Once upon a time you didn't see co-branded Visa/Mastercard/etc. debit cards for local banks. In many cases you still don't. If you have access to a co-branded d

Once upon a time you didn't see co-branded Visa/Mastercard/etc. debit cards for local banks. In many cases you still don't. If you have access to a co-branded debit card you're often afforded many of the same protections as credit card users. However, you still miss out on other, additional benefits, like building your credit and getting access to rewards. It always depends, so do your own research, but as far as I understand, it is still considered decent general advice to tell people to prefer credit cards over debit cards. They will build credit, earn rewards, have excellent consumer protection from fraud, increase the distance between their purchases and the cash in their bank account, and so on.