Best Starter Credit Cards

• Our picks
• Best beginner credit card tips
• How we picked the best starter credit cards
• About the author
• Sources
• User questions & answers
• Expert opinions

 

Capital One Platinum Credit Card

 

Why We Like It: The best starter credit card is the Capital One Platinum Credit Card because it has a $0 annual fee and reports account info to the 3 major credit bureaus each month. Plus, anyone with limited or fair credit is eligible. That’s really all a newcomer needs to build credit inexpensively. Capital One Platinum has been one of the top starter credit cards for years, too, so you can have confidence that it will help you start things off right.

What We Don’t Like: You won’t earn rewards on purchases, and interest will cost you a lot if you carry a balance from month to month.
 

Who Should Get It: Apply for Capital One Platinum if you want a simple, easy-to-use starter credit card that will help you build credit inexpensively.
 

Alternatives to Consider: The Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card is a great option for relatively big spenders.
 

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Capital One SavorOne Student Cash Rewards Credit Card

 

Why We Like It: The Capital One SavorOne Student Cash Rewards Credit Card is available to applicants with limited credit, rewards cardholders with 1 - 8% cash back on purchases, and reports to the major credit bureaus each month. It also has a $0 annual fee.
 

What We Don’t Like: The interest rate is likely to be very high, so you’d be wise to pay your bill in full every month if you decide to apply.
 

Who Should Get It: The Capital One SavorOne Student Cash Rewards Credit Card is the best starter credit card for students with limited credit.
 

Alternatives to Consider: The rest of the best credit cards for students are all great options. The Capital One Platinum Credit Card and the Petal® 2 Visa® Credit Card are both good starter cards as well.
 

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Petal® 2 Visa® Credit Card

 

Why We Like It: The Petal® 2 Visa® Credit Card is the best beginner credit card for rewards with no annual fee. It gives at least 1% cash back on all eligible purchases, with the earning rate increasing as you prove yourself to be a responsible cardholder. After six months of on-time payments, it goes up to 1.25% cash back. And after 12 months of paying on time, the rewards rate jumps to 1.5% back. The Petal 2 Visa Card, which is available to people with limited credit or better, also reports monthly to the 3 credit bureaus.
 

What We Don’t Like: You have to be on your best behavior for months before getting an above-average rewards rate. The APR can be pretty high, too.
 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for the Petal 2 Card if you want a starter credit card with rewards and no annual fee.
 

Alternatives to Consider: If you’re a college student, there are lots of great options available.
 

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OpenSky® Plus Secured Visa® Credit Card

 

Why We Like It: The OpenSky® Plus Secured Visa® Credit Card is the best starter credit card for high approval odds because there is no credit check for new applicants. That means no hard inquiry when you apply. The OpenSky Plus Card also has a $0 and reports to all 3 major credit bureaus on a monthly basis.
 

What We Don’t Like: You have to place a refundable security deposit of $300+. The amount of your deposit then becomes your spending limit. There’s also a high APR.
 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for the OpenSky Plus Card if you’re starting over after past mistakes with credit.
 

Alternatives to Consider: First Progress Platinum Elite Mastercard® Secured Credit Card has no credit check but charges an annual fee of $29.
 

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Discover it® Secured Credit Card

 

Why We Like It: The Discover it® Secured Credit Card is the best starter credit card for rewards and good approval odds. It has a $0 annual fee, gives 1 - 2% cash back on purchases, and doubles the rewards you earn the first year your account is open.
 

What We Don’t Like: The main drawback is that you need to place a security deposit of at least $200, and the amount of that deposit will serve as your spending limit. But the deposit is also fully refundable, and it actually helps make the card easier to get.
 

Who Should Get It: Consider applying for the Discover it Secured Credit Card if you want to earn lots of rewards and don’t mind placing a refundable security deposit.
 

Alternatives to Consider: The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card also offers great rewards.
 

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As you can see, newcomers have plenty of starter credit card options available to them, especially students. For your convenience, we’ll recap the best of the bunch below. WalletHub’s editors identified these offers as being the best first time credit cards for different types of newcomers after comparing more than 1,500 credit card offers.
 

Best Starter Credit Cards Comparison

Now that you’re familiar with WalletHub’s editors’ picks for the best starter credit cards, it’s important to note that finding the best beginner credit card for your needs is only half the battle. You also need to use it responsibly if you want that starter card to be a stepping stone to financial success, not a source of mistakes that could haunt your credit history for years.

Negative records about things like missed payments, default and bankruptcy will remain on your major credit reports for 7 to 10 years. There’s no way around that, either. So even though you’re using a credit card for beginners, you need to act like a veteran. Above all else, that means always paying your monthly bill on time and only spending what you can afford to pay back. And since those things are way easier said than done, some specific pointers are in order.

Below, we’ll lay out our best first-time credit card tips, covering both how to find the right card and how to use it right once you have it.

1. When in doubt, get the cheapest secured card
2. Start with a student credit card if you have an EDU email address
3. Get a boost from a store card
4. Don’t worry about looks
5. Non-students should consider three types of cards
6. Remember that travel rewards aren’t for everyone
7. Try to compare apples to apples
8. Always pay your bill on time

1. When in doubt, get the cheapest secured card

This is a good type of card for beginners because it allows you to start building credit as soon as possible. And it lets you do so in a relatively low-risk environment, where you can practice responsible habits without the temptation to overspend.

Opting for a secured card will also help you avoid unnecessary credit-score damage. Too many applications (3+) within too short of a timeframe (three months) will drag down your score, as repeated hard inquiries signal a worrisome desperation for added spending power.

Besides, secured credit cards are indistinguishable from unsecured cards. Physically, there’s no difference in their appearance. Same thing when it comes to credit building. They look exactly the same on your credit report. And information about both types of cards gets reported to the credit bureaus on a monthly basis.
 

2. Start with a student credit card if you have an EDU email address

Banks offer college students more attractive terms because they prize their above-average earning potential and the potential that exists for them to become lifelong customers. Students can expect to get a card that does not charge an annual fee yet offers either a rewards earning rate of least 1% or a 0% introductory APR.
 

3. Get a boost from a store card

If you want to boost your credit building and rewards earning capabilities, you may also want to get a store card associated with one of your favorite retailers, as they are typically free to use.
 

4. Don’t worry about looks

Long ago, you learned not to judge a book by its cover, and it’s the same story with credit cards. What your card looks like isn’t important. Hardly anyone is going to see it, and even fewer will care.

What matters is getting a good deal and saving money. That’s why the coolest credit cards are the ones with the best value proposition.
 

5. Non-students should consider three types of cards

A secured card is your best bet for approval, as you are essentially guaranteed to get one if you can place a security deposit of at least $200. That deposit will also serve as your credit line, thereby preventing overspending.

Store credit cards can only be used at the particular retail chain they are affiliated with. For example, the Target REDcard can only be used to make purchases at Target. The appeal of store cards is that they tend to have fairly lenient approval standards as well as great rewards. The stores want more people spending more money at their locations, after all.

Unsecured credit cards for limited credit, on the other hand, may offer the most spending power…and charge the highest fees.
 

6. Remember that travel rewards aren’t for everyone

Airline miles and hotel points are flashy, and they may even draw your eye when shopping for your first credit card. What most first time credit card users will eventually learn, however, is that cash back rewards are far more reliable and transparent. It’s far easier to understand their value, and cash cannot be devalued. You don’t need to be a frequent traveler to maximize your earnings either.
 

7. Try to compare apples to apples

One reason comparing credit cards is so difficult is that they all list account information differently. But if you put things in dollar terms, it will be much easier to find the offer that’s right for you.

In other words, convert points and miles into cash back percentages by determining how many points/miles you’ll need for a certain gift card, flight, hotel room, etc. You can also compare rewards cards with different annual fees based on the net amount each would save you, considering both what you’d earn and what you’d have to spend. You could even factor in interest rates if you plan on carrying a balance from month to month.
 

8. Always pay your bill on time

Payment history accounts for more than a third of 35% of your overall credit score. And because paying your account’s monthly minimum is all that’s required to make sure this score component stays positive, there’s really no excuse for tripping up in this regard.

The best way to take forgetfulness out of the equation is to set up automatic monthly payments from a bank account. You can do so through your online account or by calling customer service. And you’ll be able to choose between paying the monthly minimum, your full balance or a custom amount.

At the end of the day, the best type of first time credit card is easy to identify: It’s an offer catered to people with limited or no credit that does not charge any fixed fees. After all, your top priorities at this stage in your credit career should be to get approved and start building credit as quickly and inexpensively as possible.

Finding the single best credit card to start with is a bit trickier. And while we’ve done the legwork for you, you may prefer to do the search yourself. In that case, following the tips above will definitely lead you in the right direction.
 

To identify the best starter credit cards, WalletHub’s editors regularly compare more than 1,500 credit card offers based on their rewards, fees, interest rates, special features, and approval requirements. This enables us to maintain an up-to-date list of the best credit cards for beginners of all types, from starter credit cards for students to the best rewards cards for newcomers. Some cards come from WalletHub partners, but advertiser status does not affect WalletHub’s editors’ picks in any way. Selections are made based on cardholder savings.

WalletHub actively maintains a database of 1,500+ credit card offers, from which we select the best starter 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.