Last updated on March 8th, 2023
Rebuilding a bad credit score is tricky enough without the potential damage of a hard pull on your credit report. Fortunately, there are plenty of excellent secured credit cards that feature no hard pull on your credit report. These cards are known as “soft pull” credit cards. Here are some of the best soft pull credit cards of 2021.
What Does “Soft Pull” Mean?
First, a refresher into what type of credit cards we are covering here. A “soft pull” is a type of credit inquiry where a bank or card issuer pulls basic information from an applicant’s credit report without needing a deep dive. Soft pulls, also known as “soft inquiries” or a “soft credit check”, can occur without an applicant’s authorization (which isn’t required) and do not include a full look into a person’s credit reports. This, in turn, will not affect your credit score.
Soft credit pulls happen for several reasons, including:
- Checking your credit score via an online app, like Credit Karma
- Credit card issuers checking for pre-approval offers
- Employment checks when beginning a new job
Hard Pulls vs. Soft Pulls
- The bank must get your consent first
- Can impact your credit score
- Lenders can see your entire available credit history
- No prior consent needed
- No credit score impact
- Lenders can see basic information, such as late payments or credit utilization
Because a hard inquiry allows a lender to view your full credit report, these types of pulls lower your credit score in the short term. Hard inquiries will drop your credit score down for several months and remain on your credit report for 24 months (two years).
The total number of hard inquiries on your credit report is one of the factors lenders consider when reviewing applications for new credit. Too many inquiries may indicate you are under financial strain and need more credit to manage your existing debts. This indication, in turn, can lead to a greater chance of applications being rejected.
What are the Benefits of a Soft Pull Credit Card?
Because a soft pull has no impact on your credit score, it is preferable to hard inquiries when applying for credit. Those with low credit scores can especially benefit from credit cards that only require a soft pull, since it may give them better chances of receiving new credit.
Getting a soft pull credit card allows those with sub-prime (or deep sub-prime) credit to gain access to new credit, improve their payment history, and decrease their credit utilization – all without the short-term impact of a credit check.
The Best Soft Pull Credit Cards of 2021
Here are our top soft credit pull / inquiry credit cards for 2021:
Surge Platinum Secured Mastercard®
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Earn 1% Cash back Rewards on every purchase
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Monthly reporting to the three major credit bureaus
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Zero Fraud Liability
☆ Fast Online Application
☆ Your Deposit Is Your Credit Line
☆ Build Credit & Earn Rewards
☆ Free access to your VantageScore
The Surge Mastercard is a popular soft pull credit card offers available. Clicking the Apply Now button takes you to Surge’s secure pre-qualification page, where you can see if you qualify for the card, with no effect on your credit score.
The Surge Platinum Mastercard is a versatile credit card that can be an ideal pre-qualification option for people who need to repair or continue building their credit due to less-than-perfect credit or poor credit. Surge offers automatic account reviews free of charge – which may result in a credit limit increase after displaying financial responsibility and appropriate use.
Other noteworthy features of the Surge Card include:
- Monthly reporting to the major credit bureaus.
- Free access to your Vantage 3.0 score from Experian (when signing up for e-statements).
- Ability to use the card wherever Mastercard is accepted.
- Zero Fraud Liability protection.
Self Visa® Credit Card
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Start with a Self Credit Builder account
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Monthly reporting to the three major credit bureaus
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$35 annual fee
☆ A Savings Plan That Builds Credit!
☆ No Credit Check Required
☆ Build Credit with Responsible Use
☆ Start with a Deposit as Low as $100
The Self Visa® Credit Card is an attractive soft pull card option in that it actually helps you build your credit score twice as fast as other cards on the market. How? Well, the Self Visa requires a Self Credit Builder Account to get started.
Self’s Credit Builder Account is a unique loan product where individuals with no credit history or poor credit open a loan account to “pay off” the loan into a certificate of deposit (CD) account. Once that balance reaches $100, Self customers can choose to use those funds towards the security deposit with a Self Visa Card.
The Self Visa, like many excellent secured cards, reports to the major credit bureaus every month. This regular reporting to Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion allows users to quickly raise their credit score through a series of on-time payments. Even better, since the cardholder already has a Seldf Credit Builder Account, they are having their timely payments reported twice – building their credit at double speed!
OpenSky® Secured Visa®
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Build credit with on-time payments
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Reports to the three leading credit bureaus
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Zero Fraud Liability
☆ Fast Online Application
☆ Credit Limits Between $200 and $3,000
☆ Access to OpenSky Knowledge Base
☆ 24/7 Online Account Access
There are plenty of credit cards on the market for people with bad credit or no credit. One of the more popular options, however, is the OpenSky Secured Visa. Maybe the best reason to consider adding the OpenSky Visa credit card to your wallet is that it requires no credit check. The application process with the OpenSky Secured Visa is straightforward and takes just a few minutes. Decisions are equally quick, making the entire process as painless as possible.
Part of repairing damaged credit is learning the skills to use credit properly. OpenSky is excellent in this aspect, as it provides cardholders with free access to a credit knowledge base. The OpenSky credit education hub offers a range of articles on building credit. These topics include how to receive a free copy of your credit score, how credit scores are calculated, tips on boosting credit, and other advice related to the OpenSky card.
Other reasons why OpenSky is consistently included among the best soft pull credit card lists include the relatively low minimum deposit required and regular reporting to the three major credit bureaus.
Honorable Mentions
Looking for more soft inquiry credit card options to consider? Here are two cards that just missed out on our top spots:
First Progress Platinum Elite Mastercard®
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✔ Quick and Complete Online Application
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✔ Monthly Reporting to all 3 Major Credit Bureaus to Establish Credit History
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✔ Annual fee of $29
Chime Credit Builder Visa® Secured Card
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✔ Build Credit and Enjoy High APY Savings
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✔ Reports to the three leading credit bureaus
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✔ No minimum deposit requirements
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✔ No hidden fees or annual fee
First Progress Platinum Prestige Mastercard®
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✔ Quick and Complete Online Application
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✔ Monthly Reporting to all 3 Major Credit Bureaus to Establish Credit History
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✔ Annual fee of $49
First Progress Platinum Select Mastercard®
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✔ Quick and Complete Online Application
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✔ Monthly Reporting to all 3 Major Credit Bureaus to Establish Credit History
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✔ Annual fee of $39
Featured photo by Avelino Calvar Martinez/ Burst
