Pros
- No annual or monthly fees & No fees for account opening
- Up to 2% cash back
- First-year rewards doubled
- Relatively low minimum deposit
Cons
- High regular APR
Discover it® Secured Credit Card
- Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, automatically. Plus earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Rewards Details
- Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, automatically. Plus earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.
Additional Info
- No credit score required to apply.
- No Annual Fee, earn cash back, and build your credit history.
- Your secured credit card requires a refundable security deposit, and your credit line will equal your deposit amount, starting at $200. Bank information must be provided when submitting your deposit.
- Automatic reviews starting at 7 months to see if we can transition you to an unsecured line of credit and return your deposit.
- Earn 2% cash back at Gas Stations and Restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter, automatically. Plus earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases.
- Discover could help you reduce exposure of your personal information online by helping you remove it from select people-search sites that could sell your data. It’s free, activate with the mobile app.
- Get an alert if we find your Social Security number on any of thousands of Dark Web sites. Activate for free.
- Terms and conditions apply.
- More Details & Reviews About Discover it® Secured Credit Card
Is the Discover it® Secured Credit Card Worth It?
It is worth placing a $200+ deposit to get the Discover it® Secured Credit Card because it has a $0 annual fee and the best rewards for people with bad credit. It also reports to the major credit bureaus, helping responsible cardholders improve their credit score.
The Discover it Secured Credit Card provides 1 - 2% cash back on purchases and matches all rewards earned during the first year after your first account anniversary. This makes it far more lucrative than most cards for bad credit.
What You Need to Do to Make the Discover it Secured Credit Card Worthwhile
To maximize the value of the Discover it Secured Credit Card, you should pay off your balance by the due date every month. This card is designed for building credit, not for financing, and if you carry a balance from month to month, the card’s 28.24% Variable APR will quickly eat into your rewards.
So, if you want to earn rewards but not pay for the benefit, and you’d rather build credit than borrow, there’s a good chance the Discover it Secured Credit Card is exactly what you’re looking for.
Discover it® Secured Credit Card Review Highlights
No Major Fees
You won’t have to worry about any annual, monthly, “processing,” or foreign-transaction fees, so score one for your wallet. But bear in mind that you’ll still get charged a late fee (waived the first time you miss your due date) and a cash-advance fee of either $10 or 5% of the amount of each advance, whichever is greater.
Generous Rewards
The number of secured credit cards that offer rewards can usually be counted on a pair of hands, and the Discover it Secured Credit Card is one of those generous digits. Not only will you earn 2% cash back on your first $1,000 in restaurant and gas-station purchases each quarter, but you’ll also earn the overall market average of 1% back everywhere else. Plus, you don’t need to earn a minimum amount to redeem your rewards.
First-Anniversary Bonus
Whatever you earn during the first year automatically gets doubled. So, if you earn $500 in cash back during the first 12 months, for example, Discover will give you an extra $500 soon after your first anniversary. Needless to say, that’s one of the card’s coolest features
Discover it® Secured Credit Card Review Lowlights
High Regular APR
The average secured credit card has a 22.86% interest rate, according to WalletHub’s latest Credit Card Landscape Report. The Discover it Secured Credit Card charges 28.24% Variable. You don’t want to carry a balance from month to month with this card — or any secured card, for that matter.
Other Things to Consider About the Discover it® Secured Credit Card
Lower Intro Rate for Balance Transfers
If you transfer a balance from an existing credit card within a specific timeframe after account opening, you’ll have six months to repay what you owe at a reduced rate of 10.99%. This intro rate is followed by an APR of 28.24% Variable.
But secured credit cards are self-funded, so why would any reasonable person shell out even a cent of interest to pay down a debt when they already have the necessary cash? Plus, there’s a 3% intro (5% after) balance transfer fee to further curb your enthusiasm about potential savings.
Relatively Low $200 Minimum Deposit
Many people are hesitant to open secured credit cards and thus begin the credit-rebuilding process, given the need to place a refundable security deposit. That’s certainly understandable when the minimum deposit is $300 to $600, as is the case with many available offers, but the Discover it Secured Credit Card’s $200 deposit isn’t nearly as big of a burden to overcome.
No Over-Limit Fee or Penalty APR
If you opt in for the ability to spend in excess of your credit limit and Discover allows such a purchase to go through, you won’t be assessed a fee for the indiscretion. Normally, there is a fee commensurate with the amount by which you overspend. Furthermore, if you miss a due date or spend more than your limit, you will not be susceptible to the penalty APR that most cards would assess at those times.
Even so, you don’t want to spend beyond your limit or miss a payment, as either would be detrimental to your credit-building efforts.
Freeze it® Feature & Free Overnight Replacement
Discover saves you a phone call if you believe your card to be lost or stolen by enabling you to suspend spending privileges with a tap of your mobile phone. That’s not the only courtesy you’ll get in such a situation, either. You’ll also enjoy a free overnight replacement if you don’t anticipate finding your missing plastic.
Most credit-card issuers will send you a free replacement if your card is ever lost or stolen. But you may have to wait up to 10 business days to receive it or pay a fee as high as $25 for expedited shipping. This aspect of the Discover it Secured Credit Card is therefore quite nice.
Monthly Reviews for Unsecured Upgrade After Seven Months
This feature speaks to a practice that most credit-card issuers engage in without defining as an account perk. Generally, issuers will begin to consider accountholders for credit-limit increases after six months or so (in the case of unsecured cards) or upgrades to an unsecured offer after about a year of responsible secured-card use.
Discover it Secured Credit Card vs. the Competition
Secured credit-card offers tend to be rather straightforward, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to choose one. In order to aid you in this endeavor, we compared the Discover it Secured Credit Card to a couple of its best competitors across six fundamental categories that figure to be important to all secured-card users
WalletHub experts are widely quoted. Contact our media team to schedule an interview.