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Can You Pay Rent With a Credit Card?

5 min read

Published September 9, 2025

Table of contents

Key Takeaways

You may be able to use your credit card to make a monthly rent payment, depending on your landlord’s preferences.
Each credit card rent payment may come with an additional transaction fee.
Unless you repay your credit card bill in full each month, credit card rent payments may quickly accrue interest.

Sending your landlord a rent check each month can be a hassle. Mail delays may lead to a late payment. Even if you hand-deliver your rent payment, the landlord may not cash it right away, straining your cash flow. Using your credit card as your rent payment method may save you some trouble—it’s often as easy as entering your card details in a payment portal. But the convenience of paying rent with your credit card may not always be worth the drawbacks and risks.

Paying rent with a credit card

Some landlords and property managers may let you pay rent with a credit card.

You might be able to make credit and debit card payments directly (and set up a monthly automatic payment) through a payment portal. But processing fees and interest charges may offset the benefits.

A third-party service may help you pay rent with a credit card, even if your landlord doesn’t directly accept credit. Most third-party services also charge a processing fee.

If you’re struggling to afford rent, a credit card may buy you some time, but it’s likely not the best solution. But credit may help you manage temporary cash flow issues. For example, your credit card may help you avoid a late payment while you wait for your paycheck direct deposit to process. Because rent is typically a big expense, charging it to a rewards credit card may boost your cash back earnings.

Using a cash advance to pay rent

You may also be able to pay your rent with a credit card via cash advance. A cash advance lets you borrow money against your available credit by using your credit card to withdraw cash from an ATM or using a convenience check.

While a cash advance may help in an emergency, it may not be the best choice for most people. Credit card issuers typically charge a cash advance fee and a higher cash advance interest rate. Your credit card company may also cap cash advances at a percentage of your credit limit, which may not be enough to cover your rent.

You may be charged a fee to pay rent with your credit card

In rare cases, a property management company or landlord may accept credit card payments at no additional cost. Typically, though, you have to pay a fee.

Landlords likely have to pay a transaction fee to accept credit card payments, which they typically pass on to tenants. Likewise, third-party services often charge a processing fee that amounts to a percentage of each payment.

Processing and transaction costs, plus credit card annual fees, may offset the value of your credit card rewards.

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Interest could add up if you use your card to pay rent

If you pay your rent with a credit card, you may have to cover interest charges on top of your housing costs. For most tenants, rent is a major expense. Unless you repay your balance in full each month, interest may quickly pile up, making your minimum credit card payment more expensive. A high credit card balance may lead to financial issues later on, especially if you’re having trouble paying rent.

Is your credit impacted by paying rent with a credit card?

As long as your credit card issuer reports your rent payment to a major credit bureau, it should appear on your credit report and affect your credit score like any other transaction.

Making timely rent payments on your credit card each month may help you build positive credit history, as long as you manage your credit responsibly. But if your balance gets too high or you miss a credit card payment, your score may suffer.

Your credit utilization ratio—the sum of your outstanding credit card balances compared to your overall available credit—plays a major role in determining your credit score. A low credit utilization ratio may point to responsible personal finance habits. But a high credit utilization ratio may make lenders think you’d have trouble managing additional credit.

Rent may cost thousands of dollars. Just one rental payment may skew your credit utilization ratio if you have a low credit limit. For example, a $2,000 rent transaction on a card with a $3,000 credit limit would leave you with a credit utilization ratio of over 66%, without accounting for other purchases.

Pay your credit card bill in full after making a rental payment to avoid hurting your credit score. You may want to set up a monthly automatic payment linked to your bank account to avoid missing a due date.

The bottom line

If you don’t want to take out your checkbook to pay rent every month, a credit card may seem like a convenient alternative. In a pinch, your card may buy you more time to make your rent payment. However, processing fees and interest charges make credit an expensive rent payment method.

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