If you've already built good credit, you can probably score a card with higher rewards than this card offers. While there are no universal dividing lines between credit score bands, you can generally think of "fair credit" aka "average credit" as having credit scores in the range of 630 to 689. Both can make it easy and convenient to make purchases in stores or online, with one key difference. The annual fee is. Do not sell or share my personal information, Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, every day, No rotating categories or limits to how much you can earn, and cash back doesn't expire for the life of the account. That's important to keep in mind as you work to build a positive credit history, especially if you carry a balance. Best unsecured cards for short credit histories. With fair credit, you wont be eligible for the highest-end credit cards but good cards are still available at this level. Store credit cards can offer deferred interest to people with fair credit. It also earns up to 10% cash back when you use the card to make purchases with select merchants. This may influence which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. Read our review. Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. There is a fine line between fair credit and good credit. It can help you build credit since payments are reported to all three major credit bureaus: TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. Free credit score: As you work to push your scores into the good-to-excellent range, its important that youre able to track how youre doing. The card issuer reports details about your account to the major. The annual fee is $0. Its free, activate with the mobile app. Experian, Equifax and TransUnion are the three major bureaus that compile the credit reports that inform your credit scores. Platinum Credit Card from Capital One -annual-fee option with an incentive for responsible behavior. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Cards For Fair Credit With Instant Approval and No Annual Fee. Our partners compensate us. Who Should Get It:Consider applying for the Capital One SavorOne Student Cash Rewards Credit Card if youre a college student with limited to fair credit whose spending habits match up well with the cards rewards. If you do make a late payment, the card doesn't impose a penalty APR. Capital One Platinum Credit Card. Discover will automatically match all the cash back youve earned at the end of your first year! The issuer's prequalification process lets you see the offer you're eligible for which could be up to 1.5% cash back before you actually apply. The average person with fair credit is 47 years old and has an annual income of $54,000 per year. These cards have annual fees as low as $0 and report monthly to the 3 major credit bureaus. Upgrade Credit Card is probably your best option overall because of its high cash back rate and no fees. Rewards: Rewards arent necessarily a must for credit cards for fair credit, but they are within reach at this range. Credit cards 101: Understanding the basics, How a credit card helps you improve fair credit, to good or excellent credit when you use them responsibly. But you need at least good credit for all the other offers, including Discover it Miles and Discover it Cash Back, two of the most popular options. Generally speaking, a FICO score that's considered "fair" will fall between . is a great option for people who aren't sure whether their credit is good enough to qualify for a rewards card. - Business Insider - Fact Check and Transparency Report (United States) . For example, Discover will consider other factors, such as how your income compares to your debt, along with your employment status, whether you own or rent your home, how many loans and lines of credit you already have open, and more. But you can achieve that effect with a collection of cards that each excel in a particular area. You don't have to be a student to apply for the Journey Student Rewards from Capital One, making it a good option for someone with average credit. Who Should Get It:Apply for the OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card if youre rebuilding from credit damage and want high approval odds. The annual fee is $0. Issued by Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC pursuant to a license by Mastercard International. Conversely, a higher score that one issuer still sees as fair credit might qualify as good credit to a different issuer. You'll earn bonus cash back at restaurants and gas stations with no activation required and no rotating categories to keep track of. Read our review. The ongoing APR is 29.74% Variable APR, which is steep if you plan on carrying a balance. We also leverage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to develop cardholder profiles, used to estimate cards potential savings. The annual fee is. When you apply for new credit, it's not uncommon to see your scores dip, at least temporarily. See if you qualify in minutes without hurting your credit score. Theres also no annual fee and no foreign transaction fee. Alternatives to Consider:The Capital One Platinum Credit Card and the Petal 2 Visa Credit Card are both great options to consider. So its a great way to save money as you build credit, which should be your top priority until you have a good credit score. As of this writing, the card is unavailable to residents of Iowa, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Washington, D.C. 1. Just answer a few questions and we'll narrow the search for you. If you've already built good credit, you can probably score a card with higher rewards than this card offers. As a result, the card offers a potentially generous credit limit that ranges between $300 and $5,000, depending on eligibility. If you feel you have a case, you can contact the issuer and ask for reconsideration. Minimum interest charge: no less than $1.00 (ME residents no more than $0.50). In this case, we have chosen five of the best credit cards for fair credit so that you will be able to choose the correct card for your personal finances. When you pay in full, you don't get. You can be automatically considered for a higher credit limit in as little as six months. WalletHub actively maintains a database of 1,500+ credit card offers, from which we select the best credit cards for fair credit for different applicants as well as derive market-wide takeaways and trends. The annual fee is $0. The only way to know exactly what you'll get is to go through prequalification. Recent credit applications. N/A. The OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card is another great option for people with little to no credit history. a standout for students searching for their first credit card. Interest rates on credit cards for average credit tend to be on the high side. Journey Student Rewards from Capital One. The key difference is that this version charges an annual fee while the regular one does not. Paying in full every month also helps keep utilization in check. (The typical credit score scale runs from 300 at the low end to a maximum of 850.). You would need to spend $2,600 per year on the card to make that back (not including any 5% travel categories). All financial products, shopping products and services are presented without warranty. As you work to push your scores into the good-to-excellent range, its important that youre able to track how youre doing. Even though its promotional interest rate is . The Capital One Platinum Credit Card doesn't offer rewards, as several other cards in the fair-credit category do, but for those looking to strengthen their credit, it's a simple, solid $0-annual-fee option with an incentive for responsible behavior. You can also redeem rewards as a statement credit. Best Credit Cards for Fair or Average Credit From Our Partners Our pick for Flat-rate cash back Compare this card Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card 4.7 NerdWallet rating. Some even give rewards of 1% or more. No Credit Check. 'Review' : 'Reviews'}}, . If you still arent approved, it may be a sign you need to work on your credit scores before applying again. The Capital One Platinum Credit Cardis the best credit card for fair credit overall. If eligible, we'll create your Cash Score instead. See what terms you'd qualify for without a hard credit inquiry. Each card was scored using WalletHubs proprietary 100-point credit card rating system, and you can check out the top options in a handful of popular categories below (some cards are from WalletHub partners). Or turn $100 into $200. If you don't like the offer, walk away with no harm done. Numerous credit card applications in a short period of time can hurt your credit score, and having too many credit cards can lead to overspending, expensive interest charges, missed payments and credit score damage. Roughly 13.5% of people have fair credit, according to WalletHub data. (The card also earns 5% back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. The Discover it Student chrome shines with its no-maintenance rewards structure and student-friendly bonus categories. With the, , youll have the potential to gain access to a higher credit line. There are good credit cards designed for people with fair credit, but you're unlikely to get approved for the best credit cards until you can improve your credit. You can be automatically considered for a higher credit limit in as little as six months. With responsible use, you can be considered for a higher credit line in as little as six months. 0% intro APR on purchases for 6 months, then the standard variable purchase APR of 17.49% - 26.49% applies. A single "hard pull" can cause a temporary dip in your scores, but if you're continually applying for the wrong cards and being rejected, the damage can be much worse. One of the best low interest credit cards for fair credit is the Petal 2 Visa Credit Card because it is possible to get an interest rate of 17.49% (V), depending on your overall creditworthiness. WalletHub makes it easy to find the best credit cards for fair credit. Terms apply.) This content is not provided or commissioned by any issuer. (Unlike with Discover's other student card, you don't have to "activate" your bonus rewards.) Approval Odds are not meant to imply or guarantee that you will be approved by the lender or that credit will be extended. (The card also earns 5% back on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. 1. Read our review. You earn cash back on every purchase, but when you pay your bill on time, the cash-back rate for that month gets a boost. This ensures that your on-time payments and other responsible credit habits will be recorded. The scoring formula takes into account the type of card being reviewed (such as cash back, travel or balance transfer) and the card's rates, fees, rewards and other features. , making it a good option for someone with average credit. One the VantageScore scale developed by the credit bureaus, the average score in 2022 was 698. Therefore, you typically dont have to worry about a hard pull on your credit report. The best credit cards for fair credit can be a great tool in helping to build or rebuild your credit score. Six months is a good rule of thumb. If you're crypto-crazy, or just crypto-curious, the. If youre rejected for a credit card, the first thing to do is determine why. Opinions expressed here are the authors alone, not those of an issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by an issuer. Prosper also doesn't have other cards to upgrade to once your credit improves, so you either have to keep paying the fee or close the card. The Petal 2 Visa Credit Card is one of the best credit cards for people with fair credit, or even limited credit. The card still reports account info to the major credit bureaus each month, though, so its a pretty dependable tool for building credit. Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card. At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products. You can get the Discover it Secured Credit Card with a bad credit score (below 640). Get pre-approved in seconds with no impact to your credit score. keeps you in debt longer and could ultimately drag down your credit scores. . The annual fee is $0. Paul Soucy Feb 27, 2023. What We Dont Like:This card does not offer rewards or a low interest rate. You earn 2% cash back at restaurants and gas stations, on up to $1,000 in combined purchases per quarter, and 1% cash back on all other purchases. (If you go through with applying, then there's a hard check.) Credit scoring formulas tend to reward people who show that they can handle different kinds of credit. Capital One QuicksilverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card, Petal 1 "No Annual Fee" Visa Credit Card, Best for Cash back earned with select merchants, on Discover's website, or call 800-347-0264, Best for College students and young adults, Best for Prequalification + up to 1.5% cash back, Best for Help for 'less than perfect credit', Upgrade Bitcoin Rewards Visa Credit Card. The best credit cards for people with fair credit scores of 640-699 come with $0 annual fees, rewards of at least 1% back on purchases and monthly credit-bureau reporting, making it easy to build credit and save money. If possible, pay off your balance in full each month. The Prosper Card doesn't offer rewards, and it charges an annual fee, but the issuer goes out of its way to encourage people with "less than perfect credit" to apply. News Summary: If your credit score is in the average or fair range of 580 to 669, these credit cards are among the best and some even offer rewards and benefits.