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Prepaid credit cards compared: Which is best for what?

Safety online 9 May 2022
Prepaid credit cards compared: Which is best for what?
Safety online 9 May 2022

What is the best prepaid credit card? Credit cards for travel, business or building credit.

Prepaid credit cards are a great way to pay online. There are a couple of benefits to using them. They help prevent overspending and keep your budget under control. They can give you access to online payments if you can’t get a regular credit card or don’t want to. How do prepaid credit cards work? Simple, you load credit onto your card and use that to pay wherever you need to pay. No loans, so no need for a positive credit history. But what are the best prepaid credit cards around? That depends on what your priorities are and what you want to use a prepaid card for. So how do we compare prepaid cards? In the guide below we’ve looked at common uses of prepaid cards and selected the best prepaid credit cards for each section.

Best prepaid cards for travel

There are more than enough places in the world where credit cards are still the most accepted way to pay. So it’s good to have a prepaid one with you when you travel. But which prepaid card is best for travel?

1. BITSA

  • Pros – No annual costs, cheap and easy deposits. Add credit worldwide through the app or the website. Accepted everywhere Visa is.
  • Cons – Overseas withdrawal fee. Doesn’t use interbank exchange rate.

2. Revolut

  • Pros – Doesn’t charge exchange fees for the majority of currencies.
  • Cons – Startup costs and overseas withdrawal fee. Not free when you don’t use it.

3. Brinks prepaid mastercard

  • Pros – Earn rewards for your spending.
  • Cons – Has deposit, ATM and exchange fees.

Best prepaid cards for teens

Prepaid payment methods are great to give to teens. With them, they can spend money online whilst being protected from overspending. This way you can start to teach your child how to use credit cards responsibly. With this in mind, which prepaid cards work best for teens?

1. BITSA

  • Pros – Junior prepaid credit card is specifically designed for teens and adds extra protection for teens, accepted everywhere a VISA card is, card can be used both on and offline.
  • Cons – Need to create a BITSA account.

2. Transcash

  • Pros – No personal details needed for online payments, accepted everywhere MasterCard is, Offline payments possible with physical card.
  • Cons – Physical card only available in France & Italy

Best cards for business

Prepaid credit cards for business are generally used by small businesses. They can’t or don’t want to apply for a regular business credit card. These prepaid credit cards allows you to use a card for your business with fewer qualifications. They also limit the risks you run. But which credit cards work best for business?

1. Bento for Business Visa Card

  • Pros – Relatively cheap annual costs and no setup fee, both physical and virtual cards available.
  • Cons – No direct deposit and No ATM deposits.

2. Dash Prepaid Mastercard

  • Pros – No monthly or transaction fees, unlimited number of cards.
  • Cons – Relatively low card and account maximums.

3. PEX Prepaid Visa

  • Pros – No minimum required balance, no transaction limits, can be used by nonprofits.
  • Cons – Pricey monthley plans compared to other cards, no ATM access and transfer fees when transfering money from and to a bank account.

Cheapest cards

One of the best elements of prepaid credit cards is the fact that they cost less than regular credit cards. No loans means no interest after all. But that begs the question: which card is the cheapest of all?

1. BITSA

  • Pros – No startup costs, low deposit fees, physical and digital card available.
  • Cons – Costs for physical card, deposit fees.

2. Toneo First

  • Pros – Low startup costs, easy to apply, both physical and digital cards available.
  • Cons – Physical card only available in France.

3. NetSpend Prepaid Card

  • Pros – Looks most like a traditional credit card, no overdraft or activation fees and no credit checks, or minimum balances.
  • Cons – Only available in the US.

Related Products

 

Best prepaid credit cards to build credit

Is there a prepaid credit card for building credit? Not really, not if you’re looking for a reloadable card where you load money that you can use onto your card. But there are so-called secured prepaid credit cards. For these you need to pay a security deposit. This then becomes the credit you can loan against. Every transaction with a secured prepaid credit card builds up your credit. But what is the best secured card for building credit?

1. Capital One Platinum Secured Credit Card

  • Pros – No Annual fees, you immediately see if you are accepted, deposit starts at 49$.
  • Cons – Highest possible deposit is 200$, high (26%) and variable APR.

2. Applied Bank Secured Visa® Gold Preferred Credit Card

  • Pros – No credit check, can raise credit uup to 5000$ with additional deposits, 9.99% low and fixed APR.
  • Cons – Deposit starts at 200$, annual fees are 48$

3. Chime Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card

  • Pros – Works more like a regular prepaid credit card, no credit checks.
  • Cons – Chime has been the subject of multiple complaints related to the way it freezes customers’ funds.

Best prepaid credit card for you

We hope this guide helped you find the best card for you. You can buy credit and vouchers for many prepaid credit cards right here on Recharge.com. Find all the available cards and more information on our prepaid credit cards page.

Written by

Ravian Ruys

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