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Unsecured Credit Cards for Bad Credit are Real - Pick One
With bad credit, it becomes a problem to find a real credit card with no security deposit and that is not prepaid or debit.
Banks are hesitant to extend unsecured lines of credit to those who slipped in the past and have damaged credit history.
Do not worry, we found great cards that are easy to get with bad credit and will help you rebuild your credit rating.
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Top Editor's Picks
Let’s have a look at our top editor's picks for 2021's best unsecured cards for bad credit
| regular APR | |
fair credit / bad credit required
Earn 1% cash back rewards on payments made to your Total Credit Card
Checking Account Required
$300 credit limit (subject to available credit)
No security deposit, simply pay a one-time $95 program fee to open your account.*
User friendly Mobile App.
*See Rates, Fees, Costs & Limitations for complete offer details
See Total Card Visa Rewards Programs Terms & Conditions for details
Credit Cards for Subprime Lenders
With a 500-600 Credit Score
One of a few issuers playing on that field is a Milestone® Mastercard® - Bad Credit Considered by The Bank of Missouri. The card can be obtained with a minimum score of 600+ and is a real unsecured credit card.
With No Credit History
If you have no credit, the best option will be Capital One Platinum card. The card is friendly to people with no credit and helps you to build a new credit history and apply for a better card later.
Store and gas cards
One of the most useful advice for rebuilding credit will be to get a store card and a gas card. Cards that you can get from big department stores and gas stations are usually loyal to people with low credit scores and are easy to get.
| regular APR | |
bad credit required
no fees
Up to $5,000 Spending Limit in Less than 60 Seconds! Shop from over 100,000 brand name products such as Apple, Samsung, Sony, Gucci, Prada and much more with low easy payments.
Less than Perfect Credit Accepted. Approval is quick and easy. Must be 18 years or older, have a valid checking account and a verifiable source of income.
Many of these cards offer instant guaranteed approval and unlike some other subprime cards, they do not charge a processing fee for an application.
Be aware that a great majority of retail cards is issued by either GE capital retail bank or by Comenity bank. So if you were turned down by one of these banks, the best idea would be to apply for a card that is backed by a different bank.
Do not submit too many applications at once; many applications and credit inquiries in a short period is a threat to your credit score. You can find a short list of retail cards in our article.
Back to Secured Cards
if your score is below 500, or you were denied for unsecured credit card
There is nothing bad about having a secured card – some of them offer low fees and modest APR. Consider USAA secured card if you have ties with the military or a DCU secured card (no annual fee, 11.5% APR). Aero Mexico card offers you good travel rewards in exchange for a small annual fee.
| regular APR | |
- 2x miles on gas and groceries
- 1x miles on all other purchases
- get 5,000 bonus on first card use
bad credit required
$25 annual fee
$0 first-year fee
reports to credit agencies
24 days grace period
unsecured card offer after 12 months
| regular APR | |
bad credit / no credit required
Best for members rebuilding or establishing credit
It's a real credit card — not a debit or prepaid card.
Determine your own credit limit ($250 to $5,000) with an interest-earning CD.
| regular APR | |
bad credit / no credit required
no annual fee
bad credit or no credit
25 days grace period
$49-$200 security deposit
Good secured cards allow you to build a credit history in the same manner as unsecured ones. Take into account that an important factor of your credit score is a debt utilization – how much of your combined credit lines are you using. In that aspect, sometimes having a bigger limit secured card can be more beneficial for your credit score than having a low limit unsecured card.
After a period of good use of a secured card, you have an option to move to an unsecured card if your credit is sufficient.
If Denied - no Credit Check Cards
If you were denied for an unsecured and secured credit cards, there are plenty of cards with no credit check to choose from.
| regular APR | |
bad credit / no credit required
$39 annual fee
Credit lines available from $200 to $5,000! Low fixed 13.99% interest rate on purchases - with no penalty rate!
No minimum credit score requirements! We invite all credit types to apply! No processing or application fees!
Helps strengthen your credit with responsible card use. Reports to three national bureaus
Fast, easy application process. Choose your credit line and open your Personal Savings Deposit Account to secure your line.
See additional Green Dot primor® Mastercard® Classic Secured Credit Card details
| regular APR | |
bad credit required
New feature! Earn up to 10% cash back* on everyday purchases
No credit check to apply. Zero credit risk to apply!
Looking to build or rebuild your credit? 2 out of 3 OpenSky cardholders increase their credit score by an average of 41 points in just 3 months
Get free monthly access to your FICO score in our mobile application
Build your credit history across 3 major credit reporting agencies: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion
Add to your mobile wallet and make purchases using Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Google Pay
Fund your card with a low $200 refundable security deposit to get a $200 credit line
Apply in less than 5 minutes with our mobile first application
Choose the due date that fits your schedule with flexible payment dates
Fund your security deposit over 60 days with the option to make partial payments
Over 1.4 Million Cardholders Have Used OpenSky Secured Credit Card To Improve Their Credit
*See Rewards Terms and Conditions for more information
Cards to Avoid
Many second chance offers and cards that are marketed for people with bad credit use deceptive tactics and may lead you to more debt and even worse credit rating.
Many credit cards for bad credit have very high fees - Surge card, Verve card - annual fee and sometimes a one-time application fee (processing fee) can add up to $200 per year, which is extremely high.
I would also not recommend catalog or merchandise cards like Horizon Gold, Net First Platinum, Next Millenium, Gettington credit, Fingerhut credit - these are cards that can be used only for shopping in one online mall.
Many of those cards are frequently changing names and rebranding to get rid of bad online reputation
Your credit situation is not so desperate that you need to be stuck on one overpriced online mall to do your shopping.
How to use a secured card to rebuild credit
If your credit is poor, your main credit goal is to rebuild your score. Only after your credit rating gets into a fair or average category you will be able to apply for cards with rewards, cash back or miles.
The road to a good credit starts with your first secured card, then you add additional unsecured credit cards and manage them responsibly. A credit builder loan will be a good supplement to credit cards to get different types of credit on your file.
Quick credit building guide
1. Apply for a secured card. The bigger the limit you can get (it depends on the amount you can but to the bank as a security deposit) the better - it will help you to maintain low balance to available credit ratio. Best suggestions here are Capital One Secured card and SDFCU Secured card - both cards has no annual fee and offer good terms.
| regular APR | |
bad credit / no credit required
no annual fee
7.49% APR
no BT fee
no credit check
2. Use your first card extremely cautiously. That means never use more than 30% of your credit available (I know it is hard when your limit is just a couple of hundreds). Never forget that this card is only a tool for building your credit history and nothing else.
3. Get a one-year credit builder loan from a bank. Many banks offer this type of loans - it works very similarly to a secured card. Having a loan on your credit file, helps you to improve a 'credit mix' factor in your credit score - you will have two different types of credit in your credit history.
4. Always keep track of our credit score. Many banks offer free FICO score monitoring, you can also subscribe to one of the commercial credit monitoring services. Knowing your actual score helps to understand the direction where you are heading.
5. After 6 months of keeping your account in good standing, you can apply for an unsecured credit card. I would recommend getting a Credit One Card - it is the most loyal to poor credit card today. Another option is a Milestone® Mastercard® - Bad Credit Considered.
6. After several months of responsibly using your secured credit card, unsecured credit card, and a credit builder loan, your credit rating should be in low 600's. Now you are ready to apply for Capital One credit card.
7. After a year from the beginning, you will be able to close your credit builder loan. If you did everything right, your credit score by that time will be already in 650+ range, which is fair credit.
Unsecured card after bankruptcy
It is surprising, but many people see a flow of new credit card offers in their mailbox after filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy. A person can file a Chapter 7 only once in every eight years, and a great majority of people file only once in a lifetime.
Many unsecured credit cards and 'second chance' offers are available in that situation. Our recommendation is a Milestone® Mastercard® - Bad Credit Considered - this card is marketed for people after bk and offers decent terms.
Here's another card that can approve you after Chapter 7.
Summary
With bad credit your options for unsecured cards are limited. However several banks offer regular credit cards even for people after bankruptcy. Consider all pros and cons and start working on your credit with a new credit card.
Here are best 2021's secured and unsecured credit cards for bad credit ranked by our editor
| Best for | Card | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| after bankruptcy | Indigo® Unsecured Mastercard® | previous bankruptcy or bad credit is ok | low limits, high APR |
| after bankruptcy | Milestone® Mastercard® | previous bankruptcy or bad credit is ok | low limits, high APR |
| building new credit | Capital One Platinum | no annual fee, credit limit increase opportunities | no cashback, average credit needed, high APR |
| building credit | DCU Platinum Secured | low APR, no annual fee | security deposit required |
| building credit | USAA Secured card | low APR | available with military connection only |
| building credit with no credit check | Green Dot primor® Mastercard® Classic Secured Credit Card | no credit check | annual fee |
| building credit with no credit check | Capital Bank OpenSky Secured | no credit check, reports as unsecured | security deposit required |
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Comments
Discover and Capital One are the best
ulogin_googlepl..., 02/08/17
Discover's card is a great addition to your wallet because of their strong security to protect your account, plus after the first six months of on-time payments, they often return your security deposit and raise your limit.
Capital One reviews your account after every fifth payment for limit increases, if you've been good about making your payments, and the increases are generous too. Capital One will even give you a credit line higher than your deposit. When I began, I gave them $250 for a $...read in full
Discover's card is a great addition to your wallet because of their strong security to protect your account, plus after the first six months of on-time payments, they often return your security deposit and raise your limit.
Capital One reviews your account after every fifth payment for limit increases, if you've been good about making your payments, and the increases are generous too. Capital One will even give you a credit line higher than your deposit. When I began, I gave them $250 for a $400 limit, and it is now much higher because of my good history. In addition, my history with one account let me obtain other Capital One-issued cards.
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