What is the best Discover card for bad credit?

A 700+ credit score is needed to get most Discover credit cards, but there’s no minimum credit score needed for a few Discover cards. You can get the Discover it® Secured Credit Card with a bad credit score (below 640). And college students don’t need a credit score, or any credit experience, to get one of Discover’s two student credit cards. But you need at least good credit for all the other offers, including Discover it® Miles and Discover it® Cash Back, two of the most popular options. Some Discover offers listed here are not currently available on WalletHub and may be out of date.… read full answer

If you’re not sure how your credit is doing, you can check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub, the only site where credit scores and reports update daily.

Whether your finances aren’t so great or they’re right on track, you should be able to find a Discover card that works for you. Let’s take a look at Discover’s offers and what score you need to get approved.

Here’s the minimum credit score needed for each Discover card:

• Discover it Secured Credit Card: No minimum score, applicants with bad credit are eligible for approval (below 640).
• Discover it® Student Cash Back: Available to applicants with limited credit (less than 3 years of credit history).
• Discover it® Student chrome: Available to applicants with limited credit (less than 3 years of credit history).
• Discover it Cash Back: Good credit (700+) required.
• NHL® Discover it®: Good credit (700+) required.
• Discover it® chrome: Good credit (700+) required.
• Discover it Miles: Good credit (700+) required.

There aren’t any Discover cards that flat-out require excellent credit, currently. But we recommend a score of at least 700, which is toward the top of the good credit range, for the cards that require 700 credit for approval.

With that being said, it’s not just your credit score you should worry about. For example, Discover will consider other factors, such as how your income compares to your debt, along with your employment status, whether you own or rent your home, how many loans and lines of credit you already have open, and more.

If denied for a Discover card, the first step is to find out why Discover rejected the application. The reasons will be listed in the denial letter Discover sends out shortly after its decision. They may include an annual income below what’s needed to make minimum monthly payments, a low credit score, too many recent credit inquiries or a high amount of debt, among others. Discover will also deny people who already have two open Discover card accounts or who are applying for a second less than a year after getting the first. Incomplete or inaccurate information on the application could result in a denial, too.… read full answer

Next, review your credit report to make sure there are no errors that could trigger a denial. If you notice any discrepancies, dispute them with the credit bureau(s) immediately. It’s always a good idea to do this before you apply to minimize the risk of being denied.

After you’ve determined the reason(s) you were denied for a Discover card, if you think your application deserves a second look, try a reconsideration. Discover does not have a dedicated phone line for reconsiderations, but you can call customer service at 1 (800) 347-2683. If there have been significant positive changes in your credit profile or your finances since you applied, it may be worth a try. But it’s not easy to get a denial overturned.

If reconsideration is unsuccessful, consider applying for a card with higher odds of approval, such as a secured credit card with no credit check. Or, you can sign on to another person’s account as an authorized user. This allows you to build credit without being responsible for payments every month.

One of the best credit cards for a 550 credit score is the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card. There’s no credit check when you apply, so approval is almost guaranteed. You just need $200 for a refundable security deposit and enough income to make monthly payments. This card also reports to all three major credit bureaus… read full answer (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) every month, which is your ticket to a better credit score. And a $35 annual fee isn’t too much to pay for that.

Another good option is the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa® Secured Card. This card offers 1 - 5% cash back, depending on the type of purchase and has a $0 annual fee.

However, those aren’t the only credit cards you can get with a 550 credit score. In fact, there are two kinds of credit cards for people at that credit level: secured credit cards and unsecured credit cards for bad credit. A 550 credit score is within the bad credit range, unfortunately. Bad credit goes from 300 to 639. But picking the right 550 credit score credit card and using it responsibly could help you improve your score to “fair” territory within 12-18 months.

The best credit cards for a 550 score:

You can also check our editors’ latest picks for the best credit cards for bad credit on the market to see which one better suits your needs.

Before applying for a card, though, make sure to check out its terms and conditions, or a FAQ page if there is one, just to make sure you fit the criteria for eligibility. You can also try getting pre-approved for a credit card. It won’t hurt your credit, and it will give you a good idea of your odds if you decide to apply.