How Long Does It Take to Build Credit With a Secured Credit Card?

Achieving the score you want may take a year or more, but it all depends on which secured credit card you choose and how well you manage it. Check out our article, What Is a Secured Credit Card?, to know more about secured cards in general.

How Long Does It Take to Build Credit With a Secured Credit Card? 

Generally speaking, it will take at least 3 months for you to see a moderate increase to your credit score, and 6-12 months to see a substantial increase to your score, but only if you properly manage your secured credit card account. 

More specifically, if you have a thin credit profile, it is common to see a credit score increase of 25 points within 3 months. Increases of 50-150 points can happen within 6-12 months, if you manage your credit cards properly. 

The exact time it will take for your score to increase to the level you are looking for depends on a number of factors. This includes the current state of your credit as well as the terms on your credit card. 

The first thing to consider is how you are managing this secured credit card. If you are making on-time monthly payments and keeping your reporting balance low, then you should see a credit score increase sooner rather than later. 

If on the other hand, you make even one 30-day late payment or carry a large balance on the card, then not only will it take longer for you to see a credit score increase, these actions could actually further damage your score. 

For those that are starting with no credit, it is likely you will see substantial credit score gains right away. But these gains will begin tapering off unless you take additional actions towards building your credit like increasing your available credit and achieving a good credit mix. 

For those who already have fair or better credit, the gains you’ll see from a secured credit card may be slow in coming. In fact, opening a new account will likely decrease your score, at least temporarily. 

For those who have bad credit because of negative remarks (i.e. missed payments), it also might take a while for you to see improvement. This is because payment history is the largest chunk of your credit score calculation and negative remarks affect your credit for years. 

The actual credit card itself can also have an impact on how quickly your score will rise. If the secured card doesn’t report to all 3 bureaus for instance, then not all of your credit scores will increase. 

And sometimes it can take two or three months for the new account to be reported to the credit bureaus, which will, unfortunately, delay your credit score growth. You can also check out our article on apps if you’d like to check out some apps for building credit, The Best Credit Building Apps.

It is also important to keep in mind that a secured credit card can only help you build your credit if you are properly managing it as well as the other accounts and credit lines that appear on your credit reports. But that it is possible for it to build your credit, see here to find out just how much: How Much Will a Secured Credit Card Raise My Score?

What If You Have Bad Credit?

A secured credit card can be a great tool in building credit for those who have bad credit. 

Before opening one, however, you should determine how much one could potentially help you or maybe consider other alternatives. 

What is the biggest problem with your credit, or put another way, why do you have bad credit?

If it is because of missed payments, then you can improve your credit score with a secured card, it will just take a little time. 

If the credit mix portion of your score is low because you don’t have enough revolving accounts reporting, then opening a secured credit card will boost your credit score sooner. 

But, if your score is bad because your credit utilization is too high, then opening a secured card may only provide a small increase to your score if you don’t also work on paying down your other debts.

How to Use a Secured Card to Build Credit

Properly managed, secured credit cards can be a great way to build your credit. They are usually easier to get than unsecured credit cards, meaning that you can qualify even if you have a bad credit history or no credit at all. 

And the security deposit necessary for opening a secured credit card and the often low initial credit limit can help hold you accountable for your spending as well as making on-time payments.

But how exactly does a secured credit card help you to build credit?

While this, in part, depends on the current content of your credit profile, below are 5 methods you can use for building credit with a secured credit card. 

1. Get 3 Secured Credit Cards and 1 Credit Builder Loan

The ideal mix of credit is three revolving accounts plus one installment loan. If you have a bad credit history or no credit at all, you can start on this path towards a good credit mix by applying for secured credit cards and a credit builder loan. 

These credit-building products often have lower credit score approval thresholds, and sometimes offer approval without the need for a credit check (hard inquiry). 

And despite the fact that these two credit products are secured, they don’t