How to Get Approved for a Credit Card With Bad Credit

1. Know where you stand

FICO scores run from 300 to 850. Here's how the ranges break down:

Get your reports free from all three bureaus every week at AnnualCreditReport.com. The FTC warns that other sites may charge or be fraudulent. Look for accounts you don't recognize, wrong late payments or old debts that should have aged off, and dispute errors with the bureau.

2. Prequalify with a soft pull

Prequalification typically uses a soft inquiry, which doesn't affect your scores. Among cards for rebuilding, Capital One, Mission Lane, Credit One and Milestone offer it. Mission Lane's shows your exact card, fee and APR before you apply.

The formal application is a hard inquiry. For most people that costs fewer than 5 points and counts in FICO scores for 12 months. Unlike mortgage or auto loan shopping, credit card applications aren't grouped together, so each one counts separately.

3. Start with a secured or no-check card

If your score is in the poor range, a secured card is usually the most reliable approval. Options include:

• Capital One Platinum Secured: $49, $99 or $200 deposit for a $200 line, $0 annual fee.
• OpenSky Plus Secured: no credit check, $300 minimum deposit, $0 annual fee.
• Chime Credit Builder: no credit check, no minimum deposit, requires a Chime Checking Account.
• Self Visa: no hard credit check; open a Self Credit Builder Account or pay a $100 deposit.

A secured card from a bank where you already have a checking account can be worth trying too, since the bank already knows your history with it. Skip Discover it Secured for now; it's closed to new applicants.

Compare them in best secured cards. Card terms change, so check the issuer's site before you apply.

4. Improve your odds before you apply

• Bring past-due accounts current if you can. Payment history is the largest part of a FICO score, at 35%.
• Lower your balances. Amounts owed are 30% of a FICO score.
• List all income you can legally report on the application.
• Consider other building tools such as becoming an authorized user or a credit-builder loan.

5. Apply once, then wait

Choose one card and apply. If you're approved, give it time before applying for another. If you're denied, read any explanation the issuer sends and use it to decide your next step instead of applying elsewhere the same day.

Common reasons include recent late payments, high balances, too many recent inquiries or a report too thin to score. Each one points to a different fix: catching up on payments, paying balances down, waiting for inquiries to age (they affect FICO scores for 12 months), or adding a first account through a no-check card.

If no bank approves you, no-credit-check cards remain open. Unsecured fee-based cards are another route, but read how to choose a card for bad credit first so you understand the cost.

6. Use the card to build toward better offers

1. Put one small recurring bill on the card.
2. Set up autopay for at least the minimum, and pay the full statement yourself.
3. Keep the balance low compared with your limit. On a $200 line, even a $60 balance uses 30% of it.
4. Watch for upgrade reviews. Capital One considers line increases in as little as six months; Citi starts reviews at 9 months.

Once your scores improve, you may qualify for mainstream cards. See best cards for bad credit for now, and credit scores for balance transfer cards if you're carrying debt you want to move later.

Frequently Asked Questions