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Establishing credit is a good idea for most people. It can help for future large ticket purchases like cars and a house. It can also go along way to support even things like a future career move since many companies check your credit when applying for a job.

It can be a mistake to assume even young adults have "good" credit because they have not had credit on their own. A lack of credit doesn't always help them as it can mean they are actually not a good credit risk for most lenders. This is a big reason to secure that first credit card and establish a good solid credit history. Below we explore ten of the best starter credit card options to jump start good credit.

Quick Navigation
How We Reviewed The Best Starter Credit Cards
Overall Price Range Of This Product
What We Reviewed
Capital One® Secured Mastercard®
Capital One® Platinum Credit Card
Discover it® Student Cash Back
Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card
Discover it® Secured
Green Dot primor® Visa® Gold Secured Credit Card
OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card
First Progress Platinum Prestige MasterCard® Secured Credit Card
USAA® Secured Card American Express® Card
First Progress Platinum Elite MasterCard® Secured Credit Card
The Verdict

Product FAQ’s

What is a Credit Card?

A credit card is a small plastic card issued by a bank or other company that allows the cardholder to make purchases on credit. Each card is unique and tied the account holder.

What Does it Do?

Credit cards contain electronic information about the account they link to that can be accessed each time it is swiped through a credit card machine or put into a cash machine.

How Does it Work?

To get a credit card, the customer agrees to a certain set of parameters like the interest rate for the loan, payment structure, and credit limit. When the customer presents the card for merchandise, they sign for the sale. This also means they agree to the payback terms of the card.

Where Can You Get Credit Cards?

You can apply for credit cards at a bank, at many department stores and even directly through credit card companies.

Price Range

It usually measures the "price" of credit cards in the interest rate each card comes with. They start as low as zero percent for an introductory time period. There are also sometimes annual fees tied to credit cards.

How We Reviewed The Best Starter Credit Cards

We reviewed the list of the best starter credit cards on the following parameters: Features, Pros & Cons, Price (including fees), Where to Apply and Credit Reporting. There was also special mention of unique features like no credit check or a low deposit for a secured card. All these factors combine in the card program's overall ranking.

Overall Price Range Of This Product

Annual fees from these cards ranged from zero to $49. There was also a big range of deposits required or not. Some cards required zero deposit but came with a large interest rate to counter-balance. The interest charged ranged from 9.99 to 24.75%.

What We Reviewed

  • Capital One® Secured Mastercard®

  • Capital One® Platinum Credit Card

  • Discover it® Student Cash Back

  • Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card

  • Discover it® Secured
  • Green Dot Primor® Visa® Gold Secured Credit Card

  • OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card

  • First Progress Platinum Prestige MasterCard® Secured Credit Card

  • USAA® Secured Card American Express® Card

  • First Progress Platinum Elite MasterCard® Secured Credit Card
  • Capital One® Secured Mastercard®

    Flickr, Mighty Travels

    Features

    There is no annual fee for this card. It is secured by a deposit. They set the initial credit limit at $200 with customers needing to make either a $49, $99 or $200 initial deposit. This is a good card for those with no credit or bad credit they are looking to rebuild. While the limit is low, with the first five payments being made on time, there is a bump of $200 more.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      No annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      Fast increase of credit
    •     after the first five 
    •     months
    • angle-double-right
      May not need a full 
    •     $200 line of credit

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Variable up to 24.99% interest rate
    • angle-double-right
      Some customers 
    •     require $200 deposit

    Price

    • No annual fee, up to 24.99% interest

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    Capital One® Platinum Credit Card

    https://www.capitalone.com/credit-cards/platinum/

    Features

    This card is not secured, which means there is no deposit required. You need to have at least minimal credit and nothing bad on your credit report. There is also no annual fee for this card. Having a card without a deposit is a major bonus for those looking for the best starter credit card.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      No deposit required
    • angle-double-right
      No annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      Credit limit increase 
    •     after five months of 
    •     on-time payments

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Requires at least 
    •     some credit
    • angle-double-right
      Variable up to 24.99% interest
    • angle-double-right
      No cash back rewards

    Price

    • No annual fee, up to 24.99% interest

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    Discover it® Student Cash Back

    https://www.discover.com/

    Features

    There is no annual fee for this card, and it comes with 0% interest for the first six months. After that, the rate can run from 14.74 to 23.74%. This is a student only card that requires minimal credit and no deposit. You can also earn 5% cash back on certain types of purchase it matches that for the first year. They even give students a small reward for good grades.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      No annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      No deposit
    • angle-double-right
      5% cash back on 
    •    certain types of 
    •    purchases that is 
    •    matched dollar to 
    •    dollar for the first year

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Must be a college 
    •     student to qualify
    • angle-double-right
      Zero percent interest 
    •     for the first six 
    •     months and then 
    •     jumps up to between 
    •     14.74 and 23.74%
    • angle-double-right
      Cash back rewards 
    •     are difficult to 
    •     understand

    Price​

    • No annual fee, first six months no interest, after that between 14.74 and 24.99% interest

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    Capital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card

    https://www.capitalone.com

    Features

    This card comes with a $39 annual fee and a simple 1.5% cash back on all purchases. There is no need to sign up for rotating categories for the reward. No deposit required but customers have to have at least some credit to apply.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      1.5% cash back on all purchases
    • angle-double-right
      No deposits required
    • angle-double-right
      Does not use a 
    •     complicated reward 
    •     system

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      $39 annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      Interest rate up to 
    •     24.99% interest
    • angle-double-right
      No offers for new 
    •     cards like zero interest

    Price

    • $39 annual fee, up to 24.99% interest

    Where to Apply?

     Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    Discover it® Secured

    mybanktracker.com

    Features

    This card comes with a deposit requirement that starts at $200. Interest rate goes up to 24.74% with no annual fee. This fall into the category of being one of the best starter credit cards because even though they require a deposit, they also offer a rewards program. They give 1-2% cash back,

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      No annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      1-2% cash back 
    •     reward
    • angle-double-right
      Takes applicants with 
    •     bad or no credit

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Deposit starts at $200 
    • angle-double-right
      Interest rate goes up 
    •     to 24.74%
    • angle-double-right
      Rewards do not off 
    •     set deposit

    Price

    • No annual fee, minimum $200 deposit, up to 24.99% interest

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    Green Dot primor® Visa® Gold Secured Credit Card

    https://www.creditkarma.com

    Features

    There is an annual fee of $49 for this card. There is also a minimum deposit of $200 to get the line of credit. They fix the interest rate at 9.99%. This is one of the best starter credit card offers because that will work with anyone regardless of bad credit or a lack of credit.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      Fixed interest rate of 
    •     9.99%
    • angle-double-right
      Will work with bad 
    •     credit or a lack of 
    •     credit
    • angle-double-right
      Can get a line of 
    •     credit up to $5000

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Minimum deposit 
    •     of $200
    • angle-double-right
      Annual fee of $49
    • angle-double-right
      Takes longer than 
    •     some other cards 
    •     to get an increase 
    •     in the credit line

    Price

    • $49 annual fee, fixed 9.99% interest

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card

    www.openskycc.com

    Features

    This is the go-to card for anyone trying to move beyond really bad credit and get a fresh start. They secure this card so there is a minimum deposit of $200. There is no credit check though. The annual fee is $35 and the interest rate is at the mid-range.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      No credit check
    • angle-double-right
      Best started credit 
    •     card for a fresh start
    • angle-double-right
      Interest rate hits right 
    •     at the mid-range 
    •     for this card

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      $35 annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      Minimum deposit 
    •     of $200

    Price

    • $35 annual fee, mid-range interest rate

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    First Progress Platinum Prestige MasterCard® Secured Credit Card

    https://www.creditkarma.com/

    Features

    This card comes with a hefty annual fee right at $49. It is also 100% secured with a starting deposit of at least $200. An odd side note about this card is that they don't allow users to freely deposit more money to increase your credit limit. Most secured cards allow users to do this.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      Easy to get credit
    • angle-double-right
      They return the 
    •     deposit if they do 
    •     not extend credit
    • angle-double-right
      One of the best 
    •     starter credit cards 
    •     for young adults 
    •     since they can not 
    •     increase the credit 
    •     limit

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Not available in 
    •     New York, Wisconsin, 
    •     Iowa or Arkansas
    • angle-double-right
      $49 annual fee
    • angle-double-right
      100% secured credit 
    •     limit

    Price

    • $49 annual fee, fixed 9.99% interest rate

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    USAA® Secured Card American Express® Card

    https://www.usaa.com/

    Features

    Fully secured card with a starting deposit of at least $250. There is an annual fee of $35. They put the deposit into an interest-earning CD to secure account. The interest rate varies from 11.65 to 24.75%

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      Low interest rate
    • angle-double-right
      Customer can choose 
    •     the credit limit and 
    •     increase with further 
    •     deposits
    • angle-double-right
      They place the deposit in interest-earning CD

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      Only available for 
    •     those who qualify 
    •     to be USAA members
    • angle-double-right
      $250 minimum 
    •     deposit
    • angle-double-right
      $35 annual fee

    Price

    • $35 annual fee, $250 deposit, interest between 11.65 and 24.75%

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    First Progress Platinum Elite MasterCard® Secured Credit Card

    https://www.creditcards.com/

    Features

    This is another one of the best starter credit card programs for those needing a clean start. They can work with bad credit or a lack of credit. There is a minimum of $200 deposit to secure the account. The annual fee is $49, which is among the highest on this list.

    Pros

    • angle-double-right
      Can work with bad 
    •     or lack of credit
    • angle-double-right
      $200 minimum 
    •     deposit is lower 
    •     than some
    • angle-double-right
      Available in all 50
    •     states

    Cons

    • angle-double-right
      $49 annual fee is 
    •     steep for market
    • angle-double-right
      100% secured credit 
    •     line
    • angle-double-right
      Slow process to raise 
    •     the credit limit

    Price

    • $49 annual fee, interest rate up to 24.99%

    Where to Apply?

    Application link

    Credit Reporting

    • Reports to all three major credit bureaus

    The Verdict

    For someone just starting out to find the best-started credit card program, finding cards with the lowest start-up costs is often a key part of the hunt. There are two cards on this list that offer the perfect combination of no annual fee and no deposit. They are the Capital One® Platinum Credit Card and the
    Discover it® Student Cash Back card. Because these cards offer the best of both worlds, they may not be as easy to get as some other listed cards. The Discover card is only for current students.

    Secured cards are often a good choice for those who are trying to get credit for the first time or looking to start over. Many of the listed cards require a full deposit, meaning for a $250 credit limit the customer would need to deposit $250. This is not the case with the Capital One® Secured Mastercard®. Some applicants can access up to a $200 credit limit with only a $49 deposit.

    Even with a deposit most of the listed cards require a credit check. This is not the case with the OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card. They require no credit check but require a full deposit of at least $200. The fact that they also have an annual fee of $35 and the interest rate is the mid-range offsets the benefit of not needing a credit check.

    All the listed cards report directly to the three major credit bureaus. This is important as they report on-time payments and any increase in credit limits.

    .

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