July 8, 2021
With this catalog of cards, you’ll get an instant response to your credit or prepaid card application within 60 seconds. Although issuers strive to give an approval immediately, it may take more time in certain circumstances to determine if your application is approved, denied or additional verification is needed.
The cards here not only provide a quick approval process, you can find low APRs on purchases and balance transfers, credit-building features and other useful benefits. While they shouldn’t be confused with instant use credit cards, these top options won’t make you wait and wonder about approval before they’re in the mail and en route for you to use.
Our team of credit card experts has gathered the best instant approval credit cards based on features, rates and overall value. After independent research and consideration of key factors, our editors have identified top offers from our partners.
With this catalog of cards, you’ll get an instant response to your credit or prepaid card application within 60 seconds. Although issuers strive to give an approval immediately, it may take more time in certain circumstances to determine if your application is approved, denied or additional verification is needed.
The cards here not only provide a quick approval process, you can find low APRs on purchases and balance transfers, credit-building features and other useful benefits. While they shouldn’t be confused with instant use credit cards, these top options won’t make you wait and wonder about approval before they’re in the mail and en route for you to use.
Our team of credit card experts has gathered the best instant approval credit cards based on features, rates and overall value. After independent research and consideration of key factors, our editors have identified top offers from our partners.
No Credit History
No Credit History
Editorial disclosure: All reviews are prepared by CreditCards.com staff. Opinions expressed therein are solely those of the reviewer and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including card rates and fees, presented in the review is accurate as of the date of the review. Check the data at the top of this page and the bank's website for the most current information.
All information about the Green Dot primor® Visa® Gold Secured Credit Card and the UNITY® Visa Secured Credit Card has been collected independently by CreditCards.com. The issuer did not provide the content, nor is it responsible for its accuracy
In some cases, you may get preapproved for a card, sometimes by mail. But there are a few things to know about these offers, and they may not be what you think. Here, we look at:
Whatever your reason for applying for a credit card, we’ll answer your most pressing questions.
| Card | Our Favorite Feature | Annual Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Self — Credit Builder Account | Improving credit | One-time $9 – $15 account fee (varies by product) |
| OpenSky® Secured Visa® Credit Card | No credit check needed | $35 |
| Green Dot primor® Visa® Gold Secured Credit Card | High credit lines | $49 |
| UNITY® Visa Secured Credit Card | No minimum credit score required | $39 |
Why we picked it: You’ll know almost instantaneously whether you’re approved for this account and you won’t face a hard pull on your credit. And for its best credit-boosting perk, this account will report your habits to all 3 credit bureaus – just know it’s a little different than a traditional credit card.
Pros: Through this unique account, Self will set you up with a small loan that’ll be saved in a CD for 12 or 24 months, and at the end of the account term your CD savings will unlock. Similar to a savings account, but with the ability to build credit, you pay a minimum of $25 a month toward the CD each month. By the end of the account term, healthy habits and on-time payments should make strong contributions to growing your credit score.
Cons: This account doesn’t feature any ways to earn on your spending or bonus rewards. Also, there is a one-time account fee of up to $15.
Who should apply? Those looking for easy approval who want to focus on establishing a credit score with a set routine are a great match for this account.
Who should skip? Anyone looking for a rewards card should look elsewhere. And if you’re a credit beginner who would prefer to learn with the experience of actually swiping the card, consider Self’s option with the Self – Credit Builder Account + Secured Visa® Credit Card or any other secured card.
Read our Self – Credit Builder Account review.
Why we picked it: On top of instant approval, there’s no credit check with this card – significantly increasing your chance at being approved.
Pros: The initial refundable deposit you make to secure the card (starting at $200) will serve as your credit limit, putting you in some control. It also comes with basic Visa benefits, such as $0 fraud liability.
Cons: This card comes with an annual fee of $35 per year and doesn’t provide a way to earn rewards.
Who should apply? If your credit is an obstacle to getting approved for a card, this secured option can be a great stepping stone to a high-end card. The simple approval process and lack of credit check makes it extremely accessible.
Who should skip? If you’re on the hunt for earning rewards… this isn’t the card for you. Also, credit newcomers who don’t have the ability to secure a card with a deposit should look to other credit cards for bad credit.
Read our OpenSky Secured Visa Credit Card review.
Why we picked it: This card not only features instant approval and a low APR coming in at only 9.99% (fixed), you’ll also have the ability to have a credit line as high as $5,000. A high credit line allows for financial freedom and will improve your credit score through helping your utilization.
Pros: There’s no credit check when applying for this card, making it an easy and accessible application process. And thanks to it being a Visa card, this option comes with travel accident insurance, extended warranties and a travel and emergency hotline.
Cons: This card restricts you when it comes to getting started; you can’t set up your account with a deposit from an ACH bank transfer (a common practice). You’ll have to set up online with a debit card, mail in check or money order. Also, this card comes with a $49 annual fee.
Who should apply? Credit card newcomers looking for a way to grow their score with a high credit line would benefit from this card. Also, if you know you’re going to be forced to carry an occasional balance, this card’s low APR makes it a great choice.
Who should skip? If you’re looking for an easy card to get started with, this may be difficult due to the limitations around the initial deposit. Also, this is a bad choice for anyone looking for rewards cards.
Why we picked it: There is no requirement when it comes to credit score and applying for this card. You’ll have to get started with a minimum deposit of $250, but being approved instantly can ease the process.
Pros: This card has an unusual feature for its type of a six month balance transfer rate of 9.95% APR, although you’ll need to consider if it’s better to put the refundable deposit toward the amount already owed. This card also comes with the credit-building feature of reporting your monthly habits to the 3 credit bureaus, an awesome perk for improving your score.
Cons: The UNITY Visa Secured has a relatively high APR for a card of its type (17.99%, fixed) and comes with a $39 annual fee.
Who should apply? If you’re looking for a card to simultaneously grow your credit with proper habits while having the opportunity to consolidate outstanding credit card debt, this card could be your safe haven.
Who should skip? If you think there’s any chance you won’t be able to manage your outstanding balance, there are better cards out there.
With an instant approval credit card, you can learn within minutes whether you are accepted as a card member.
A preliminary credit check is run, and the better your credit score, the more likely you will be granted the card.
Then, you are granted conditional approval, once the lender gets your score and approves your file, and a more thorough check of your file is conducted. Heads up that instant approval isn’t a guarantee that you will be accepted.
As tempting as an instant approval offer might be, it’s important to shop around. Look at the fees and the features – you don’t want to choose the first card you find.
No, however, you can increase the likelihood of acceptance by checking your credit score and the score the card requires before applying. Also, you can use a tool like our CardMatch™ tool to assess which cards you could be a good fit for before you apply.
Prequalification is when you provide information to a lender and they conduct a “soft pull” or a credit check that doesn’t affect your score. The advantage is that you have an idea of whether your application will be accepted before you formally apply (even if you are pre-qualified for a card this is still not a guarantee that you will be approved when you apply). When you formally apply, a “hard pull” is conducted, meaning your score is slightly affected. It’s a necessary process for a formal application.
1. You initiate the application.
2. Your credit isn’t impacted unless you formally apply.
3. This is not a firm offer – the lender may decide not to grant you the line of credit once your application is formally reviewed.
Preapproval means a lender has looked at your data and decided to extend a conditional offer to you. To be accepted, you have to formally apply.
1. The lender initiates preapproval.
2. This doesn’t affect your credit score unless you formally apply.
3. This is a firm offer of credit unless there is a dramatic difference in your credit or if your income can’t be verified.
Once you apply, you could be offered another offer, or you could even be rejected. If you don’t want the card, be sure to shred the preapproval because there can be personal information printed on it, such as your name and address.
Want to opt out of prequalifying offers? Call (888) 567-8688 or visit optoutprescreen.com.
While preapprovals and prequalifications of cards don’t affect your credit score until you formally apply, when you do apply, your score is impacted by about 5 points. That’s why it’s important to know your score ahead of time and only apply when you have a high likelihood of acceptance.
When you apply for a credit card, you are required to fill out an application that’s typically a page long that includes personal information including name, address and Social Security number as well as income, income source and monthly housing payments.
When you hit the apply button, one of several things can happen. You can be approved within minutes, it can go into “pending,” or you can be rejected. If you don’t want to wait the week to find out the answer when it goes into pending, you can call customer service and have the agent gather more details to make a decision then and there. Otherwise, you’ll get an answer in the mail, and possibly your card.
If you are rejected for a credit card, the card issuer must give you the reason why. Other than a credit score that is too low, the reasons can be:
Although there are a number of reasons why you might be rejected, the biggest factor is your credit score. The better your score, the more likely you will be accepted. Below is looking at FICO scores on a scale of 300 to 850, with 850 as the best, and an estimated likelihood that you’d be approved:
CFPB survey 2019
Card issuers vary in what they check when you apply for a credit card. In addition to what you provide, they will check your credit. Be prepared when applying, you’ll have to provide a plethora of basic information such as your name, phone, date of birth, address, and income, as well as some deeper-level details such as your liquid assets, Social Security number, mother’s maiden name, citizenship status and more.
Want to apply, but not sure if you should? A credit card can be a tool to unlock additional financial freedom, access to a convenient way to pay and a multitude of savings opportunities. If you have low credit and are hesitant, growing your credit score with a credit card can be one of the best ways to get established. Whether you have excellent credit or poor credit, there are bountiful reasons why a credit card can be a valuable addition to your wallet.
While you might think that a credit card can hurt your credit, particularly if you are uncertain about paying on time, cards are actually an excellent way to build credit.
Pro Tip: Worried about paying on time? Use the Gmail Snooze tool to remind you.
If you have an upcoming medical charge or other large expense, a 0% intro APR card is a good way to pay without interest.
Pro Tip: Plan ahead and choose a card with rewards that you can use down the road.
Say you have a sizeable balance on an older card. Rather than paying interest each month, you can transfer the debt to a balance transfer card and pay less interest or avoid it altogether.
Pro Tip: Plan to keep and use the card after the debt is paid off, because the available credit indirectly benefits your credit score.
With the right rewards card, you can earn cash back, miles or points for your everyday spending.
Pro Tip: Look at the possibility of using multiple rewards cards for your spending.
Hotel and airline cards offer many travel-specific benefits, including upgrades and conveniences, such as priority boarding and late check-out.
Pro Tip: Map out which airports you tend to fly out of and into to decide the best cards for your wallet.
Instant approval credit cards can tell you whether your application is conditionally approved or denied within minutes of submitting your application. Instant use credit cards provide your credit card number digitally upon approval so that you can immediately begin using your card. This way, you don’t need to wait for your card to arrive in the mail to start making purchases. Keep in mind, however, that you may need to wait a few days to hear whether you’re approved or denied for an instant use card.
Application processing times can vary between situations, so it’s tricky to say which credit card is the quickest to obtain. Your best bet for gaining access to credit quickly is either an instant approval or instant use card. In any case, you’ll probably have to wait a few days to be approved or for your card to arrive in the mail.
While it’s gratifying to receive instant approval in the short term, you’ll want to make sure that the other card features check your boxes as well. Features like the annual fee, interest rate and rewards rate can affect you financially.
CreditCards.com is an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. The offers that appear on this site are from companies from which CreditCards.com receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear within listing categories. Other factors, such as our own proprietary website rules and the likelihood of applicants' credit approval also impact how and where products appear on this site. CreditCards.com does not include the entire universe of available financial or credit offers.
CCDC has partnerships with issuers including, but not limited to, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi and Discover.
We’re sorry, but something went wrong and we couldn’t find your approval odds. Instead, you’ll see recommended credit ranges from the issuers listed next to cards on our site to help you determine which cards you’re likely to be approved for.
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