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Card Comparison: Complete List of Pre-paid Cards on Market

In my previous post, I explained what are pre-paid cards, how they are structured, and compared 5 pre-paid credit/debit cards.  In this post, I will extend that list to include all the pre-paid cards available to the market right now.

  Card Name Features More
Vision Silver Prepaid MasterCard
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Meta Financial; Help build credit history; Instant Approval; Operate on MasterCard network $0 Activation Fee with Rebate; Online checking; Perfect card for Gov/Benefits Checks recipients; monthly fee:$3.95
READYdebit Card
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Meta Financial; Help build credit history with CreditBuilder; Instant Approval; Operate on MasterCard network $0 Activation Fee – when you load your card by direct deposit; choose Your Card Color – Blue, Black or Pink; no credit check;monthly fee: as low as $4.95
Eufora Prepaid MasterCard® with Credit Builder – Elite Level
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Bancorp Bank; Help build credit history with Credit Builder; Operate on MasterCard network Reload at Thousands of Retail Locations Nationwide with a $5000 Maximum Value; monthly fee: waived; Free Point of Sale transactions
Baby Phat Prepaid Visa® RushCard
Prepaid Debit Card issued by MTT; No hidden fees, Free optional credit building with RushPath to Credit; Instant Approval; Operate on Visa Inc. network no overdraft fees, no interest charges; no credit check;  Free direct deposit of tax refunds, anticipation loans, and paychecks; monthly fee: none
AccountNow® Prepaid VisaCard
Prepaid Credit Card issued by Meta Financial; Have credit line attached, help build credit history; Instant Approval; Operate on Visa Inc. network $0 Activation Fee – when you load your card by direct deposit;New iAdvanceSM loan option – no credit check;monthly fee:$4.95
AccountNow® Prepaid MasterCard
Prepaid Credit Card issued by Meta Financial; Have credit line attached, help build credit history; Instant Approval; Operate on MasterCard network $0 Activation Fee – when you load your card by direct deposit;New iAdvanceSM loan option – no credit check;monthly fee:$4.95
Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Credit Card
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Applied Bank; no credit line is attached. Operates on Visa Inc. network. Regular APR: 9.99% fixed;CREDIT Bureau Reporting;Minimum $200 deposit required.
Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Gold Card
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Applied Bank; no credit line is attached. Operates on Visa Inc. network. Regular APR: 9.99% fixed;CREDIT Bureau Reporting;Minimum $200 deposit required.
Millennium Advantage Pre-Paid MasterCard®
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Millennium Bank; no credit line is attached. Operates on Visa Inc. network. Application Fee: $99 Participation Fee: $71.40 ($5.95 monthly)

Important Disclaimer: the credit cards information in this post were accurate as of the date of publishing, some or all of the card programs may be discontinued, their terms may be changed after wards.

Card Comparison: Pre-paid Cards Getting More Attractive

As its name implies, pre-paid card is associated a pre-paid bank account, usually a checking account, as you swipe the card at the counter, money is withdrawn out of your pre-paid account and transfered to seller.  In this sense, pre-paid cards are actually debit cards.  However, some banks are blowing more functionalities into these debit cards by attaching credit lines to them, making them “pre-paid credit cards”, or as some industry experts call it, Hybrid cards.

These pre-paid credit cards / hybrid cards could help low income consumers manage their finances and build a credit history.  For example, Meta Financial Group Inc. of Storm Lake, Iowa, begain attaching iAdvance lines of credit last year to its prepaid debit cards, among them include AccountNow cards in the list below.  The cards can operate on MasterCard or Visa Inc. networks.

Card Name Features More
AccountNow® Prepaid VisaCard
Prepaid Credit Card issued by Meta Financial; Have credit line attached, help build credit history; Instant Approval; Operate on Visa Inc. network $0 Activation Fee – when you load your card by direct deposit;New iAdvanceSM loan option – no credit check;monthly fee:$4.95
AccountNow® Prepaid MasterCard
Prepaid Credit Card issued by Meta Financial; Have credit line attached, help build credit history; Instant Approval; Operate on MasterCard network $0 Activation Fee – when you load your card by direct deposit;New iAdvanceSM loan option – no credit check;monthly fee:$4.95
Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Credit Card
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Applied Bank; no credit line is attached. Operates on Visa Inc. network. Regular APR: 9.99% fixed;CREDIT Bureau Reporting;Minimum $200 deposit required.
Applied Bank® Secured Visa® Gold Card
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Applied Bank; no credit line is attached. Operates on Visa Inc. network. Regular APR: 9.99% fixed;CREDIT Bureau Reporting;Minimum $200 deposit required.
Millennium Advantage Pre-Paid MasterCard®
Prepaid Debit Card issued by Millennium Bank; no credit line is attached. Operates on Visa Inc. network. Application Fee: $99 Participation Fee: $71.40 ($5.95 monthly)

Important Disclaimer: the credit cards information in this post were accurate as of the date of publishing, some or all of the card programs may be discontinued, their terms may be changed after wards.

Card Comparison: Easy to Get Credit Cards that Help Build Credit History

If you have limited credit history or for some reason your credit was impaired, you need to build or re-build your credit history, because that’s the only way for you get credit especially under current tough credit crunch situations and new credit card rules (its impact).   According to this article, although there are multiple factors that make up the credit score calculation, payment to debt on time takes the most weight, so what you need is a history of paying bills on time. Here is a list of easy-to-get credit cards that do exactly that: report your payment to credit bureaus.  Some of them may not be the ideal choice, since they charge high fees and even has no grace-period, so be careful when you use these cards:

Card Name Pros Cons
New Millennium Bank Secured Platinum Visa®
Easy to get: no credit check; Build credit: reports to credit bureaus Requires deposit as collateral; No grace period; Annual Membership Fee: $59
New Millennium Bank Secured Platinum MasterCard®
Easy to get: no credit check; Build credit: reports to credit bureaus Requires deposit as collateral; No grace period; Annual Membership Fee: $59; Opening Fee: $99.95
Continental Finance Gold MasterCard®
Build credit: report to credit bureaus; No requirement of collaterals; Instant Approval; 25 days Grace Period Opening Fee: $175; Monthly Fee: $15
Continental Finance MasterCard®
Build credit: report to credit bureaus; No requirement of collaterals; Instant Approval; 25 days Grace Period Opening Fee: $200; Monthly Fee: $15
Tribute Gold MasterCard® Credit Card
Build credit: report to credit bureaus; No requirement of collaterals Annual Fee: $150 ($300 card); Monthly Fee: $9 ($300 card), $19 ($70 card)
American DreamCardTM Platinum MasterCard®
Build credit: report to credit bureaus; No requirement of collaterals; 20 days grace period None

Important Disclaimer: the credit cards information in this post were accurate as of the date of publishing, some or all of the card programs may be discontinued, their terms may be changed after wards.