The Applied Bank Secured Credit Card is a good card to consider if you have bad credit and you want high odds of being approved. It does not have a minimum credit score, and Applied Bank won’t even check your credit history when you apply. It does report account information to the major credit bureaus each month, however, which allows you to improve your credit by using the card responsibly. 

The Applied Bank Secured Visa Gold Card does have some flaws, as you might expect. It has a $48 annual fee, whereas the top cards charge $0 per year. The Applied Bank Card does not offer rewards, either, unlike some of the very best credit cards for people with bad credit. And a feature that may seem like one of the Applied Bank Card’s biggest benefits – its low APR – isn’t really all that helpful, since your spending limit equals the amount of your refundable security deposit. 

Below, you can learn more about what the Applied Bank Secured Card does and does not bring to the table, as well as who should and should not apply.

What I Like About the Applied Bank Secured Credit Card 

No credit check.

The fact that a credit check doesn’t stand between you and approval for the Applied Bank Secured Credit Card is great news for anyone with severely damaged credit. After all, certain red flags on your credit report – a recent bankruptcy or open tax lien, for example – can prevent you from getting approved for most other secured cards. This also allows you to avoid a hard credit inquiry, which could temporarily damage your credit even more.

As a result, the Applied Bank Secured Card represents a rare ticket to credit improvement, provided that you pay your monthly bills on time. It’s not the only secured card with no credit check, though.
 

Low APR.

The Applied Bank Secured Credit Card’s regular APR is lower than even the 17.09% average among credit cards for people with excellent credit, according to WalletHub’s latest Credit Card Landscape Report. But you still shouldn’t use it.

You can’t truly borrow with this card, since your spending limit equals the amount of your refundable security deposit. So, you have to ask yourself: Do I really want to pay even a relatively small amount of interest to a credit card company for borrowing my own money? That’s pretty much what carrying a balance would mean in this case. 
 

Flexible security deposit.

The Applied Bank Card requires a refundable security deposit of $200 to $1,000 to start with. The amount of your deposit becomes your spending limit. You can add to your deposit over time, up to a total of $5,000, for more spending power. Applied Bank will return your deposit when you bring your balance to zero and close your account.

This deposit helps make the card easy to get. Since you can’t spend more than your deposit, there isn’t as much risk for Applied Bank to approve people. 

What I Don’t Like About the Applied Bank Secured Credit Card 

Pricey for a secured card.

Only a few of the secured cards in WalletHub’s database have higher annual fees than the $48 assessed by the Applied Bank Secured Credit Card. In fact, that fee is more than two times the average for all credit cards, according to WalletHub’s latest Credit Card Landscape Report. It’s still a lot cheaper than an unsecured credit card for bad credit, though.
 

No grace period.

The lack of a grace period means interest will begin to accrue the same day you make purchases, rather than up to 24 days after your monthly statement becomes available. So, if you have to make purchases, try to pay them off as quickly as possible. 
 

Not the best way to rebuild your credit, but also far from the worst. 

Some credit cards for people with bad credit are much more expensive than the Applied Bank Secured Visa; others are harder to get. But the opposite also is true, at least as it pertains to cost.

So if inexpensive credit improvement is your top priority, you should confirm that your credit history disqualifies you for a secured card with no annual fee before ponying up to get the Applied Bank Secured Card. You can find each card’s standards listed here on WalletHub, and you can check your latest credit report and score for free on WalletHub, as well.

A credit card, in general, is the best tool for rebuilding your credit standing. It’s fairly easy to get one, and a credit card doesn’t force you to incur any debt. Not all credit cards are created equal in this regard, however, whether due to their approval requirements or fees. So choose your card wisely and then make sure to use it responsibly.