Posted by: John S Kiernan

EDITOR’S RATING 3.1 / 5 PROS

• No Annual Fee
• Available to People with Limited Credit
• $30 Referral Bonuses

CONS

• High Regular APR
• No Rewards

The Verdict: The Deserve® Classic Mastercard is a starter credit card designed for people with limited or no credit history. Deserve Classic will help you build credit if you pay your bill on time every month, but it doesn’t bring much else to the table, save for the opportunity to earn refer-a-friend bonuses. You get $30 for every person you refer who is approved for an account. And if 10 referrals are approved, you get an extra $200, for $500 total. That’s it, though.

You won’t earn points, miles or cash back with each purchase you make. Instead, you’ll be the one doing the paying. If you don’t pay your bill in full every month, you’ll have to pay interest at a pretty high rate: 25.24% (V).

If you get approved for the Deserve Classic Credit Card, your spending limit could be as high as $1,500. But Deserve doesn’t disclose the minimum amount your credit limit could be. And while they advertise the ability to upgrade to Deserve Edu or Deserve Pro with “good behavior,” they don’t detail what that means.

So at the end of the day, the Deserve Classic Mastercard isn’t a bad way to get your credit career started. But as long as there are no annual fee credit cards available to people with no prior credit experience, it won’t be the best way to go, either. Below, you can learn more about this card’s strengths and weaknesses as well as see how it compares to some of the most popular starter cards on the market.

The Highlights

• Can Help You Build Credit: Establishing a track record as a responsible borrower will set you up for significant savings down the road, on everything from credit cards and loans to car insurance premiums. And the Deserve Classic Card can help you do just that. It’s available to people with no credit history, for starters. And Deserve reports account information to the major credit bureaus on a monthly basis. As long as that info reflects on-time payments, your credit will improve. Spending less than 30% of your credit line each month will help, too.

  The Deserve Classic Card won’t help you rebuild damaged credit, however. You’re unlikely to qualify if you have bad credit.

• Offers Referral Bonuses: You get $30 per person you refer who gets approved for an account, plus a $200 bonus for 10 referrals. The question is whether you would recommend the card to a friend.

The Lowlights

• Not the Cheapest Option: Deserve Classic’s 25.24% (V) regular APR doesn’t compare favorably to the average credit card’s 20% rate, either. So you should only use it for everyday purchases that you can pay for in full by the due date each month.
• Won’t Reward You for Purchases: Rewards should only be a tiebreaker in your credit card search, with your likelihood of approval and fees being your top priorities. But the fact that Deserve Classic doesn’t offer cash back, points or miles for each dollar you spend certainly doesn’t work in its favor.

Other Things to Consider

• Credit Limit as High as $1,500: Your credit limit depends on your credit history, income and debt. People with limited credit typically don’t receive limits above $300 or so. As a result, you shouldn’t expect anything close to Deserve Classic’s maximum advertised limit. If you wind up getting more spending power, it will be a happy surprise.

Compared to the Competition

Even people with limited credit experience are deserving of a good credit card. So we compared the Deserve Classic Card to some of the most popular starter credit cards on the market to help you make the best choice.

	SponsoredDeserve® Classic Mastercard	SponsoredCapital One® Platinum Credit Card	SponsoredCapital One® QuicksilverOne® Cash Rewards Credit Card	SponsoredCapital One® Secured Mastercard®
Annual Fee	$0	$0	$39	$0
Rewards Bonus	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Rewards Rate	N/A	N/A	1.5% Cash Back	N/A
Purchase Intro APR	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered
Transfer Intro APR	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered	Not Offered
Regular APR	25.24% (V)	26.96% (V)	26.96% (V)	26.99% (V)
Editors’ Rating	3.1 / 5	5.0 / 5	4.7 / 5	5.0 / 5
Details, Rates & Fees	Learn MoreRates & Fees	Learn More	Learn More	Learn More
Winners	Capital One® Platinum Credit Card

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