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Merrick Bank Secured Credit Card
Consumer Reviews, Credit Score and Income Needed, Credit Limits

Picture of Merrick Bank Secured Visa®
11 Reviews
Consumer Rating:
star ratingstar ratingstar ratinghalf star ratingno star rating

Apply Here apply here 3.8
Lowest:
485
Average Score:
551
Highest:
605
Card Details
Card Details

Annual Fee: $36 for 1st year, then $3 a month thereafter (still $36 a year in total)
APR: 22.7%*Variable
Deposit Amount: $200-$3,000
Pros and Cons
Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Allows you to increase deposits in $50 increments

Cons


  • Charges annual fee when many others do not
  • No reward program
  • Does not graduate to unsecured

Our Take
Our Take

The Merrick Bank Secured Visa Card is a decent secured credit card with a reasonable annual fee. Consumers have reported that they do allow you to increase your deposits in $50 increments. However, there are many better cards out there (see our list of secured credit cards. For example, most of the mainstream banks have no annual fee cards. Examples include Capital One secured and Discover it secured card. If you are looking for a card that does not check credit and is almost a guaranteed approval, then Opensky is the card to look at.

So while this is a decent card, you should research other secured credit cards first before pulling the trigger.

All
5 Star
9%
4 Star
63%
3 Star
27%
2 Star
0%
1 Star
0%
1 Star 2 Star 3 Star 4 Star 5 Star
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Credit Score: 555 Credit Limit: 800 Age: 35-44
Posted 08/23 2017
Overall Rating: star ratingstar ratingstar ratingno star ratingno star rating
I got the Merrick Bank secured credit card to rebuild my credit. I deposited $800. After 15 months of paying on time and using way below my credit limit, they increase it to $1500 (yay). But there are a couple of things that you should be aware of. Firstly, they report as secured. Secondly, you cannot graduate. When I called the rep, they said you needed an invitation for their unsecured credit card. I have just canceled my card and waiting for the refund of my $800 deposit since I have already gotten 3 unsecured cards with decent limits. This card has served it's purpose.
 
Credit Score: 538 Credit Limit: 200 Age: 25-34
Posted 07/12 2017
Overall Rating: star ratingstar ratingstar ratingno star ratingno star rating
I have this card for 14 months. It has helped improve my credit score. But in my opinion, it is clearly not the best secured credit card out there. There are better ones like Opensky and even Cap One. You have to be aware of the following

1. They report as secured.
2. you cannot pay with a debit card (which opensky allows you). For those of you with no checking account, forget about this card.
3. I called CSR and you definitely do not graduate. Not a big deal for some and maybe a big deal for others.

It is a decent card. But nothing special.
 
Credit Score: 560 Credit Limit: 300 Age: 25-34
Posted 08/19 2016
Overall Rating: star ratingstar ratingstar ratingno star ratingno star rating
I have Cap One, Merrick and Opensky secured cards so I can do some comparison. Of the lot, I think Cap One is the best. I only had to put down $99 to get a $200 CL with Cap One. Opensky was good because there was no hard pull and I ended up funding the card with my debit card (which this card does not allow). Having said that, after one year, both cap one and merrick gave me credit line increases without any need for more deposits from me. I am hopeful that Cap One will graduate me but after calling Merrick, reps seems positively sure that I cannot be graduated and that I need to receive a mail offer from Merrick for one of their unsecured credit cards.