After decades of traveling the world, hosting explosive parties for her friends and trying her hand at over 200 careers, the world’s most famous doll is doing something new. Barbie is coming to the real world! And while she is bound to shine no matter what, the transition to reality may be a little rough. So, one way that we can help is by helping her figure out her finances. Since the Bank of Barbie is temporarily off limits, she’ll have to explore other options.

A credit card strategy for Barbie

Needless to say, Barbie’s financial situation is enviable. She has a very long resume of impressive high-paying careers, including being an ambassador, fashion designer, astronaut, actress and, currently, influencer. She owns over 10 homes and multiple cars, so it’s no surprise that Barbie’s current net worth comes to roughly $6 million. With that kind of money — and presumably excellent credit — Barbie has plenty of choices in terms of which cards she can carry.

Though there is no correct number of credit cards to have, most people tend to have between three and five – and I think Barbie, being the financially savvy woman that she is, would stay in that range. While she could easily have more than that, she knows to choose cards that benefit her lifestyle and spending habits instead of loading her wallet with cards that seem fancy on paper.

Best credit cards for Barbie

From travel to business to shopping, Barbie needs cards that allow her to move through life with ease. With her excellent credit score and high income, she has a plethora of options. But just because a card offers luxurious perks doesn’t mean it’s a great fit overall. Taking her lifestyle and hobbies into consideration, here are the top five credit cards for Barbie. If you’ve been longing to channel that Barbie dream life, you may find a card that’s a good fit for you, too.

Chase Sapphire Reserve®: Best for travel

  • Annual fee: $550
  • Rewards rate:
    • 10X points on hotel stays, car rentals and Chase Dining purchases through Ultimate Rewards, plus on Lyft purchases (through March 2025)
    • 5X points on air travel through Ultimate Rewards (after earning your $300 travel credit)
    • 3X points on restaurant and general travel purchases (after earning your $300 travel credit)
    • 1X points on all other purchases
  • Welcome offer: 60,000 points after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first three months

Great for adventurous travelers like Barbie:

Barbie’s adventurous spirit is well-known, and her curious nature will have her traveling the world throughout the year. A card that can aid in her adventures abroad is the Chase Sapphire Reserve. Not only is it the best travel card on the market, but it has credits she can easily take advantage of, such as the $300 card anniversary travel credit. It also carries some of the best travel protections such as trip cancellation/interruption insurance, trip delay reimbursement, lost luggage reimbursement and more.

So, whether she’s on a girls’ trip, a solo adventure or a romantic weekend with Ken, Barbie would find the Chase Sapphire Reserve quite handy.

American Express® Gold Card (Rose Gold version): Best for food

  • Annual fee: $250
  • Rewards rate:
    • 4X points on restaurant (including takeout and delivery in the U.S.), Uber Eats and U.S. supermarkets purchases (on up to $25,000 in supermarket purchases per year, then 1X points)
    • 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines or via American Express Travel
    • 1X points on all other purchases
  • Welcome offer: 60,000 points after spending $6,000 in purchases within the first six months of card membership

Great for Barbie and food lovers alike:

Beyond the aesthetically-fitting color, this card is iconic for good reason. The American Express Gold Card, first and foremost, is fantastic for people who love food (and for someone who was a chef eight separate times — including a pastry chef, pizza chef and baker). I think this is a great match.

Not only would Barbie get great returns on restaurants, but also on takeout for a night-in with Midge and Nikki or supermarket runs for one of her fabulous dinner parties. In addition, the credits on this card continually cover the annual fee, which is always a nice perk. Unlike the card’s platinum counterpart, she wouldn’t have to pay off her entire balance every month. Instead, she could use the Pay It, Plan It tool to finance larger purchases or emergencies.

Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express: Best for entertaining

  • Annual fee: $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95
  • Rewards rate:
    • 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%)
    • 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions
    • 3% cash back on U.S. gas stations and transit, including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more
    • 1 percent cash back on all other purchases
  • Welcome offer: $250 cash bonus after spending $3,000 on qualifying purchases within the first three months

Great for Barbie’s stylish lifestyle and more:

If there’s one thing Barbie is going to do, it’s enjoy a night out, and the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express lets her do it in style. With access to American Express Experiences, she could find special events near her and get early access to ticket pre-sales. She could also just as easily enjoy a night with the Disney+ annual streaming service credit while earning 6 percent cash back on select streaming services, pretty much offsetting the card’s $95 annual fee.

Shoppers like Barbie will especially appreciate the card’s price protection perk. If you find a lower price on an eligible new item purchased with this card within 120 days of purchase you may be reimbursed for the difference. This, along with the intro APR offer, can be helpful for higher-priced items, making it a little easier for you — and Barbie — to splurge a little.

Chase Freedom Unlimited®*: Best for everyday expenses

  • Annual fee: $0
  • Rewards rate:
    • 5 percent cash back on Lyft purchases (through March 2025) and on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
    • 3 percent cash back on dining and drugstore purchases
    • 1.5 percent cash back on all other purchases
  • Welcome offer: $200 bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening

Great for Barbie’s basic essentials:

Sometimes it’s best to get back to basics. While Barbie’s life has a lot of moving parts, she still needs her everyday essentials, which is where the Chase Freedom Unlimited comes in. A great pairing with the Chase Sapphire Reserve, this card doesn’t add an annual fee to Barbie’s budget. It also comes with a great intro APR offer on purchases and balance transfers that is appealing to anyone looking for a break on credit card interest.

The Freedom Unlimited is also a great choice for shoppers. Whether in-person or online, she would be earning 1.5 percent on everything she gets for her ever-expanding closet. Though it’s not the highest rewards rate ever, it’s stronger than the 1 percent she would receive on her other cards and is on par with most flat-rate cards. Plus, it comes with purchase protection and extended warranty coverage at no extra cost to her.

Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card: Best for business

  • Annual fee: $95
  • Rewards rate:
    • 3X points on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year (then 1X points)
    • 1X points on all other purchases
  • Welcome offer: 100,000 bonus points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening

Great for Barbie and business pros:

While it would be easy to give Barbie The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, that card doesn’t quite fit Barbie the businesswoman. From her time as a business executive, entrepreneur and, most recently, influencer, she needs a card that allows for much more flexibility.

The Ink Business Preferred gives that by rewarding travel, shipping purchases, advertising purchases and more. Plus, it comes with a much lower annual fee compared to the Amex Platinum Business Card’s $695 annual fee. And it still has good travel perks for when Barbie needs to travel from a movie set to Paris Fashion Week, including a 25 percent bonus for points redeemed toward Chase travel. With the addition of this card, she has the Chase Trifecta with the Chase Sapphire Reserve and Freedom Unlimited, allowing her to pool her points together and get better reward redemption.

More than a Barbie world

While it can be easy to look at Barbie and see something unattainable, her needs aren’t much different than the average consumer. She just wants to have fun with her friends, explore the world and come home to her Dreamhouse. More importantly, she wants to live the life she wants without breaking the bank.

And when it comes to picking a credit card, like Barbie, we should avoid flashy cards with fancy perks for the sake of having them. Instead, like her, we can strive to make practical choices that reflect our budgets and enrich our lives — no matter how busy they are. So, be like Barbie, which — as her motto reminds us — is anything you want.

*All information about the Chase Freedom Unlimited® has been collected independently by Bankrate and has not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the above benefits are provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.