These are the best no credit history credit cards
You are correct. You have slim chance to get a “regular” credit card without first having a good credit history.
Your best bet is to get a secured card with Capital One or US Bank and use it sparingly for a year or so. After that, assuming that you’ve made all payment on time, your credit history should be good enough to get a regular credit card.
Secured card are easier to get because in order to get one you need to make a deposit which the bank freezes. That deposit is the bank’s collateral in case that you default. When you close the account or switch to an unsecured card – they unfreeze you deposit and return it to you.
Capital One Secured Credit Card has a minimum opening deposit of $200. That means that your credit limit will also be $200.
US Bank’s Secured Credit Card has a minimum deposit of $300. US Bank is very well known to unsecure as early as 13 months, and they have reward options for their secured cards (such as flier miles, Harley Davidson points, etc).
Another favorite is the USAA Amex Secured, BUT it doesn’t unsecure to a regular AMEX and doesn’t help “open doors” with Amex either.
On all three cards you can deposit MORE than the minimum amount, if you find that the minimum is too low for you.
Just make sure you follow these rules:
- Don’t pay before the statements arrive. Doing so will not build your credit.
- Always pay the statements before the due date. Pay them in full so that you avoid unnecessary interest payments.
- Don’t use more than 35% of the card’s limit. Using more will lower your score.
See building-credit-history.html for more information.
Good Luck