What is the best secured credit card to rebuild credit with?

The best secured credit card to rebuild credit is the Capital One Secured Mastercard because of its low deposit requirement and $0 annual fee. The deposit is $49, $99 or $200, depending on your creditworthiness, but you’re guaranteed a $200 credit limit.

Another one of the best secured credit cards to rebuild credit is the OpenSky Secured Visa. It doesn’t even require a credit check when you apply, which makes it great for rebuilding really bad credit. Or, if you want to enjoy some perks while you rebuild, Discover it Secured is a rare secured card with rewards. You get 1% to 2% cash back on your purchases.

To be clear, all major secured credit cards can help you rebuild your credit. They all report account information to the major credit bureaus every month. And all those with low annual fees and low deposit requirements are in the running for the top spot. But the Discover, Capital One and OpenSky secured cards each bring something special to the table.

Here are the best secured credit cards to rebuild credit:

• Best for Rewards: Discover it Secured Credit Card – $0 annual fee. $200 deposit required. 2% cash back on your first $1,000 per quarter at gas stations and restaurants. 1% back on all other purchases. Rewards matched after your first year. Reports to all 3 major credit bureaus.
• Best for a Low Deposit: Capital One Secured Mastercard – $0 annual fee. $49, $99 or $200 deposit required. $200 minimum credit line guaranteed. No rewards. Reports to all 3 major credit bureaus.
• Best for No Credit Check: OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card – $35 annual fee. $200 minimum deposit. No rewards. Reports to all 3 major credit bureaus.
• Best for low APR: Green Dot primor Visa Gold Secured Credit Card – $49 annual fee. $200 minimum deposit. No rewards. Reports to all 3 major credit bureaus.

There are a few more cards that belong among the best secured credit cards to rebuild credit with, too. The Citi Secured Mastercard, Harley-Davidson Secured Visa and First National Secured Visa don’t charge annual fees. And that’s one of the most important things to look for in a secured credit card.

The Applied Bank Secured Visa Gold Preferred Card also has a low APR, at 9.99%. But you probably don’t want to carry a balance from month to month with a secured credit card. It basically means paying interest on a loan you’ve given yourself, since you pre-pay your spending limit.

Choosing the best secured credit card to rebuild credit is only the first step toward actually rebuilding. You must also use that card responsibly month after month so that positive information flows to the credit bureaus. Regularly adding positive information to your credit reports gradually covers up the negative past records.

Your card will report positive information as long as you pay your bill on time every month. Using less than 30% of your spending limit each month or paying multiple times per month can also too. But if you really want to rebuild your credit, you’ll need to get the rest of your finances in order as well. That means paying down debt, catching up on past-due accounts and steering clear of collections accounts.

There are several really good secured credit cards that can help you rebuild your credit, provided of course you use them responsibly. Some of them are: the Capital One Secured Mastercard, which reports to all 3 major credit bureaus, and doesn’t have an annual fee; the Discover it Secured Card (also without an annual fee, and gives you cash back on every purchase), and the OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card, which doesn’t check your credit.

I think Opensky is definitely the best for rebuilding. You don't get any rewards with it, but they don't put a hard inquiry on your credit report either. It's a breath of fresh air, really. Can't stand seeing those just hurt your credit for no apparent reason.

For me, it was Capital One's Secured. They saved me a lot of trouble. Being a Mastercard it was accepted everywhere and Cap One's customer service was top-notch.