The best credit cards for bad credit in Canada for 2025

Just because your credit score needs some work doesn’t mean you can’t get a credit card—but you’ll need to pay a bit more attention to eligibility requirements, and consider getting a secured credit card that can help you improve your credit score.

We’ve listed our favourite secured credit cards that are easy to qualify for, as well as alternative unsecured cards. Many of these unsecured options are geared toward students or newcomers who may not have a solid credit score yet.

The best credit cards for bad credit in Canada

Maybe you’re one of the many Canadians who missed a debt payment in the last year. Or, perhaps you’re a newcomer to Canada or a young person without an established credit history. 

Whatever the reason for your low or non-existent credit score, you’ll need to show lenders that you can handle credit responsibly. The credit cards on this list can help you do that—and they’re accessible to almost all applicants.

Gold: Capital One Guaranteed Secured Mastercard

Card type: Secured
Minimum credit score: N/A
Minimum income required: N/A

You’re guaranteed to be approved for the Capital One Guaranteed Secured Mastercard, as long as you’re of the age of majority in your province, you don’t have an existing Capital One account (or have applied for one in the past 30 days), and you haven’t had a Capital One account in bad standing in the past year. This card offers an effective way to build your credit and even offers a few extras.

Silver: Secured Neo Mastercard

Card type: Secured
Minimum credit score: N/A
Minimum income required: N/A

You can start using the Secured Neo Mastercard with a deposit of as little as $50, and it has a cash back program that can get you an average of 5% cash back for purchases at partner businesses. You can also subscribe to optional “Bundles” that give you the ability to make your card more suited to your spending habits, with boosted rewards and perks like insurance coverage.

Bronze: Home Trust Secured Visa

Card type: Secured
Minimum credit score: 300
Minimum income required: N/A

The Home Trust Secured Visa offers more flexibility than most secured credit cards by offering you two options: an interest rate of 19.99% with no annual fee, or a lower interest rate of 14.90% with a $59 annual fee. You also have a say on your credit limit: deposit $500 to $10,000 and your chosen amount becomes your limit. And since Home Trust reports your payments to the credit bureaus, responsible use of this card will boost your score.

How we determine the best cards

To select the best cards in this somewhat-limited category, we evaluated key factors that are important when choosing a card if you have poor credit: approval likelihood, annual income requirements, and annual fees, plus interest rates, and welcome offers. The addition of links from affiliate partners has no bearing on the results in this ranking. Read more about the MoneySense selection process and about how MoneySense makes money.

Other top credit cards if you have bad credit

While we originally highlighted secured credit cards, you might actually qualify for unsecured credit cards even with bad credit. Check out some of these cards that have low credit scores or income requirements to see if they’re a better fit.

Credit card	Annual fee	Recommended income	Apply now (featured cards only)
Scotiabank Momentum No-Fee Visa	$0	$12,000 per year	Apply now
BMO CashBack Mastercard	$0	$15,000 per year	Apply now
PC Mastercard	$0	None specified	Apply now
CIBC Aeroplan Visa Card for Students	$0	None specified	Not available

Scotia Momentum No-Fee Visa Card

Card type: Unsecured
Minimum credit score: 660
Minimum income required: $12,000

BMO CashBack Mastercard

Card type: Unsecured
Minimum credit score: N/A
Minimum income required: N/A

PC Mastercard

Card type: Unsecured
Minimum credit score: 560
Minimum income required: N/A

CIBC Aeroplan Visa Card for Students

Card type: Unsecured
Minimum credit score: N/A
Minimum income required: N/A

Reddit reviews: What cardholders say

We were curious to see how our top cards for bad credit fared in real life, so we checked out Reddit for real user feedback. 

Many Redditors recommended the Capital One Secured Mastercard and offered useful advice.

Another person pointed out a helpful strategy if you’re getting denied for credit cards.

Ultimately, building your credit score depends less on the card you choose and more on how you use the card.

How credit cards can help you build credit 

Once you have a credit card, your payment history will be reported to the credit monitoring bureaus that generate your credit score. It’s actually the most important factor in determining your score. 

To improve your payment history, make at least the minimum credit card payment on time every month. Ideally, you’d pay your credit card balance in full so you’re not charged interest. If you think you might have trouble making the monthly minimum payment, contact your card issuer and discuss your payment options. This is better than skipping the payment and hoping you’ll be able to pay it later.

You should also be strategic about using your credit card. Never go over your card’s limit or you could face additional fees. This can also damage your credit utilization ratio, which is an important piece in your credit score calculation. 

3 types of credit cards for bad credit

It helps to be familiar with credit card types since they have different eligibility requirements and expectations.

• Secured credit cards: A secured credit card requires you to pay a security deposit upfront, which then becomes your credit card limit. These cards are marketed directly to those with bad credit, so they have an easier approval process—although the cards themselves come with no frills. Lenders report your activity to Canada’s two main credit bureaus, TransUnion and Equifax. As you continue to repay your debts responsibly, you’ll build a credit history and improve your score.
• Unsecured credit cards: These are what most people think of when they picture credit cards. You’ll usually have to meet strict income and/or credit score requirements, so they’re not generally available to people with credit scores under 600. If approved, the card issuer gives you a credit limit that you borrow against. You’re essentially borrowing money and paying it back (sometimes, with interest).
• Credit builder products: Although using both a secured or unsecured credit card responsibly can build your credit score over time, you may be able to take out a KOHO prepaid credit card and subscribe to KOHO’s Credit Builder program. This reports your activity to Equifax, which can build your score over a matter of months.
  

We’ll also mention another option: becoming an authorized user on someone else’s credit card account. Depending on their credit card, they may have to pay a fee to add you, but you would have access to credit and earn rewards for the primary cardholder. Responsible use will help build your credit score—but conversely, irresponsible use can damage the credit score of the account holder.

How to improve your approval odds

Being prepared and informed is one of the best ways to improve credit card approval odds. In a nutshell, here’s what we recommend to tilt the odds in your favour:

• Check your credit report before applying: Look for inaccuracies that could be damaging your score and report the errors to the credit monitoring bureau. You may need to give it some time for your score to update, but find out what your score is before you apply for a credit card. 
• Apply to cards that are designed for low-credit applicants: The cards on our list typically have lower credit score requirements. Many don’t have income requirements, or if they do, they’re low.
• Maintain a consistent income with low debt: This helps verify for credit card issuers that you’re responsible with your money. They may be hesitant to extend credit if you’re not holding down a steady job, as it could indicate that you’ll struggle to repay your credit card purchases.
• Limit the number of credit cards you apply for: Each time you submit an application, the card issuer pulls your credit report (known as a hard inquiry), which causes your score to temporarily dip. This isn’t a big deal if you’re only applying for one card, but submitting several applications can have a more significant impact.
• Pay down your existing debt: If you have loans or other credit cards with balances, try to pay them down before applying for a new card. Credit card issuers look at how much access to credit you have—and how much of it you’re using. If you’re already tapped out, they are unlikely to issue you a new card.

FAQs

More of the best credit cards:

• Best credit cards in Canada
• Best low-interest credit cards
• Best balance transfer credit cards
• Best student credit cards