How To Get A Credit Card When You Have Bad Credit

It’s a catch-22.  You have bad credit and need to improve your credit score.  The best way to do that is to make payments on your credit cards on time, but you can’t get any credit cards if you have bad credit… or can you?  The truth is, it is very difficult to get an unsecured credit card when you have bad credit but it is not hard to get an unsecured credit card.

What is a unsecured credit card?  Unsecured credit cards do not require a security deposit to be put down on them.  This is the most common type of card.

A secured credit card is different.  Normally, a security deposit in the same amount of the credit line is required in advance along with a service fee.  For example, a secured credit card with a credit line of $500 will require a $500 deposit to be put down along with a service fee of about $100.  The service fee varies from bank to bank.  The whole point of a secured credit card is that it allows you to built your credit score but the bank knows that if you don’t pay your bill, they can get the money back from your deposit.
If you need to build your credit but can’t get a secured credit card, unsecured cards are the way to go.  If you make your payments on time, you will be able to improve your score over time.