Self Visa Credit Card
Written by Kenji NiwaThe Self Visa Credit Card is a secured card. You put down at least $100, and that deposit becomes your credit limit. If you do not have $100 yet, you can save it up with monthly payments in a Self Credit Builder Account, then use that savings as your deposit.
On Self Financial's site
31,334 Firstcard clicks in the last 12 months
On Self Financial's site
- Minimum deposit
- $100
- Fees
- $0 first year, then $25
- APR
- 27.74% variable
- Credit check
- None
- Reports to
- All 3 bureaus
- Unsecured upgrade
- Reviews from 6 mo
The details
- Minimum deposit
- $100 min
- Annual fee
- $0 first year, then $25
- APR
- 27.74% variable
- Credit check
- None
- Reports to
- Equifax, Experian and TransUnion
- Unsecured upgrade
- After 6 months, Self may add unsecured credit above your deposit, with a soft inquiry. Self also offers the unsecured Self Plus card
- Credit limit
- Equals your deposit, starting at $100
- Late fee
- Up to $15
- Deposit
- Paid up front
- Deposit refund
- Returned when you close the account and pay off the balance
- Eligibility
- Short on cash? Save the $100 deposit through a Self Credit Builder Account
- Bank account required
- No
Facts come from the issuer's own terms, checked October 28, 2026. Confirm them on the issuer's site before you apply.
Pros & cons
Pros
- No credit inquiry to apply, so applying will not ding your score.
- Short on cash? Save up the $100 deposit through a Self Credit Builder Account.
- Self reports your payments to all three credit bureaus.
Cons
- The 27.74% APR gets expensive if you carry a balance.
- The first year is free. After that, the annual fee is $25.
- Late or returned payments cost up to $15 each.
Compare Self Visa Credit Card to other secured cards
- Min. deposit
- $100
- Fees
- $0 first year, then $25
- APR
- 27.74% variable
- Min. deposit
- Varies
- Fees
- $0
- APR
- None
- Min. deposit
- $200
- Fees
- $35
- APR
- 23.89% variable
- Min. deposit
- —
- Fees
- N/A. No longer offered
- APR
- —
After this card, similar cards from the same list are picked automatically: cards from Firstcard partners first, then the rest, each group by Firstcard editors' rating. That order may reflect partner compensation, as how we rate explains. It never changes a rating. The full list shows them all. Clicks are Firstcard members sent to each card in the last 12 months, with suspected bot traffic excluded.
A warning from Firstcard
- Low limit, so watch your credit use. On a $100 limit, a $30 purchase already uses 30% of your line, and high credit use can lower your score. Pay right after you buy, before your statement closes.
How credit use affects your score: myFICO on amounts owed.
Kenji is the Founder and CEO of Firstcard. He built and sold iTank, Japan's largest internship platform, and has made about 40 angel investments, including Substack. He started Firstcard at UC Berkeley Haas after he was rejected for his first U.S. credit card. Full profile and latest articles →
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How we rate. Our editors' rating for a secured card weighs four things. What does it cost in the first year, with every fee and the APR? What limit do you actually get? What do you need to qualify? And how does it help you build credit? Ratings run 1 to 5 in tenths and compare products only within their own category, so a 4.5-star cash advance app is not “better” than a 4.0-star credit builder: they do different jobs. Treat the rating as one input, not the decision. See how we rate financial products.
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Terms change, so check before you apply. These terms come from the providers, not from us, so we cannot guarantee they are current or complete, and anything a member reports describes their own account rather than the offer you will be given. Always confirm the fees and terms on the provider's own site before you apply. If you spot something wrong here, email support@firstcard.app and we will fix it.
