The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards is one of two Capital One secured credit cards that allow new borrowers and those with limited credit to build their credit at a low cost. With no annual or foreign transaction fees, and a flat 1.5% cash back rate, the Capital One Quicksilver is an appealing card for credit builders and repairers.
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Quick Review
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card is a secured credit card. This means it requires a security deposit up front to get the card. As is often the case with secured cards, the size of the deposit you put down will determine your initial credit limit. You can put down between $200–$3,000 as a security deposit for an equivalent credit limit.
The best features of the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card are the minimal fees and the straightforward cashback rewards of 1.5% for all purchases (with no caps or complicated categories you need to remember or sign up for).
Note that this secured credit card isn’t for everyone: you’ll likely be rejected if you’ve defaulted on more than one loan in the last 5 years, or if your credit history is less than 3 years old. If these apply to you, you may be better off seeking credit cards for bad credit.
However, as long as you’ve started establishing (or reestablishing) fair credit, the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card is a good means to transition from a secured credit card to an unsecured one, and earn some cash back along the way.
Capital One Quicksilver Secured Important Details
Basic card details
- Credit card issuer: Capital One Bank
- Annual fee: $0
- Regular APR: 28.49% (variable)
- Minimum deposit: $200
- Initial credit limit: $200–$3,000
- Rewards rate: 1.5%
- Grace period: 25 days
Additional Information
- Cash advances are available.
- Authorized users are allowed, but joint accounts are not.
- Credit reporting to all three major credit bureaus.
- Automatically be considered for a higher credit limit after 6 months (without needing to put down more money for a deposit).
- Capital One might upgrade you to an unsecured card and return your deposit if you borrow responsibly (e.g., paying your bills on time each month).
- iPhone and Android apps available for account management.
- $0 fraud liability if anyone uses your card without your authorization.
- Emergency card replacement and account-locking if your card is lost or stolen.
- Tools to help you manage your credit and finances (e.g., a virtual assistant for managing your account and free credit score monitoring with CreditWise).
Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards Card Feature Breakdown
Let’s look at some of the most important features of the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card.
Fees
- Annual fee: $0
- Foreign transaction fee: None
- Late payment fee: Up to $40
- Cash advance transaction fee: $10 or 3% of the amount of each advance (whichever is greater).
- Balance transfer fee: 3% of the amount of transfer
This card enjoys the usual Capital One foreign transaction fee waiver, making it a great resource to take with you abroad.
Interest Rates
- Regular APR: 28.49% (variable)
- Cash advance APR: 28.49% (variable)
If you don’t pay off your statement balance each month, you’ll be charged interest on your Capital One Quicksilver Secured card. APR represents the annual rate of interest.
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured has a relatively high interest rate, so if you’re likely to carry a balance on your card, you may want to consider cards with lower APR or introductory 0% APR offers.
Grace Period
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card gives you a 25-day grace period (beginning on the first day of the new billing cycle). The grace period allows you time to pay your bills in full without racking up any interest charges.
If you pay your statement balance in full by the due date, your purchases during the grace period won’t accumulate interest. However, if you carry a balance from previous billing cycles, you’ll have to pay interest on any charges you make during the grace period.
Rewards
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards Credit Card gives you 1.5% cashback rewards. These rewards are not capped (i.e., you get the same rate for unlimited spending), and they never expire.
Redemption
Once you’ve accumulated cashback rewards, you can redeem them in numerous ways, including as:
- Checks
- Statement credit (i.e., a credit to your account that gets deducted from your card balance)
- Gift cards
- PayPal credit
- Amazon.com credit
- Payment for recent purchases
Cash Advances
A cash advance is when you use your credit card to withdraw money from an ATM.
Cash advances are allowed on the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card. The fee for a cash advance is either $10 or 3% of the amount of each cash advance—whichever is greater.
Balance Transfers
Balance transfers are when you move debt from one credit card to another. This is a common form of debt consolidation.
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card allows balance transfers. The balance transfer APR is 28.49% (variable). If you perform a balance transfer subject to this APR, you won’t pay any balance transfer fees.
On the other hand, if Capital One offers a promotional APR for a balance transfer, and you perform a transfer at the lower APR, you’ll have to pay a balance transfer fee of 3% of the amount you transfer.
Security Deposit
You must put down a security deposit of at least $200 to get a Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card.
However, if you use your card responsibly and pay your bills on time, Capital One might upgrade you to an unsecured credit card and refund your deposit as a statement credit.
Credit Limit
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card gives you a minimum initial credit line of $200. After you submit your initial security deposit of $200, you can add funds up to $1,000–$3,000 (depending on your creditworthiness) and get an equivalent credit limit.
Credit limit increases
Capital One automatically considers cardholders for credit limit increases from time to time.
If you need more credit and haven’t been offered an increase, you can request one. To request a credit limit increase, you need to tell Capital One:
- Your total annual income
- Your employment status
- Information about your monthly mortgage or rent payments
Capital One then takes this information into account, along with other factors, to decide whether they’ll approve your request. Keep in mind that you’ll likely be denied a credit increase if you’ve borrowed irresponsibly (say, if you missed a monthly payment).
Credit Reporting
Credit reporting is an important part of building credit, as your credit report is based on the information your lenders send to the credit bureaus.
Lenders aren’t legally required to report your credit history; many lenders just report to one or two of the three major credit bureaus, and some don’t report to any. Fortunately, Capital One reports every month to credit bureaus, which can help you build or repair your credit score quickly.
Credit Building
Because the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card reports to all three credit bureaus, it’s great for credit building. However, you must keep up with your monthly payments to benefit your credit scores, which will suffer if your payments are late.
To further help with credit-building, Capital One provides resources such as:
- CreditWise: This tool scans the dark web for misuse of your social security number, monitors your TransUnion® or Experian® credit reports for signs of fraud, and lets you check your TransUnion® VantageScore 3.0 credit score and credit report (for free and without hurting your score). You can also use CreditWise to understand how VantageScore calculates your credit score and how you can improve your credit.
- A virtual assistant: Eno, the Capital One virtual assistant, keeps an eye on your accounts 24/7, and sends alerts when something isn’t right. Additionally, Eno can answer your questions and chat about your account any time over text.
Credit Score Requirements
Capital One says that you need at least “fair credit” to qualify for its Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card. They describe fair credit as meaning the following:
- You’ve had your own credit card—or other types of credit—for less than 3 years (for example, because you’re new to the US or you’re relatively young).
- You’ve established a credit history but defaulted on a loan in the past 5 years. However, you haven’t done this more than once.
Application and Approval
To get a Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card, you can apply online.
You’ll need to provide the following personal information:
- Your full name
- Your Social Security number
- Your date of birth
- Your address (no PO boxes)
- Your estimated gross annual income
- Information about your checking and/or savings account
You can prequalify online to find out whether your application is likely to be approved or denied. This will help you to decide whether it’s worth getting a hard inquiry on your credit report when Capital One processes your credit card application (which will knock a few points off your credit score).
If you apply by phone or online, Capital One says you’ll get an answer in 60 seconds. However, they may want to gather additional information before they decide whether to accept your application. If this happens, they’ll write to you to confirm their decision within 7 to 10 days.
Application status
If you’re still waiting to find out whether your Capital One credit card application was successful, you can check the status of your application by calling (800) 903-9177.
Managing Your Account
You can manage your Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card by logging into your account online or by using Capital One’s iPhone and Android apps.
You can also make payments online or send them by US Mail to:
Capital One
Attn: Payment Processing
PO Box 71083
Charlotte, NC 28272-1083
Customer service
If you already have a credit card account you need help with, the phone number for customer service is (800) 227-4825 (but only for existing accounts).
For general mail correspondence, you can write to:
Capital One
Attn: General Correspondence
P.O. Box 30285
Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0287
Lost or stolen cards
You can report your Capital One credit card lost or stolen online or on the app.
- To report a lost or stolen card on the web: Choose “Account Services and Settings.” Under “Manage Debit Card,” choose “Replace Lost Card,” and then follow the steps.
- To report a lost or stolen card on the app: Select “View All” from the “I Want To…” menu. Scroll until you see “Replace Missing Card,” and then follow the steps.
Capital One will deactivate your old card and ask you about any purchases on your card that you didn’t make. If you can’t complete this process online, call (800) 955-7070 instead.
If your card is lost or stolen:
- You won’t be held responsible for any unauthorized charges.
- You can lock your account.
- You can get emergency card replacement.
Should You Get the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards Credit Card?
FinanceJar verdict
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card is a good option for anyone who has limited credit or needs to do a bit of credit repair. The rewards are straightforward and competitive, and the fees are reasonable.
However, watch out for the high APR if you’re likely to carry a balance from month to month, and keep in mind that you can only have an initial credit limit as high as your security deposit.
Who is this card for?
- People with slightly damaged credit: If you’ve defaulted on a loan once in the past 5 years and are on your way to repairing your credit, you’re a good candidate for the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card. If you’ve defaulted more than once, you should consider other cards.
- People with limited credit histories: Students, people who are fairly new to the US, and people who’ve been authorized users on someone else’s credit card are also good candidates. You’ll need to have at least 3 years’ worth of credit history to qualify.
Comparable Cards
To decide whether the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card is right for you, take a look at how it measures up against other secured credit cards on the market.
Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards Credit Card vs. Discover it® Secured Credit Card
The Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card and the Discover it® Secured credit card share the following features:
- No annual fee.
- Your credit line is equivalent to your initial deposit.
- $200 is the minimum security deposit.
- Cashback rewards.
- You may be able to upgrade to an unsecured card after several months.
The Discover it® Secured credit card has several additional advantages:
- Lower APR
- Reduced intro APR for balance transfers
- Late fee is waived for your first late payment
- Welcome bonus of double cashback points at the end of the first year
Given the added intro perks, the Discover it® Secured credit card may save you more money in the short term than the Capital One Quicksilver Secured.
Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards Credit Card vs. Citi® Secured Mastercard®
These cards are both aimed at fairly new borrowers or borrowers trying to get their credit back on track. They’re both secured cards and require a minimum security deposit of $200, with neither card charging an annual fee.
The Citi® Secured Mastercard® boasts a lower APR of 26.24% (variable). However, it doesn’t have cashback rewards and also charges foreign transaction fees (whereas the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card doesn’t charge for foreign transactions).
As such, if you’re unlikely to carry a balance from month to month, the higher APR shouldn’t dissuade you from Capital One’s more rewarding option, especially if you’re likely to travel abroad.
Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards Credit Card vs. Capital One Platinum Secured Credit Card
The Capital One Platinum Secured credit card and the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card are similar in many ways, including:
- No annual fee
- No foreign transaction fees
- 25% APR
- The same cash advance and balance transfer fees
However, the Capital One Platinum Secured credit card is available to people with worse credit, so some of the terms are less favorable. Notably, it doesn’t offer cashback rewards.
On the other hand, you may be able to pay a smaller deposit of $49 or $99 to get a $200 credit line (whereas the Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card requires a minimum deposit of $200).
If you aren’t likely to qualify for a Capital One Quicksilver Secured Rewards credit card, the Platinum Secured is a good alternative. Additionally, if you need credit now and can’t afford the $200 security deposit, consider the Capital One Platinum Secured instead of the Quicksilver.
