card, paying for just one or two months could be enough to help you reach a big signup bonus.
To decide what’s right for you, consider your rent amount, credit card fees and how you use your credit card rewards.
If you will pay credit card interest because of this strategy, never use your credit card to pay your rent. But if you pay your card off in full each month and have a compelling use for the miles and points, you can definitely pay your rent with a credit card.
Andrew Pentis contributed to this report.
Interested in refinancing student loans?
Here are the top 9 lenders of 2022!| Lender | Variable APR | Eligible Degrees | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 1.74% – 8.70%1 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 1.74% – 7.99%2 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 1.74% – 7.99%3 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 1.89% – 5.90%4 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 1.74% – 7.99%5 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 2.05% – 5.25%6 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 1.86% – 6.01% | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | N/A7 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
 | 1.99% – 8.38%8 | Undergrad & Graduate | |
| Check out the testimonials and our in-depth reviews! 1 Important Disclosures for Splash Financial. Splash Financial DisclosuresTerms and Conditions apply. Splash reserves the right to modify or discontinue products and benefits at any time without notice. Rates and terms are also subject to change at any time without notice. Offers are subject to credit approval. To qualify, a borrower must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident in an eligible state and meet applicable underwriting requirements. Not all borrowers receive the lowest rate. Lowest rates are reserved for the highest qualified borrowers. If approved, your actual rate will be within a range of rates and will depend on a variety of factors, including term of loan, a responsible financial history, income and other factors. Refinancing or consolidating private and federal student loans may not be the right decision for everyone. 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Laurel Road DisclosuresAll credit products are subject to credit approval. Laurel Road began originating student loans in 2013 and has since helped thousands of professionals with undergraduate and postgraduate degrees consolidate and refinance more than $4 billion in federal and private school loans. Laurel Road also offers a suite of online graduate school loan products and personal loans that help simplify lending through customized technology and personalized service. In April 2019, Laurel Road was acquired by KeyBank, one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies. Laurel Road is a brand of KeyBank National Association offering online lending products in all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. All loans are provided by KeyBank National Association, a nationally chartered bank. Member FDIC. For more information, visit www.laurelroad.com. 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As of 5/17/2022 student loan refinancing rates range from 2.05% APR – 5.25% Variable APR with AutoPay and 2.49% APR – 7.93% Fixed APR with AutoPay. 7 Important Disclosures for PenFed. PenFed DisclosuresFixed Rate Loan Terms: 5 years/60 monthly payments, 8 years/96 monthly payments, 12 years/144 monthly payments or 15 years/180 monthly payments. Annual Percentage Rate is the cost of credit calculating the interest rate, loan amount, repayment term and the timing of payments. Fixed rates range from 3.29% to 5.43% APR. Rates are subject to change without notice. Fixed APR: Fixed rates will not change during the term. This rate is expressed as an APR. Since there are no fees associated with this loan offer, the APR is the same percentage as the actual interest rate of the loan. These rates are subject to additional terms and conditions, and rates are subject to change at any time without notice. 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Lowest Rate Disclosure: Lowest rates are only available for the most creditworthy applicants, require a 5-year repayment term, immediate repayment, a graduate or medical degree (where applicable), and include our Loyalty and Automatic Payment discounts of 0.25 percentage points each, as outlined in the Loyalty Discount and Automatic Payment Discount disclosures. Rates are subject to additional terms and conditions, and are subject to change at any time without notice. Such changes will only apply to applications taken after the effective date of change. Federal Loan vs. Private Loan Benefits: Some federal student loans include unique benefits that the borrower may not receive with a private student loan, some of which we do not offer. Borrowers should carefully review federal benefits, especially if they work in public service, are in the military, are considering possible loan forgiveness options, are currently on or considering income based repayment options or are concerned about a steady source of future income and would want to lower their payments at some time in the future. When the borrower refinances, they waive any current and potential future benefits of their federal loans. For more information about federal student loan benefits and federal loan consolidation, visit http://studentaid.ed.gov/. We also have several resources available to help the borrower make a decision on our website including Should I Refinance My Student Loans? and our FAQs. Should I Refinance My Student Loans? includes a comparison of federal and private student loan benefits that we encourage the borrower to review. |
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