Applied Bank Gold Secured Credit Card Review

The Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Gold Credit Card has one of the lowest interest rates among secured credit cards. The annual fee is very reasonable as well. However, there is no grace period at all.

Fees, Rates and Other Information - When we review secured cards, the first thing we look at are the fees and rates. The great thing about this card is that the APR is really low at 9.99%. While the rate is very low, the problem is that there is no grace period at all. That means you will always be charged an interest even if you pay your bills fully every month because the interest starts accruing after your purchases! But what about the annual fee? Well, it is very reasonable as well at $50.

Like all secured cards, you need to deposit an amount (anyway between $200 and $5,000) with Applied Bank. Your deposit will be FDIC insured. Your credit limit will be amount of deposit you have with Applied Bank.

Your payments will also be reported to the credit bureaus.

There are really two segments in the secured card market. The first segment is targeted strictly at those with no credit, and those with bad credit or have just been discharged from bankruptcy will never be approved. These type of cards are typically issued by mainstream banks. The second of cards are like those issued by Applied Bank, whereby even those with bad credit can be approved. Therefore, any comparison that we make will be with the type of cards that belong to the second group.

Applied Bank vs Orchard - Orchard Bank is perhaps the biggest player in this space. The way their application process works is unique and different from other banks because depending on their assessment of your credit, you could either be approved for an secured or unsecured card. There secured cards comes with a lower annual fee at $35 (first year waived) and a lower interest rate at 7.90%. Hence, from a cost perspective, the Orchard Bank comes out slightly ahead.

Applied Bank vs First Progress - First Progress has a secured card that competes with this one. It has a slightly lower annual fee at $39, but a higher interest rate at 14.99%. First Progress beat this card in terms of annual fee, but has a higher rate. But once again, the problem with Applied Bank is that it has no grace period. Hence, I think despite the slightly higher rate, First Progress is the better card.

Applied Bank vs First Premier The First Premier Secured Credit Card, like this card, has a $50 annual fee. But the APR is at 19.90%. Once again, the problem of no grace period comes back to haunt Applied Bank. Depending on how much you charge on the card each month and whether you carry a balance or not, it is unclear which card comes out ahead despite the difference in APR.

After looking the features of its main competitors, I would say that the Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Gold Credit Card has a serious issue about having no grace period. That means that despite having a very low rate, you will still end up having interest charges even if you do not carry a balance. If I were looking for a secured card, I would consider the Orchard Bank MasterCard and First Progress over this card. They do have a A plus rating from BBB, but that is not going to sway my opinion.