Secured Credit Cards

Secured cards for building or rebuilding credit. We name which products report to all three bureaus and which deposit caps actually matter.

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10.99% on balance transfers for 6 months

Best for

Credit-builders who want a $0 AF secured card that reports to all three bureaus, earns rotating-category cashback, AND g

Fees sourced from issuer terms · 2026-06-29

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Discover

Discover it Secured

Credit-builders who want a $0 AF secured card that reports to all three bureaus, earns rotating-category cashback, AND g

Key specs

Annual fee: $0
Intro APR: 10.99% on balance transfers for 6 months
Ongoing APR: 28.24% variable
Foreign transaction fee: None
Balance transfer fee: 3% (intro), then 5%
Late payment fee: Up to $41 (first late fee waived)

Pros

Credit-builders who want a $0 AF secured card that reports to all three bureaus, earns rotating-category cashback, AND gets Discover's year-one Cashback Match — the only secured card that does all four.

Trade-offs

International travelers (Discover acceptance abroad is spotty), readers who can't deposit the $200 minimum, and anyone planning to graduate fast (Discover's graduation timeline is slower than Capital One's ~6-month review).

The catch

The Cashback Match year-1 doubler applies to secured cards too — but you have to activate the rotating quarterly categories. If you don't, you're earning 1% on a secured card and missing the load-bearing year-1 feature.

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Reviewed by ClearValue Editorial Team · June 29, 2026

Credit-builders who want a secured card that reports to all three bureaus AND earns 1

Fees sourced from issuer terms · 2026-06-29

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Capital One

Capital One Quicksilver Secured

Credit-builders who want a secured card that reports to all three bureaus AND earns 1

Key specs

Annual fee: $0
Ongoing APR: 29.99% variable
Foreign transaction fee: None
Balance transfer fee: 3%
Late payment fee: Up to $40

Pros

Credit-builders who want a secured card that reports to all three bureaus AND earns 1.5% cashback — the only mainstream secured card that does both at $0 AF. Graduates to unsecured with on-time payments.

Trade-offs

Anyone who already has a 670+ FICO (an unsecured card will give you better rewards) and anyone who can’t deposit the $200 minimum security deposit (look at Capital One Platinum Secured or Petal 2 instead).

The catch

The 1.5% cashback feels nice, but the real value is the graduation path — Capital One reviews accounts at ~6 months and refunds the deposit when you upgrade. Treat it as a 6-12 month bridge card, not a forever card.

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Reviewed by ClearValue Editorial Team · June 29, 2026

People rebuilding credit who want to minimize the cash tied up in a deposit — qualifying applicants can open a $200 cred

Fees sourced from issuer terms · 2026-07-08

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Capital One

Capital One Platinum Secured

People rebuilding credit who want to minimize the cash tied up in a deposit — qualifying applicants can open a $200 cred

Key specs

Annual fee: $0
Ongoing APR: Approx. 29.99% variable — verify at capitalone.com
Foreign transaction fee: None

Pros

People rebuilding credit who want to minimize the cash tied up in a deposit — qualifying applicants can open a $200 credit line with as little as a $49 or $99 deposit, at a $0 annual fee, with an automatic review for an upgrade after six months of on-time payments.

Trade-offs

Anyone who wants rewards while they build (the Discover it Secured earns cash back) and applicants carrying a balance — the variable APR runs around 29.99%.

The catch

The reduced $49/$99 deposit tiers aren't guaranteed — they depend on your creditworthiness at application, and if you don't qualify the standard $200 deposit applies. It's a credit-building tool, so keep the balance at zero to avoid the high APR.

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Reviewed by ClearValue Editorial Team · July 8, 2026

Thin-file or rebuilding applicants who want to build credit over an 18-month runway with a major-bank issuer, at a $0 an

Fees sourced from issuer terms · 2026-07-08

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Citi

Citi Secured Mastercard

Thin-file or rebuilding applicants who want to build credit over an 18-month runway with a major-bank issuer, at a $0 an

Key specs

Annual fee: $0
Ongoing APR: Approx. 26% – 28% variable — verify at citi.com

Pros

Thin-file or rebuilding applicants who want to build credit over an 18-month runway with a major-bank issuer, at a $0 annual fee — with a path to a product change to an unsecured Citi card and a returned deposit at the 18-month mark.

Trade-offs

People who want automatic, faster graduation (Discover reviews at month 7, Capital One at month 6) and anyone who wants rewards — this is a pure credit-building tool with no earning.

The catch

Citi doesn't auto-graduate — you generally have to contact Citi to request the product change after 18 months. The $200 refundable deposit sets your limit, and with a variable APR in the mid-to-high 20s, carry no balance.

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Reviewed by ClearValue Editorial Team · July 8, 2026

Applicants with significant credit damage or a bankruptcy history who need a no-credit-check path back — OpenSky runs no

Fees sourced from issuer terms · 2026-07-08

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OpenSky

OpenSky Secured Visa

Applicants with significant credit damage or a bankruptcy history who need a no-credit-check path back — OpenSky runs no

Key specs

Annual fee: $35
Ongoing APR: Approx. 25.64% variable — verify at openskycc.com

Pros

Applicants with significant credit damage or a bankruptcy history who need a no-credit-check path back — OpenSky runs no credit check at all, so any applicant who can fund the refundable deposit ($200–$3,000, which sets the limit) can apply. It reports to all three bureaus monthly, and the variable APR (~25.64%) is lower than most secured cards.

Trade-offs

Anyone who can qualify for a no-annual-fee secured card like the Discover it Secured or the deposit-free Chime Card — OpenSky charges a $35 annual fee that no other card on the builder list carries.

The catch

There's no automatic graduation review — you have to actively contact the issuer after 12+ months to move up — and the $35 annual fee eats into your credit limit if you don't pay it immediately. The tradeoff you're buying is guaranteed access with no credit check. Verify the current APR at openskycc.com.

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Reviewed by ClearValue Editorial Team · July 8, 2026

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