Secured Credit Card Guide

The best secured credit card with rewards is the Discover it® Secured Credit Card because it has a $0 annual fee and offers 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants (up to $1,000 spent each quarter combined), and 1% back on all other purchases. Plus, Discover matches your cash back earnings from the first year. 

Best Secured Credit Cards with Rewards

Rewards are among the few factors that you should consider when choosing a secured credit card, along with the annual fee and the minimum deposit requirement. Paying an annual fee just to get rewards only makes sense if the amount you'll earn exceeds both the fee and your expected earnings with a cheaper card combined. 

By the way, all of these cards report to the credit bureaus on a monthly basis, giving you the chance to build credit with on-time payments.

The best secured credit card with no annual fee is the Discover it® Secured Credit Card because it gives 1 - 2% cash back on purchases and has a 0% foreign transaction fee to go along with its $0 annual fee. The Discover it® Secured Credit Card also matches 100% of the cash rewards a new cardholder earns the first year. And it reports to all 3 major credit bureaus each month.

Best Secured Credit Cards with No Annual Fee

As you can see, there are several really good secured credit cards with no annual fee, and they're available even to people whose credit is damaged. Any no annual fee secured credit card is an excellent way to start building up a positive payment history and rebuilding one's credit score.

Eventually, it will be easier to qualify for unsecured credit cards with better terms. But unsecured cards for people with poor credit almost always charge annual fees.

One of the best secured credit cards with a low deposit is the Capital One Platinum Secured Credit Card. With this card, you may be able to put down either $49, $99 or $200 and still get a $200 credit line, which would make the card only partially secured. Plus, there's a $0 annual fee.

Other secured cards don't have the potential to be quite as cheap, but there are a few really good options with a $200 minimum deposit. That's still pretty low compared to several secured cards that ask for $300-$500+.  

Here are some good secured credit cards with low deposits:

The Capital One Platinum Secured card requires a $49, $99 or $200 minimum deposit. This card has a $0 annual fee and $0 foreign transaction fees. The Capital One Platinum Secured has a $200 starting credit limit.

The Citi Secured card requires a $200 minimum deposit. The card has a $0 annual fee and 3% foreign transaction fees.

The OpenSky card requires a $200 minimum deposit. The card has a $35 annual fee. OpenSky foreign transaction fee. There is no credit check when you apply.

The Capital One Quicksilver Secured card requires a $200 minimum deposit. This card offers 5% cash back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel, as well as 1.5% cash back on all other purchases. The Capital One Quicksilver Secured card has a $0 annual fee and $0 foreign transaction fees.

It's worth noting that the Capital One Platinum Secured card doesn't guarantee a low deposit, but it does offer the chance of one. If your credit is toward the bottom of the bad credit range, you'll probably still have to put down a $200 deposit. But the higher your credit score is, the better chance you'll have of being assigned a low deposit.

One of the best secured credit cards to rebuild credit with is the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Cash Rewards Credit Card because it has a $0 annual fee, reports to the credit bureaus, and gives 1.5 - 5% cash back on all purchases. The minimum deposit is $200, and the amount you put down will act as your credit limit.

Another good option is the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card. 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, the U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa® Secured Card offers 1 - 4 points per $1 spent on purchases.

Some of the Best Secured Credit Cards to Rebuild Credit

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. Also, all those with low annual fees and low deposit requirements are in the running for the top spot. But the cards listed above bring something special to the table.

How to Rebuild Credit with a Secured Credit Card

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 negative records from the past.

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 help, 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.

The best secured credit card with no credit check is Chime Credit Card because it is among the cheapest options. The card does not charge membership fees or interest, and there is no minimum amount for the security deposit, though your deposit will act as your credit limit. There are, however, a few more secured credit cards with no credit check to choose from.

Best Secured Credit Cards with No Credit Check

The annual fees on secured credit cards with no credit check range from $29 to $48 per year. The cards require a minimum deposit of $200. All these cards report information to the big 3 major credit bureaus each month. So, any of them can help you immediately begin rebuilding your credit.

Still, it's important to note that even a secured credit card with no credit check has some approval requirements. You have to be at least 18 years old, for one thing, and you need enough money for the refundable security deposit as well as your monthly bill payments.

Why You Shouldn't Rule Out Secured Cards With a Credit Check

Before you apply for a secured credit card with no credit check, make sure you actually need it. Even secured cards that require a credit check are pretty easy to get. They're meant for people with bad credit, and the refundable security deposit you place reduces the risk for issuers.

Individual issuers may have specific requirements that rule some people out. For example, you can't get most secured cards with a non-discharged bankruptcy on your credit report. But there are plenty of other cards whose main requirement is that you have enough money to fund the security deposit. Plus, while they may do a credit check, most applicants should still get approved.

What You Need to Know About Credit Checks

Keep in mind that the hard inquiry that comes with a credit check shouldn't be too big of a deal, if you end up opening an account. The score damage will be temporary. And you won't be able to qualify for any worthwhile loans until you improve your score anyway. So, if you don't need the best possible score right now, taking a short-term hit to achieve long-term gains is the way to go.

Finally, if you're nervous about getting rejected, you can check for pre-approval before applying. Pre-approval doesn't mean you're guaranteed an account. But it is a sign that your odds of approval are extremely high. If after all that you're not confident in your ability to get approved, you can always go for a secured credit card with no credit check.

The best secured credit card for no credit is the Discover it® Secured Credit Card because it has a $0 annual fee, gives 1 - 2% cash back on purchases, and doubles the rewards cardholders earn the first year. This card requires a refundable security deposit of $200 or more, for a credit limit equal to the deposit amount. But it also offers the chance to graduate to an unsecured card after at least seven months of on-time payments.

Best Secured Credit Cards for No Credit

In general, secured credit cards offer good approval odds to people with limited or no credit. They're designed for rebuilding credit, after all, and even people with bad credit scores can get approved. But even the best secured credit cards should only be a backup plan for people with no credit.

There are also unsecured credit cards for no credit with no deposit required. Student credit cards are the best deals, with $0 annual fees and more than 1% back on purchases. But other people with limited credit should be able to find a good offer, too. So, you might want to try for an unsecured card for no credit first and then settle for a secured card if you don't get approved.

The best secured card that graduates to unsecured is the U.S. Bank Altitude® Go Visa® Secured Card. U.S. Bank periodically reviews accounts for possible graduation and it reports to all 3 major credit bureaus. With this card, you also get 1 - 4 points per $1 spent on purchases. 

Best Secured Cards That Graduate to Unsecured

When your secured card graduates to an unsecured card, your credit line no longer needs to be secured with collateral. So when you graduate, the initial deposit you made to open the account will be refunded. You may get to keep the same physical credit card, or you may be migrated to another one. Either way, you'll keep the good credit history you've earned with your secured card.

The biggest reason why someone would use a secured credit card is to rebuild bad credit. Secured cards are the best tool for the job because they offer nearly guaranteed approval and report account information to the major credit bureaus each month. As long as you always pay the bill on time, positive information will gradually cover up past mistakes, improving your credit score.

Secured cards are also much cheaper in the long run than unsecured credit cards for bad credit, thanks to the refundable security deposit required to open the account. The deposit amount usually becomes your credit limit, preventing you from spending more than you can afford to repay and reducing the risk for the issuer. As a result, secured cards tend to have much lower fees than unsecured cards for bad credit. 

Reasons Someone Would Use a Secured Credit Card

High Approval Odds. You can get approved for a secured credit card no matter how damaged your credit may be. Some secured cards don't even do a credit check on applicants.

Low Costs. Secured cards tend to have very low annual fees, thanks to their refundable security deposit. Just make sure to pay the bill in full every month because they aren't known for attractive APRs.

Credit Improvement. Despite their differences, there's nothing on your credit report that distinguishes secured cards from unsecured cards. If you pay your monthly bills on time and otherwise manage your account responsibly, your credit score will improve.

Budgeting. By making your spending limit equal to the amount of your security deposit, secured cards prevent you from borrowing more than you can afford to repay.

Convenience. A secured credit card allows you to make purchases that can't be completed with cash, such as car rentals, hotel bookings and online shopping. You'll also benefit from the security of $0 fraud liability.

If you're worried about missing payments or falling into bad habits, remember that you can still benefit by opening a secured credit card, activating it and never actually using it. Even though there won't be activity on your account, your payments will be listed as on time when the creditor reports information to the credit bureaus each month. You can't be late on a payment when none is due, after all. This will benefit you month after month, improving your credit score over time. Just don't forget to pay your annual fee, if any, and the rest will take care of itself.

To learn more, check out WalletHub's secured credit card guide. You can also check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub, as well as identify opportunities for improvement with our personalized credit analysis.

A security deposit for a credit card is a fully refundable sum that you pay to a credit card issuer before a secured credit card account is opened. The amount of the deposit usually becomes the account's credit limit, and the cardholder gets the money back after bringing the card's balance to zero and closing the account. Since the security deposit on a credit card protects the issuer against the threat of nonpayment, it makes getting a credit card easier for people with bad credit.

Popular Secured Credit Cards in 2023

Only secured credit cards require a deposit, and for some people it can be hard to put money down up front. However, a secured credit card can actually save you more money compared to unsecured credit cards for people with poor credit when you account for monthly fees, annual fees, and processing fees. You can check out WalletHub's guide on secured credit cards for more information on what they are and how they work.

You should put at least $200 on a secured credit card, especially if you want to use the card for everyday purchases. The deposit you put down on your secured credit card will also function as your credit limit in most cases, so putting down very little will make using your card more difficult.

Most secured credit card issuers require a minimum deposit of $200 to $300 to open an account, and many have a maximum deposit amount as well. Some cards, like the Chime Credit Card, have the potential for lower starting deposits. But generally, the lower your starting deposit is, the lower your credit limit will be.   

Top Secured Credit Cards by Minimum Deposit

*You must make a deposit from a Chime Spending Account, but you can choose the amount.

Ultimately, it is up to you to decide how much money you want to put down. Having a higher credit limit can make it easier to maintain credit utilization below 30%, which is good for your credit score. The downside, of course, is that the more you're able to spend on purchases, the harder it might get to pay your credit card bill on time. Paying your bill when it's due is one of the best ways to build credit with a credit card, so you will want to make sure your card's limit isn't set too high and you are able to keep your spending in check.