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What do most credit card numbers start with?

Author

Sophia Koch

Updated on January 24, 2026

The First Number With the exception of store-specific credit cards, which don’t conform to the same rules, most consumers will only ever encounter cards that begin with 3, 4, 5 and 6. These numbers generally correspond with the four major card networks: Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover.

Which credit card is used the most?

Visa and Mastercard are by far the most widely accepted cards, with Discover slightly behind those brands and American Express in a distant fourth place. Any retailer that accepts card payments likely takes Visa and Mastercard.

What is the longest credit card number?

6 Tips to Save Using the Most Popular Food Delivery Apps If you own one of the more popular cards – such as those issued by Discover, Visa or Mastercard – you probably would think that all credit cards display a 16-digit account number. In reality, credit cards can have anywhere between 13 and 19 digits.

Is Visa or Mastercard more popular?

Visa boasts the largest market share with 48.8% of the market, acceptance in more than 200 countries, and 8 million merchants in the U.S. that accept it. MasterCard is the second-most popular card network with 31.3% of the market share, acceptance in more than 210 countries, and 8 million U.S. merchants.

Is Visa accepted more than Mastercard?

Visa and Mastercard are the most widely accepted credit card networks. Visa credit cards can be used at 44 million merchant locations in more than 200 countries and territories. Mastercard is accepted in more countries than Visa, yet roughly 7 million more merchants worldwide take Visa.

How can you tell if a credit card number is real?

You can verify that a credit card number is real by using the Luhn Formula, as follows:

  1. Double each odd digit of the card number.
  2. If any resulting sums are greater than 9, add the digits together e.g. 12 = 1+2.

What’s the best credit card number to use?

CREDIT CARD TYPE CREDIT CARD NUMBER CVV EXPIRES NAME MasterCard 5252842788120474 163 02/2023 Latoya Santos Visa 4716059552951306 121 10/2021 10/2021 Visa 4532735539171355 349 04/2021 Doug Steely Visa 4716092272809272 415 08/2023 Robin Gilles MasterCard 5297108436377362 117 06/2023 Donald Harms Visa 4539890694174109 478 11/2021 Jade Sunderman

What are the digits on a credit card?

How Credit Cards Work. Visa – Digits two through six are the bank number, digits seven through 12 or seven through 15 are the account number and digit 13 or 16 is a check digit.

Which is the most important part of a credit card?

Card number: The card number is one of the most important parts of your card. It identifies your account with the card issuer, and those are the digits you need to provide when making purchases online or by phone. It’s typically 16 digits, though some manufacturers use as little as 14 or as many as 19. 1

What are the digits of an American Express credit card?

How Credit Cards Work. American Express – Digits three and four are type and currency, digits five through 11 are the account number, digits 12 through 14 are the card number within the account and digit 15 is a check digit. Visa – Digits two through six are the bank number, digits seven through 12 or seven through 15 are…