1. MoneySavingExpert.com
  2. Borrowing
  3. Credit Cards
Skip to content of guide

In this guide

MSE weekly email

FREE weekly MoneySaving email

For all the latest deals, guides and loopholes simply sign up today – it's spam-free!

FAQs Privacy Past Emails Unsubscribe
FAQs Privacy Past Emails Unsubscribe
Credit cards for bad credit

Credit cards for bad credit

Compare top cards for rebuilding your credit score

Steve Brigden
Steve Brigden
Updated 27 June 2022

If you've a poor credit history, using a credit card to show you can repay on time each month can help rebuild your creditworthiness. Our guide has full info on how to best manage a credit card, plus our Credit Card Eligibility Calculator will show your chances of acceptance before applying, reducing the risk of a failed application.


Not got much credit history? If your credit history is non-existent rather than damaged, see our how to build your credit history guide.

Skip to content of guide

In this guide

MSE weekly email

FREE weekly MoneySaving email

For all the latest deals, guides and loopholes simply sign up today – it's spam-free!

FAQs Privacy Past Emails Unsubscribe
FAQs Privacy Past Emails Unsubscribe

What is a credit card for bad credit?

Every adult has a credit history, which is a record of how well you've managed credit (such as loans, store cards or credit cards) in the past. Other lenders then use this record when you apply to see if you're a good risk to lend to.

Yet if you've made a few mistakes in the past, such as paying late, or missing payments (or even past bankruptcies, defaults and CCJs) then you could appear too high a risk, meaning lenders may not accept you for further credit. 

However all is not lost as there are special credit cards that are more likely to accept you, even if you've had past problems. If you've a poor credit history, getting one of these cards could be a financial lifeline as – used correctly – it can help heal your creditworthiness by showing you (now) have the ability to repay reliably and on time.

Golden rules to rebuild credit

There are pros and cons to credit cards, but follow these golden rules and it should lead to an improvement in your credit record. You can track changes through free tools, though you'll need patience as it can take several months to see a positive change – but it's worth the perseverance. 

  • 1. Use your credit card for a small amount of everyday spending each month and NEVER withdraw cash

    Instead of using cash or a debit card for spending you'd already planned to make, start using the credit card. Ideally you should limit this to less than 30% of your credit limit (the maximum amount you can spend on the card at one time) as this shows you're not reliant on the borrowing. 

    The balance in your current account will appear to be higher, though remember you'll need this to repay the credit card at the end of the month. As you spend on the card, try moving that amount from your bank account to an instant access savings account, which you can then transfer back before your credit card bill is due.

    NEVER withdraw cash

    Don't be tempted to use a credit card at an ATM for cash. It's not only expensive (often a fee for each withdrawal plus expensive ongoing interest) but repeated cash withdrawals are a red flag to lenders - they can make you look desperate for credit - so can harm your creditworthiness.

  • 2. Repay IN FULL each month to avoid expensive interest

    Most cards don't charge interest on spending (though not cash withdrawals, which usually attract interest from day one) if you pay the money back in full and on time by the statement due date, so this is the absolute best way if you're able to. 

    Otherwise you'll be charged interest on your full balance (look out for the APR displayed for each card – the higher the number, the more expensive it will be).

    However, there's a catch to watch out for. Some card firms could give you a higher interest rate than the one it uses to advertise the card, as only 51% of people accepted need to get this advertised APR.

    So just because a card says it has a 34.9% representative APR, it doesn't mean that's the interest rate you'll get. However, use these cards right and you shouldn't be paying interest, which would mean the rate you get shouldn't matter.

  • 3. If you can't repay in full, always repay AT LEAST the minimum repayment on time

    If you can't repay in full, the minimum repayment is the lowest amount you must repay each month, on or before your statement due date. This is crucial, or you'll likely get both a £10ish late fee and a negative missed payment marker on your credit report (this will damage your chances of getting credit in future). 

    To ensure you don't miss a payment, set up a monthly direct debit to automatically pay off the minimum amount (or a higher/the full amount if you can). If you know you won't be able to pay, contact your provider immediately and work with it to agree a different repayment plan.

How to find YOUR top card to rebuild your credit history

There is no one single top-pick card that can help you rebuild credit as, used correctly, any credit card can boost your rating and for free, if it's repaid in full each month. 

  • If you've already got a credit card, use that instead of getting another.

    Prevent another credit check and follow the steps above to manage your existing credit card, which should have the same impact as a new card.

    If you've reached the limit and can't use it for further spending, always ensure you're paying at least the minimum repayment and try to pay off as much as you can, whenever you're able. See our Persistent Debt Help guide for full help including how to shift existing debt to 0% to clear it quicker and where to find free one-on-one debt help.  
  • If you need to apply for a new card, read on.

    Which card to go for will be determined by which will accept you – we've steps below to find your top card, plus help if you can't get any. Before you start, always check your credit reports for any errors as this could be incorrectly damaging your rating (and may impact which cards you can get). See Check your reports for free for full help.

Step 1: Use our Credit Card Eligibility Calculator to compare cards in your personal best-buy table

Usually, applying is the only way to know if you'll be accepted for a credit card. Yet that leaves a 'hard search' on your credit report, and too many of these in a short space of time can affect your ability to get future credit.

To help, our free tool uses a 'soft search' to find your chances of acceptance before applying – and this soft search won't affect your ability to get credit in future. Try it, or read on for a quick how-to and our top tips to find the right card.

Link to MoneySavingExpert.com's Credit Card Eligibility Calculator

Check your chance of acceptance

  • Which credit card should I go for and how do I apply?

    a) Enter your details to compare your chances of acceptance for 15+ cards

    Always answer honestly and check every detail carefully as lenders compare the information you enter to details on your credit report. If you were then to go on to apply, any mismatch could lead to an application being delayed or even declined, so always double check. And then check again!

    b) Look for the card with the highest acceptance chance

    The best bet is to generally go for the one with the highest acceptance score, as this has the lowest risk of a failed application. Look for these boxes next to the cards in your results...

    c) Eligible for more than one card? If you see a high acceptance chance for lots of cards, here's some extra things to look for:

    d) If you identify a suitable card, hit 'apply' to be taken to the card provider's site to complete an application. The card provider may ask you to enter your details again, but this time it's part of its official application, so will appear on your credit report. Therefore always double check the information you've entered is correct, before submitting.

    You'll usually receive an automated decision within a few minutes, though some applications may need longer to be reviewed. If you're accepted you'll receive the card in the post, often in a few days. If you find you've been declined, we've full help in step 3. 

Step 2: Check our top-pick cards for rebuilding credit

We've added our top-pick cards below, which includes cards that – sadly – are not in our eligibility calculator. So if you've been unable to find a card you're eligible for in our tool, or for wider choice, look out for the cards with just an apply link. For this, you can use each card's own eligibility checker when clicking through (as, like ours, these use a soft search which won't affect your creditworthiness).

Top credit-building cards for new cardholders

Virgin Money

- 12mths' 0% on spending

- 29.9% rep APR

 Check eligibility
Apply*
Capital One Classic Complete

- 6mths' 0% on spending

- 34.9% rep APR

 Check eligibility
Apply*
Amazon Classic (i)

- 3mths' 0% on spending

- £20 Amazon voucher on acceptance
- 29.9% rep APR

 Apply
Post Office

- 3mths' 0% on spending

- 29.9% rep APR

 Check eligibility
Apply*
Barclaycard Forward - 3mths' 0% on spending
- 33.9% rep APR		 Check eligibility
Apply*
Tesco Bank Foundation

- No 0% spending period

- Clubcard points on spending

- 27.5% rep APR

 Check eligibility
Apply*

We've ordered these by perks, then by representative APR (though as you should avoid ever paying interest by repaying in full each month, the rate's not crucial). See all Official APR Examples. (i) From January 2023, this card will be rebranded to a Pulse card, though your credit limit and APR would remain the same. See Amazon Classic changes for full details.

Step 3: If no credit card is likely to accept you, or you've been declined, you can wait or try a special credit-building product 

Sadly there's no such thing as guaranteed approval of credit cards. So, if you've tried the steps above and not found a card you're eligible for, it's likely your credit rating won't permit you to get any card. 

Important. If you've been declined for a card, don't keep on applying for more.  

Apply for too many cards and receive multiple rejections in a short period and you could shoot your credit rating in the foot for years. So for safety, you've now got two options:

  • Wait until your bad credit history is less recent. Then try again (see step four for how to track changes to your credit rating) and/or

  • Try the 'credit-builder' product below. It's hard to quantify how much of a positive effect using this will have in comparison to waiting a year before applying for credit. However, this option is fee-free (if you open a free account at the end, if not it's £30) and essentially gets you into a good savings habit, so could be worth a try.  

If you can't get any credit card, try Loqbox


 

Loqbox*

 

 

Build your savings pot and your credit history – if you can commit to saving between £20-£200/mth for one year.

Cost: Free or £30

1. You choose a fixed amount (£20-£200) you can save each month for a year, which is then charged to your debit card each month. 

2. Loqbox gives you a 0% loan for the total (so £240-£2,400) – you won't be able to access this loan money, but it appears on your credit report as a loan (don't worry, there's no credit check).

3. Your monthly 'savings' are then used to 'repay' the loan over the year, with payments reported to all three credit reference agencies.

4. At the end of the 12 months, you have a fully repaid loan on your credit report (and hopefully an improved score) plus you'll get all your money back. There's a £30 fee to have it paid into your existing bank account, or it's free if you open a new account with one of the banks Loqbox partners with, such as TSB and NatWest. Loqbox says most won't require a hard credit search, but be wary if you choose one that does.


Important: Never miss a monthly payment, or pay late. Doing this would leave you in a worse position than not getting Loqbox and doing nothing. If you can't afford to continue saving, you can cancel your agreement at any time and get your money back – typically in five working days.

Step 4: Monitor your credit report for free 

Hopefully one of the steps above is working for you, and you're on the way to healing your credit history. The best way to keep track of this is to regularly check your credit reports. 

There are three credit reference agencies which hold your credit reports – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion (formerly Callcredit). It's best to check all three reports, because lenders may check one, two or all three when you apply for credit.    

  • Experian – use MSE Credit Club, which offers free access to your Experian credit report and score. 
  • Equifax – use Clearscore*, which provides free Equifax scores and reports.
  • TransUnion – use Credit Karma, which gives you free access to your TransUnion report and score.

While your credit score is a good general indicator of how well you're doing, it's not the be all and end all, as it doesn't take in to account other things lenders will know about you when you apply for credit, such as your application data.

So, by all means monitor your credit score as it's a decent way to easily keep track, but don't assume that once your credit score's "excellent" that you'll get accepted for any and all credit - that's just not how it works.

See our How to check your credit report for free guide for full help and our Credit Score guide for more tips on how to improve your overall creditworthiness.   

MSE weekly email

FREE weekly MoneySaving email

For all the latest deals, guides and loopholes simply sign up today – it's spam-free!

FAQs Privacy Past Emails Unsubscribe
FAQs Privacy Past Emails Unsubscribe

Credit rebuilding cards FAQs

  • What are the easiest cards to get?

    Each credit card provider has its own criteria to determine who it will and won't accept, typically looking at factors such as your income, your credit history (how well you've managed credit in the past, such as loans or mobile phone contracts) and whether you're looking to use the card to withdraw cash.

    Therefore there's no set 'easiest cards to get' as it varies from person to person. However, the cards in this guide are designed for poorer credit scorers, so will often accept those with CCJs, defaults or past bankruptcies where other cards wouldn't. 

    We've full help on how to find your top credit card to rebuild credit above. 

  • Can you get a card with very poor credit?

    The answer to this will depend on the acceptance criteria of each credit card, though the cards in this guide are designed for poorer credit scorers, so will often accept those with CCJs, defaults or past bankruptcies where other cards wouldn't. 

    We've full help on how to find your top credit card to rebuild credit above, including our credit card eligibility calculator which shows you your changes of acceptance for many cards before applying.

  • Why have I got poor credit?

    As we say above, every adult has a credit history – which is a record of how well you've managed credit (such as loans, store cards or credit cards) in the past.

    Other lenders then use this record when you apply to see if you're a good risk to lend to. Yet if you've made a few mistakes in the past, such as paying late, or missing payments (or even past bankruptcies, defaults and CCJs) then you could appear too high a risk, meaning lenders may not accept you for further credit. 

    It's also always worth checking your credit reports for any errors as this could be incorrectly damaging your rating (and may impact which cards you can get). See 27 tips to improve your credit score for full help. 

Share this guide
MSE Forum

Have your say in our forum!

Credit cards for bad credit

Spotted out of date info/broken links? Email: brokenlink@moneysavingexpert.com

MSE tools & calculators

Clever ways to calculate your finances 

Cheap Energy Club

We ensure you're on the cheapest tariff

Tool

Loans Eligibility

See which loans you've the best chance of getting

Tool

Credit Card Eligibility

See which cards are likely to accept you

Tool

Mortgage best buys

Compares thousands of mortgages

Tool

Mortgage Calculator

Eight calcs for all your mortgage sums

Tool

Free complaints tool

Resolver – the automated complaints system

Tool
Tools and calculators

What the * means above
If a link has an * by it, that means it is an affiliated link and therefore it helps MoneySavingExpert stay free to use, as it is tracked to us. If you go through it, it can sometimes result in a payment or benefit to the site. It's worth noting this means the third party used may be named on any credit agreements.

You shouldn’t notice any difference and the link will never negatively impact the product. Plus the editorial line (the things we write) is NEVER impacted by these links. We aim to look at all available products. If it isn't possible to get an affiliate link for the top deal, it is still included in exactly the same way, just with a non-paying link. For more details, read How this site is financed.

Duplicate links of the * links above for the sake of transparency, but this version doesn't help MoneySavingExpert.com: 

Barclaycard, Capital One, Clearscore, Loqbox, Marbles, Post Office, Tesco Bank, Virgin Money

MoneySupermarket.com Financial Group Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN: 303190). The registered office address of both MoneySupermarket.com Group PLC and MoneySupermarket.com Financial Group Limited (registered in England No. 3157344) is MoneySupermarket House, St. David's Park, Ewloe, Chester, CH5 3UZ. MoneySavingExpert.com Limited is an appointed representative of MoneySupermarket.com Financial Group Limited.