If you already pay for Netflix, Spotify, or Hulu, what if those payments could build your credit? That's the idea behind Grow Credit. The app gives you a small line of credit you can only use to pay for approved subscription services — and reports those payments to credit bureaus as positive credit activity.
Here's an honest review of how it works and whether it's worth signing up.
Current Build Card
Current Build Card
$0 annual fee, 0% APR. No minimum deposit required. No credit check required. 1 point per dollar on dining and groceries. Reports to Experian, TransUnion, Equifax.
Fee
$0
APR
0%
Minimum Deposit Amount
$0
Credit Check
No
Cashback
1 point/dollar on dining & groceries (with qualifying payroll deposit)
Benefit
No credit check, no deposit minimum, no APR
How Grow Credit Works
Grow Credit issues you a virtual Mastercard with a small credit limit (usually $17–$150/month depending on your plan). You connect that card to your subscription accounts — Netflix, Spotify, Hulu, Apple Music, and dozens of others.
Every month, your subscription charges hit the Grow Credit card. Then Grow Credit pulls the matching amount from your linked bank account to pay off the balance. Those payments get reported to Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion as on-time credit activity.
No new bills. No deposit. Just credit-building from spending you were already doing.
Plans and Costs
Grow Credit offers four plans:
- Free (Build): $17/month limit, basic credit reporting, completely free
- Build Starter: $1.99/month, for those who don't meet underwriting for the free plan
- Build Plan: $3.99/month, $17 limit on core subscriptions
- Grow Plan: $6.99/month, $50 limit with premium subscriptions (Verizon, AT&T, Coursera)
- Accelerate Plan: $12.99/month, $150 limit toward premium subscriptions
The free Build plan is enough for most people who just want to build credit. The paid plans only make sense if you have many subscriptions or want a higher limit.
Credit Bureau Reporting
Grow Credit reports to all three major bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. That's important. Some credit-builder products only report to one or two, leaving gaps in your credit profile.
Reports go out monthly. So if you sign up in January and start paying subscriptions, your first credit report update typically appears in February or March.
What's Good About Grow Credit
Easy to qualify. No credit check. No deposit. You just need a U.S. bank account with a positive balance.
Free plan is functional. You don't need to pay to get the credit-building benefit.
Adds revolving credit. A revolving account improves your credit mix, which is 10% of your FICO score.
Hands-off. Once set up, payments and reporting happen automatically.
What Could Be Better
Limited utility. You can't use the card for anything except approved subscriptions.
Small credit limit. Even the top plan caps at $150. The credit-building impact is real but modest.
Paid plans aren't great value. $12.99/month is a lot to pay just to bump your limit. A secured credit card often gives more flexibility for less.
Who It's Best For
- People with no credit history who want a passive way to start building
- Subscribers who already pay for several services and want their payments to count
- Anyone who's nervous about a traditional credit card
Who Should Skip It
- People who don't subscribe to enough services to use the credit limit
- Anyone who wants to build credit faster (a higher-limit secured card builds credit more visibly)
- People who already have several active credit accounts — the marginal benefit is small
How It Compares to Other Credit Builders
Unlike a credit-builder loan (Self, Credit Strong), Grow Credit doesn't require monthly payments out of your pocket beyond what you already spend. Unlike a secured credit card, there's no deposit required.
The trade-off is a smaller credit limit and limited usability. For a hands-off starter strategy, it's a solid choice. If you want more powerful credit-building tools, Kikoff offers a $750 line of credit for just $5/month, and Kovo Inc provides another alternative worth considering.
The Bottom Line
Grow Credit is a low-effort way to start building credit using subscription payments you're already making. The free plan is good enough for most people. It won't replace a real credit card or credit-builder loan if you want fast results, but it pairs well with them.
Learn more about other ways to build credit with Firstcard.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How does Grow Credit work to build credit? A: Grow Credit gives you a virtual card with a small limit ($17–$150). You use it to pay for subscriptions like Netflix and Spotify. Grow Credit reports those payments to all three credit bureaus as on-time activity, which builds your credit score over time.
Q: What's the difference between Grow Credit's free and paid plans? A: The free Build plan has a $17/month limit and is completely free. Paid plans (Build, Grow, Accelerate) cost $1.99–$12.99/month and offer higher limits ($17–$150). For most people building credit, the free plan is sufficient.
Q: Which subscriptions count toward Grow Credit? A: Core subscriptions include Netflix, Spotify, Hulu, Apple Music, and Pandora. Premium subscriptions (available on paid plans) include Verizon Wireless, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Coursera. Check Grow's app for the full list of approved services.
Q: Which credit bureaus does Grow Credit report to? A: Grow Credit reports to all three major bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. This is important because reporting to all three bureaus builds your credit file more quickly.
Q: What are alternatives to Grow Credit? A: Alternatives include Self (credit-builder loan), Chime (cash advances), secured credit cards (Capital One, Discover), and traditional credit cards if you qualify. Secured cards often build credit faster and offer more flexibility than Grow Credit.
