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Rewards, sign-up bonuses, balance transfers, fees, protections, and card reviews. Pick the right card and collect more from it than it costs you.
Choose the Unlimited Cash Rewards Secured over the BankAmericard® Secured Credit Card from Bank of America unless you’ll take over a year to pay off what you charge. Both take a $200 to $5,000 deposit and charge no annual fee, and on balances you clear within a year, the Unlimited’s 1.5% cash back beats the BankAmericard’s 1.5-point lower interest rate.
Get the Kroger Rewards Mastercard® if you buy Kroger fuel or order Kroger groceries online. You earn 4 points per dollar at the pump and up to 5 on those orders, each worth a penny off groceries. In stores, a card paying 3% at supermarkets, plus Kroger’s loyalty point, beats this card’s 3 points.
Get the Bilt Obsidian Card if you rent and spend $400 a month or more on dining or on groceries, the category you’d pick for its 3 points per dollar. The no-fee Bilt Blue pays 1 point per dollar there, and at 1 cent a point the difference covers the $95 annual fee. Rent earns the same on both.
Get the Navy Federal More Rewards American Express® Card if you’re a Navy Federal member whose spending goes mostly to restaurants, groceries, and gas. It pays 3 points per dollar on all three, worth 3% in cash, and has no annual fee. Carry a Visa or Mastercard too, for merchants that don’t take American Express.
Get the opensky® Secured Visa® Credit Card if no major issuer will approve you. It skips the credit check and asks a refundable deposit of at least $200, plus $35 a year. If you can put down $300, open the no-fee opensky Plus instead, which also skips the credit check.
Open the Citi® Secured Mastercard® if you want a no-annual-fee card to build credit and can spare a refundable deposit of $200 or more. It earns no rewards, and neither does the card it can upgrade you to, so pick a secured card that pays cash back if rewards matter to you.
Open the Discover it Secured Cash Back if you’re building or rebuilding credit and can spare a refundable deposit of up to $200. It has no annual fee, pays 5% on up to $1,500 a quarter in spending categories you activate, and matches your first-year cash back. Skip it if you qualify for a card with no deposit.
Get the GO REWARDS® Credit Card only if you’re a Navy Federal member who wants a no-fee Visa or Mastercard for eating out, since it pays 3 points per dollar at restaurants and 2 on gas. If American Express works for you, Navy Federal’s no-fee More Rewards card also pays 3 points at supermarkets and on gas.
Get the USAA Preferred Cash Rewards Credit Card if you’re a member who wants one no-fee card paying 1.5% on everything, with no categories or caps. If a quarter of your spending goes to everyday categories like groceries, dining, and gas, compare USAA’s Eagle Adapt first. Outside USAA, a no-fee 2% card pays more on U.S. purchases.
Get the PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card if gas or EV charging is one of your biggest expenses and you’re willing to join PenFed. It pays 5 points per dollar on gas at the pump and on EV charging, with no cap or annual fee, but its points go to gift cards and travel, not cash.
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