5 Best Secured Credit Cards for Bad Credit (Dec. 2023)

Secured credit cards for bad credit help to protect the card issuer from being burned by an irresponsible cardholder but at the same time, they give consumers who are ready to get back on the right financial track a chance to being rebuilding their credit.

A common sitcom character is the nosy neighbor who frequently borrows things he or she can never seem to remember to return. Part of the reason that character is so popular in comedy is that many of us happen to have a friend or neighbor (or relative) who was cast in a similar mold.

To the average consumer lender, everyone is that forgetful neighbor — until proven otherwise. Without a positive, well-established credit history, most credit card issuers will charge high fees for small credit lines to minimize their financial risk.

For many consumers with poor (or limited) credit histories, secured credit cards are the most sensible credit card solution. Not only do they typically provide access to higher credit lines than unsecured subprime credit cards, but they often have lower annual fees and APRs, as well.

First Progress | Discover | Capital One | OpenSky

This duo of secured cards from First Progress give you a choice of APRs — both of which are lower than is charged by your typical subprime card — with the lower-APR card, the First Progress Platinum Prestige Mastercard® Secured Credit Card, charging a higher annual fee than its higher-APR sibling, First Progress Platinum Elite Mastercard® Secured Credit Card. Your annual fee will be charged when you open the account.

With both cards, your credit line will be equal to the size of your initial deposit, which can range from a minimum amount of $200, up to a maximum amount of $2,000. As with all secured credit cards, your deposit is fully refundable (unless you default on your credit card debt). You can find out if you’re pre-approved for a First Progress secured card online, often in just 60 seconds.

1. First Progress Platinum Prestige Mastercard® Secured Credit Card

APPLY HERE »

• 1% Cash Back Rewards on payments
• Choose your own credit line - $200 to $2000 – based on your security deposit
• Build your credit score.¹ Reports to all 3 credit bureaus
• No minimum credit score required for approval!
• ¹ Cardholders who keep their balance low and pay their credit card bill on time every month typically do see an increase in their credit score.

• See official application, terms, and details.

★★★★★

4.5

Overall Rating

Application Length	Interest Rate	Reports Monthly	Reputation Score
8 minutes	15.24% (V)	Yes	7.5/10

2. First Progress Platinum Elite Mastercard® Secured Credit Card

APPLY HERE »

• Choose your own credit line - $200 to $2000 – based on your security deposit
• Build your credit score.¹ Reports to all 3 credit bureaus
• No minimum credit score required for approval!
• ¹ Cardholders who keep their balance low and pay their credit card bill on time every month typically do see an increase in their credit score.

• See official application, terms, and details.

★★★★★

3.5

Overall Rating

Application Length	Interest Rate	Reports Monthly	Reputation Score
9 minutes	25.24% (V)	Yes	7.5/10

Secured credit cards from First Progress have no minimum credit score requirements to qualify, and the length of your credit history won’t prohibit you from acceptance, either. At the same time, you will likely be turned down if you have a pending bankruptcy filing that has not yet been discharged by the court.

While the APR charged by the Discover it® Secured card is higher than other options on the list, it’s still competitive for the credit-builder card market, plus it has no penalty APR charged for late payments and no annual fee. Additionally, approved applicants can enjoy an introductory balance transfer offer providing 10.99% on qualifying transferred balances for six months.

The minimum deposit amount required to open a Discover it® Secured card is $200, and the size of your deposit will determine your credit limit. Your maximum credit limit will be set by Discover based on your income and ability to pay, but will not exceed $2,500.

3. Discover it® Secured

The Discover it® Secured card reports to all three major credit bureaus. You can easily apply online and receive a decision in just a few minutes in most cases.

• Earn 2% cash back on up to $1,000 in combined gas and grocery purchases each year
• Earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases
• Pay no annual fee

Perhaps one of the best reasons to build credit with a Discover it® Secured card — besides the fact that it has rewards and no annual fee, which is kind of a big deal — is that your Discover it® Secured card can be upgraded to an unsecured Discover it® credit card when your credit history improves. Even better, it will likely happen automatically, as Discover periodically reviews your account to see if you qualify.

Unlike some of the other options on the list, the Capital One Secured Mastercard doesn’t always have a direct, one-to-one relationship between the size of your deposit and the size of your credit line. Instead, all new cardholders will receive an initial $200 credit limit, with the necessary deposit amount varying based on your individual credit profile.

You’re not stuck with a $200 limit forever, though. You’ll receive access to a higher credit line after making your first five monthly payments on time, no additional deposit needed. Regardless of your limit, however, try to avoid carrying a balance on your Capital One Secured Mastercard, as it has the largest APR on the list.

4. Capital One Secured Mastercard

The Capital One Secured Mastercard reports to all three major credit bureaus. Head online or to your local Capital One branch to apply.

• Get an initial $200 credit line after making a security deposit of $49, $99, or $200, determined based on your creditworthiness
• Reports to all three major credit bureaus
• Pay no annual fee

Similar to the Discover it® Secured card, you may be able to upgrade your Capital One Secured Mastercard to an unsecured Capital One card — but, according to reviewers, the key word here is, may. Anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that only newer cardholders are eligible to upgrade their secured Capital One card to an unsecured card.

With an APR below 20%, the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card is easily comparable to other secured credit cards, and downright competitive in the realm of credit-builder cards. Perhaps its most appealing feature to many applicants, however, is the fact that the card goes beyond having flexible credit requirements to simply having none — you won’t even need to undergo a credit check to qualify.

Of course, you will need to put down a fully-refundable security deposit, with a minimum required deposit of $200. Since your deposit size equals the size of your credit limit, you may want to consider putting down a larger deposit to unlock a larger credit limit. The maximum deposit (and, thus, credit limit) for the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card is $3,000.

5. OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card

APPLY HERE »

• Limited Time Offer: $51 funding voucher applied for all new accounts. Get a $200 credit line for $149. Click “Apply Now” to see additional terms and conditions.
• No credit check to apply. Zero credit risk to apply!
• Looking to build or rebuild your credit? 2/3 of cardholders receive a 48+ point improvement after making 3 on-time payments
• Extend your $200 credit line by getting considered for an unsecured credit line increase after 6 months - no additional deposit required!
• Get free monthly access to your FICO score in our mobile application
• Build your credit history across 3 major credit reporting agencies: Experian, Equifax, and Transunion
• Add to your mobile wallet and make purchases using Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Google Pay
• Fund your card with a low $200 refundable security deposit to get a $200 credit line
• Apply in less than 5 minutes with our mobile first application
• Choose the due date that fits your schedule with flexible payment dates
• Fund your security deposit over 60 days with the option to make partial payments
• Join over 1.2 million cardholders who’ve used OpenSky to build their credit

• See official application, terms, and details.

★★★★★

4.5

Overall Rating

Application Length	Interest Rate	Reports Monthly	Reputation Score
9 minutes	25.64% (variable)	Yes	7.0/10

The OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card reports to all three major credit bureaus. The online application can be completed online and usually gives a decision in minutes.

Although the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card won’t charge any application or processing fees, it does have an annual fee that will be charged when you open your account. You’ll also be charged fees for cash advances, foreign transactions, late payments, and returned payments.

When we’re stuck with pesky neighbors who won’t return what they borrow, we have three real options: stop lending to them, start charging them fees for it, or simply require some sort of collateral to ensure your property’s return.

Similarly, credit card issuers dealing with potentially unreliable consumers — i.e., those with poor or limited credit histories — have the same three options. While many issuers choose the first option (to stop lending to these consumers), plenty of issuers choose the latter two, either charging high fees through unsecured subprime cards, or by requiring a deposit for a secured credit card.

Despite requiring an initial deposit, however, secured credit cards are often the most economical option, because those deposits are 100% refundable unless you default on your debt. You’ll also often pay lower annual fees, have access to better rewards, or receive a lower APR than available to those with costlier unsecured cards.