Best Instant Approval Credit Cards

• Why people trust WalletHub
• Our picks for the best instant approval credit cards
• How we picked the best instant approval credit cards
• About the author
• Sources
• User questions & answers
• Expert opinions

 

OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card
 

Why We Like It: The OpenSky Credit Card is one of the best instant approval credit cards because it has no credit check and a reasonable annual fee. OpenSky just has to validate your identity, income and a few other details.

 

So, the OpenSky Card even allows people with poor credit or no credit to get instant approval and begin improving their credit standing at a pretty low cost. OpenSky reports account information to all three major credit bureaus monthly.
 

What We Don’t Like: You have to place a security deposit of $200+, and the amount you put down becomes your spending limit. In addition, there is a $35 annual fee.

 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for the OpenSky if you want the chance to be approved instantly despite having bad credit. It’s particularly good for people whose top priority is credit improvement.

 

Alternatives to Consider: The First Progress Platinum Elite is another good option with no credit check. 

 

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Discover it® Secured Credit Card
 

Why We Like It: The Discover it® Secured Credit Card is one of the best rewards credit cards that offers most applicants a good chance of getting approved instantly. The card offers 1 - 2% cash back in rewards on purchases and does not charge an annual fee. All the rewards you earn during the first 12 months also get doubled after your first account anniversary. 

 

What We Don’t Like: You have to place a security deposit of $200+, and the amount you put down becomes your spending limit.

 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for this card if you have limited or bad credit, don’t mind placing a refundable security deposit, and will be able to take full advantage of the card’s bonus rewards.

 

Alternatives to Consider: The Capital One Quicksilver Secured offers very good rewards too.

 

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Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card

  

Why We Like It: The best instant approval credit card for bad credit is the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card. It’s meant for people with limited-to-bad credit history, so your approval odds should be high, and you could get instant approval if your online application is complete and everything checks out on Capital One’s end.

 

Having this card can help you build positive credit history, as it reports to the three major credit bureaus monthly. The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card also offers good rewards and has no annual fee.

 

What We Don’t Like: You have to place a refundable security deposit, the amount of which will be your spending limit.
 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for the Capital One Quicksilver Secured if you want to build credit at a low cost and earn rewards along the way.

 

Alternatives to Consider: Discover it Secured Credit Card offers very good rewards to people with limited or bad credit.
 

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Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card

  

Why We Like It: Capital One Quicksilver offers the chance for instant approval when you apply online, has a $0 annual fee, and rewards cardholders handsomely. The rewards start with an initial bonus of $200 for spending $500 in the first 3 months and continue with 5% cash back on hotel and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, as well as 1.5% cash back on all other purchases.

 

Plus, new cardholders enjoy an introductory APR of 0% for 15 months.

 

What We Don’t Like: The card’s regular APR will make carrying a balance from month to month quite expensive after the intro APR promotion expires.

 

Who Should Get It: People with good-to-excellent credit should consider applying for the Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card if its rewards suit their spending habits.

 

Alternatives to Consider: Wells Fargo Active Cash is another great cash back credit card that you could get instantly approved for if you apply online.
 

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Credit One Bank® Platinum Visa® for Rebuilding Credit
 

Why We Like It: The Credit One Bank® Platinum Visa® for Rebuilding Credit is the best unsecured credit card for people with bad credit who want instant approval. The Credit One Visa certainly is not cheap, but it could help you afford minor emergency expenses as well as improve your credit standing, if used responsibly. And if you apply online, you could be instantly approved.

 

What We Don’t Like: The Credit One Visa is pretty expensive, charging up to $99 in annual fees ($75 the first year) as well as an APR of 28.74% (V). You won’t be able to borrow too much, either, as the card’s minimum credit limit is just $300.

 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for the Credit One Visa if you have bad credit and need to borrow a small amount of money for an emergency expense.

 

Alternatives to Consider: If you don’t need to borrow for an emergency, consider a secured card like the Capital One Quicksilver Secured. Otherwise, find the least expensive unsecured card for bad credit.

 

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Bottom Line:

All credit cards offer instant approval, at least when you apply online. They just don’t offer it to everyone. You need to be an ideal applicant. And the higher a card’s approval requirements are, the fewer ideal applicants there will be.

So if you really want instant approval, the trick is to pick a conservative target. One way to do that is to apply for a credit card whose minimum credit requirement is one level below your credit standing. For example, if you have good credit, consider applying for a fair-credit credit card. You can check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub.

For your convenience, we’ll also recap WalletHub’s editors’ picks for the best credit cards for instant approval right now, which were selected from 1,000+ offers due to their standout terms and the possibility for quick application decisions. You can find them grouped by category below.
 

Best Instant Approval Credit Cards Comparison

If you’re still not sure which credit card is right for you, check out WalletHub’s guide on how to choose the best credit card for some helpful tips and info.
 

To identify the best instant approval credit cards, WalletHub’s editors regularly compare more than 1,500 credit card offers. After ruling out any cards that do not offer the possibility of instant approval, we compare the remaining cards based on their fees, rewards, interest rates and approval requirements.
 
Specifically, we calculate how much each card is likely to save or cost cardholders over two years of use, before selecting the cards with the most potential savings and the highest likelihood of instant approval. In doing so, we focus primarily on cards available to applicants with poor credit, as they are likely to offer instant approval to the most people. Plus, people typically seek out instant approval credit cards when they’re concerned about their chances of getting a card.

WalletHub actively maintains a database of 1,500+ credit card offers, from which we select the best instant approval credit cards for different applicants as well as derive market-wide takeaways and trends. The underlying data is compiled from credit card company websites or provided directly by the credit card issuers. We also leverage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to develop cardholder profiles, used to estimate cards’ potential savings.