(FORTUNE Magazine) – Despite rising interest rates, U.S. consumers still get great credit card deals as companies battle for their dollars (see chart for the top bargains). "This is the absolute best time to be a consumer in the history of credit," declares David Robertson of industry newsletter the Nilson Report. Card issuers must appeal to customers' varying needs by serving up everything from frequent-flier miles to low-rate, no-fee credit. Explains Cynthia Graham, CEO of Barnett Banks' credit card division: "In the old days there were two flavors: gold cards and classic cards. Today we have to offer this person fudge ripple, this other one pistachio, and that one plain vanilla." Even American Express, the vanilla-est of the vanilla, now embraces pinpoint marketing. It followed September's introduction of the no-fee Optima True Grace credit card with a new $125 charge card called the Rewards Plus Gold Card. The $125 niche card targets travelers who want a benefits package that's better than AmEx's $75 Gold Card but not quite as special as the $300 Platinum Card. Got that? Visa has its own rewards program, in which all cardholders earn credits toward air fares, cruises and hotels. Good deals are good business. Delaware's First USA offers a top card. The bank's loan volume grew 109% in the past year, to $8.9 billion. And in the last quarter alone it opened 760,000 accounts, over twice as many as it opened during the same period in 1993. -- E.S.

CHART: NOT AVAILABLE CREDIT: R. DOMINGUEZ FOR FORTUNE/SOURCE: RAM RESEARCH CAPTION: THE BEST CREDIT CARD DEALS