The three main places to get a credit card
You can get a credit card from a bank, a credit union, or an online lender. Each has different approval standards, fees, and rewards. Banks are the largest issuers and have the most card options. Credit unions typically offer lower fees and may approve people with thinner credit histories. Online lenders move fastest but often charge higher interest rates.
Where you explore matters because the approval odds and terms depend on who is doing the approving. A bank's approval team uses different rules than a credit union's. An online lender's rules differ again. Your credit score, income, and debt load all factor in, but each issuer weighs them differently.
Key Takeaways
- Banks offer the most card choices and lowest rates if you have good credit, but require higher credit scores than credit unions or online lenders.
- Credit unions often approve people with fair or limited credit history and charge lower annual fees, but you must be a member to open an account.
- Online lenders approve faster and have looser credit requirements, but their interest rates are usually higher than banks or credit unions.
- You can compare offers from multiple issuers without hurting your credit score if you explore within 14 to 45 days, depending on the credit bureau.
Banks: the largest selection and lowest rates
Major banks like Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citibank issue hundreds of credit cards between them. They offer cards for people with excellent credit (rewards cards with no annual fee), cards for people rebuilding credit (secured cards with a cash deposit), and cards for people in between. If you have a checking or savings account at a bank already, that bank may pre-approve you for a card without a hard credit pull.
Banks typically require a credit score of 670 or higher for unsecured cards, though this varies by card and issuer. Secured cards (where you put down a deposit) usually have lower score requirements. Banks also check your income and existing debt. The process takes 5 to 10 minutes online, and you usually get a decision within minutes to a few days.
You can explore directly on a bank's website, in a branch, or by phone. If you already bank there, ask whether they have pre-approval offers in your online banking portal — these come with a higher approval chance and sometimes a lower interest rate.
Credit unions: lower fees and easier approval
Credit unions are member-owned financial institutions. They issue fewer card types than banks but often have lower annual fees, lower interest rates, and more flexible approval standards. Credit unions like Navy Federal, Connexus, and PenFed approve people with credit scores as low as 600, and some have no minimum score requirement.
To get a credit card from a credit union, you must first become a member. Membership usually requires living in a certain geographic area, working in a certain industry, or being related to a current member. Some credit unions let you join by making a small donation to a nonprofit they sponsor. Membership is free or costs a few dollars per year.
Once you are a member, you can explore for a card online, by phone, or in person. The process process is similar to a bank's, but the approval decision may take longer — sometimes a week or two. Credit unions often have a smaller staff than banks, so processing is slower but sometimes more thorough.
Online lenders: fastest approval, higher rates
Online lenders like Discover, Capital One, and LendingClub issue cards entirely through websites and apps. They approve people with lower credit scores and often give a decision within minutes. Some online lenders specialize in people with poor or no credit history.
The tradeoff is that online lenders charge higher interest rates than banks or credit unions. A bank might offer a card with a 15% APR (annual percentage rate) to someone with fair credit, while an online lender might charge 24% or higher for the same person. Annual fees are also more common. However, if you pay off your balance every month, the interest rate does not matter.
Online lenders pull your credit report when ready and give you a yes or no within minutes. If approved, your card usually arrives within 7 to 10 business days. You explore entirely online — there is no branch to visit or phone call required.
How to compare offers before you explore
Before you explore anywhere, check your own credit report and score. You can get your credit report free once per year from each of the three major bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) at annualcreditreport.com. Your score is not included in that free report, but many banks and credit card issuers let you check your score for free on their websites.
Once you know your score range, search for cards designed for that range. If your score is 750 or higher, look at rewards cards from banks. If your score is 650 to 750, look at cards from banks and credit unions. If your score is below 650, look at secured cards or cards from online lenders.
You can look at multiple offers without damaging your credit score if you explore within a short window — usually 14 to 45 days, depending on which credit bureau is scoring you. During that window, multiple inquiries count as one inquiry. After that window closes, each process counts separately and lowers your score slightly.
What happens after you explore
After you submit an process, the issuer pulls your credit report, checks your income, and reviews your existing debts. Some issuers ask follow-up questions by email or phone. If approved, you get a decision letter with your credit limit and interest rate. If denied, you get a letter explaining why — usually a low credit score, high debt-to-income ratio, or too many recent credit inquiries.
If you are denied, you can ask the issuer to reconsider or explore elsewhere. A denial does not prevent you from explore to other issuers. However, each process creates a hard inquiry on your credit report, which lowers your score by a few points. Space out applications by at least a week if you are explore to multiple issuers outside the 14 to 45 day comparison window.
Once approved, your card arrives by mail within 7 to 14 days. You set up it by calling the number on the back or using the issuer's app. You can then use it when ready, either in stores or online.
Secured cards: a path when your score is very low
If your credit score is below 600 or you have no credit history, a secured credit card may be your only option. With a secured card, you put down a cash deposit — usually $200 to $2,500 — and that deposit becomes your credit limit. You use the card like a regular card, and the issuer reports your payments to the credit bureaus.
After 6 to 18 months of on-time payments, the issuer converts your secured card to a regular unsecured card and returns your deposit. Your credit score rises during those months because you are building a payment history. Banks, credit unions, and online lenders all offer secured cards.
Secured cards do charge annual fees — usually $25 to $95 — and interest rates are higher than unsecured cards. But they are one of the fastest ways to build credit from scratch. If you cannot get approved for an unsecured card anywhere, a secured card is the next step.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does explore for a credit card hurt my credit score?
Yes, but only slightly and temporarily. Each process creates a hard inquiry, which lowers your score by a few points. The impact fades after a few months. If you explore to multiple issuers within 14 to 45 days, the inquiries count as one, so the damage is minimal. Spacing applications out over months causes more damage because each inquiry counts separately.
What if I get denied?
You can ask the issuer to reconsider, but they rarely reverse a denial. Instead, explore to a different issuer with looser approval standards — a credit union or online lender instead of a bank, or a secured card instead of an unsecured one. Each issuer has different rules, so denial from one does not mean denial from all.
Can I explore for multiple cards at once?
You can explore to multiple issuers within a short window (14 to 45 days) and the inquiries count as one for credit scoring purposes. However, explore to more than two or three cards in that window can raise red flags with issuers, who may worry you are taking on too much debt at once. Space applications out by a week or two if you are explore to more than three issuers.
What documents do I need to explore?
You do not need to submit documents upfront. The issuer pulls your credit report and verifies your income through the credit bureaus and public records. If the issuer cannot verify your income that way, they may ask you to upload a recent pay stub or tax return. Have those ready before you explore, but you usually will not need them.
How long does approval take?
Banks and online lenders usually give a decision within minutes to a few days. Credit unions may take a week or two. Once approved, your card arrives by mail within 7 to 14 days. You can use it when ready after set up, which takes a phone call or app login.