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Best Soft Pull Credit Cards in 2025

A soft pull is a credit check that doesn’t affect your credit and is typically done to see if you’re likely to qualify for a credit card.
A soft pull credit card is one you can prequalify for without a hard pull on your credit. Some cards even let you apply without a hard pull — typically advertised as “no credit check required.”
Many issuers offer online prequalification tools that use a soft pull to assess your chances of getting approved for a credit card. It’s no guarantee, but it can let you know if it’s worth applying and triggering a hard pull on your credit.
No-hard-pull credit cards offered by lenders may include secured cards, beginner cards and cards for bad credit.

Best credit cards with soft pull**

Best soft pull credit cards with no credit check

Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa^® Credit Card
OpenSky^® Plus Secured Visa^® Credit Card

Best soft pull credit cards for fair credit

Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card
Upgrade Cash Rewards Visa^®

Best soft pull store card

Apple Credit Card

**Some of these cards offer the option to prequalify with a soft inquiry, but may run a hard credit check when you apply.

5 best soft inquiry credit cards**

Credit Cards	Our Ratings	Rewards Rate	Annual Fee	Recommended Credit Credit scores ranges may vary. Your individual chance at approval may vary due to factors such as creditors using a particular variation at their discretion
Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa^® Credit Card Apply Now on The Bancorp Bank's secure site	4.1	N/A	$0	Limited / Poor / Fair	Apply Now on The Bancorp Bank's secure site
OpenSky^® Plus Secured Visa^® Credit Card Apply Now on Capital Bank, N.A.'s secure site	3.7	10% cash back Up to 10% cash back rewards	$0	Limited / Poor / Fair	Apply Now on Capital Bank, N.A.'s secure site
Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card* Learn More	4.7	1% - 10% cash back Earn 1% cash back on eligible purchases right away Earn 2% to 10% cash back at select merchants	$0	N/A	Learn More
Upgrade Cash Rewards Visa^® Apply Now on Upgrade's secure site Rates & Fees	4.5	1.5% cash back 1.5% unlimited cash back on card purchases every time you make a payment	$0	Fair	Apply Now on Upgrade's secure site Rates & Fees
Apple Credit Card* Learn More	2.7	1% - 3% Daily Cash 2% Daily Cash every time you use Apple Card with Apple Pay 3% Daily Cash on all purchases made directly with Apple and select merchants 1% on other purchases made with your physical Apple Card	$0	N/A	Learn More

*The information related to the Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card and Apple Credit Card has been collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication. Terms Apply.

**Some of these cards offer the option to prequalify with a soft inquiry, but may run a hard credit check when you apply.

Best soft pull credit cards with no credit check

Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa^® Credit Card

LendingTree's Review

4.1

Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa<sup>®</sup> Credit Card

LendingTree's Review

4.1

Apply Now

on The Bancorp Bank's secure site

Apply with no credit check.

No credit check required
No minimum deposit³
$0 annual fee and no late fees
Doesn’t charge interest²
Reports to all three credit bureaus

Requires a Chime checking account
Spending power limited by account balance
No rewards program
You can’t upgrade to a non-secured card

The Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa^® Credit Card¹ is one of the best credit cards without a hard inquiry because it’s one of the few of its kind with a $0 annual fee. Also, its unique structure offers maximum flexibility. Instead of paying a set security deposit, the card allows you to set your own credit limit by opening a checking account and depositing as much or as little as you want.³ Since you can’t carry a monthly balance, you don’t have to worry about building up debt or interest.² You can even use your deposit to pay your balance.

No annual fees or interest,* no credit check to apply, and no minimum security deposit required³
Help increase credit score by an average of 30 points¹
View and track your FICO® Score right in the Chime app. FICO Scores are used by 90% of top lenders
Use everywhere VISA is accepted on everyday purchases, such as gas and groceries, and have these purchases count towards building credit via on-time payments
Build credit history with your own money - your direct deposit sets how much you could spend, spend up to that amount, and have your monthly balance automatically paid with your direct deposit.
Instant disable card in-app and real-time transaction alerts to prevent fraudulent activities, 24/7 support to assist you around the clock.
Interest and fee-free˜ cash withdrawals at 60K+ ATMs at retailers like Walgreens, CVS, and more.
Apply for a Secured Chime Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card once you sign up for a Chime Checking Account². See www.chime.com to learn more.
Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by The Bancorp Bank, N.A. or Stride Bank, N.A. The secured Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card is issued by The Bancorp Bank, N.A. or Stride Bank, N.A., pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa credit cards are accepted. Please see the back of your card for its issuing bank.
*No interest: Out of network ATM withdrawal fees may apply. See here for details.
¹ Based on a representative study conducted by Experian®, members who made their first purchase with Credit Builder between June 2020 and October 2020 observed an average FICO® Score 8 increase of 30 points after approximately 8 months. On-time payment history can have a positive impact on your credit score. Late payment may negatively impact your credit score.
² To apply for Credit Builder, you must have an active Chime® Checking Account.
³ Money added to Credit Builder will be held in a secured account as collateral for your Credit Builder Visa card, which means you can spend up to this amount on your card. This is money you can use to pay off your charges at the end of every month.
ATM Disclosure: Out-of-network ATM withdrawal fees may apply except at MoneyPass ATMs in a 7-Eleven, or any Allpoint or Visa Plus Alliance ATM.

OpenSky^® Plus Secured Visa^® Credit Card

LendingTree's Review

3.7

OpenSky<sup>®</sup> Plus Secured Visa<sup>®</sup> Credit Card

LendingTree's Review

3.7

Apply Now

on Capital Bank, N.A.'s secure site

Apply with no credit check.

Rewards Rate10% cash back

Annual Fee$0

Regular Purchase APR28.99% (variable)

Recommended Credit

300-660

Limited / Poor / Fair

Get Your Free Credit Score

No credit check required
$0 annual fee
No monthly fees
Reports to three credit bureaus monthly
Chance to upgrade to unsecured card

$300 minimum deposit
High late fee up to $41
Returned payment fee
Rewards only at select merchants

The OpenSky^® Plus Secured Visa^® Credit Card is one of the top soft inquiry credit cards with no credit check because it has a $0 annual fee and allows you to earn rewards as you build your credit and ultimately upgrade to an unsecured card. With free online access to your FICO Score as a perk, you can easily monitor your progress.

No annual fee – keep more money in your pocket!
No credit check required – 89% approval rate with zero credit risk to apply!
Earn up to 10% cash back on everyday purchases
Boost your credit score fast—2 out of 3 OpenSky® cardholders see an average increase of 47 points after 6 months
Track your progress with free access to your FICO® score in our mobile app
Build your credit history with reporting to all three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion
Seamless payments—add your card to Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay
Start with as little as $300 – Secure your line with a refundable security deposit
Fast and easy application—apply in minutes with our mobile-first experience
Flexible payment options—pick a due date that works for you
More time to fund—spread your security deposit over 60 days with layaway
Join 1.6 million+ cardholders who have used OpenSky® to build better credit!

Best soft pull credit cards for fair credit

Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card*

LendingTree's Review

4.7

Petal<sup>®</sup> 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa<sup>®</sup> Credit Card

LendingTree's Review

4.7

Learn More

See if you’re preapproved with a soft pull to your credit on Petal’s site. (The issuer may run a hard credit check when you submit your application.)

Rewards Rate1% - 10% cash back

Annual Fee$0

Regular Purchase APR28.99% - 30.99%

Recommended Credit

N/A

Get Your Free Credit Score

No annual or other fees
No deposit required
Potentially high credit limit
Reports to all credit bureaus
Cash back on every purchase

High APR
Bonus cash back only at select merchants
Lower rewards rate for first 12 months

The Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card is one of the best soft credit pull credit cards for fair credit because it earns rewards on every purchase at a decent clip with a $0 annual fee. There’s also a chance to boost your earnings by making timely payments. It offers a potentially high credit limit (you’ll get at least $300 and potentially as high as $10,000) with no security deposit. This allows you to build credit without tying up any of your own money, and you may qualify for a credit limit increase in just six months.

No fees whatsoever. No late fee, foreign transaction fee, annual fee, or any-other-kind-of-fee, fee.
Variable APRs range from 28.99% - 30.99%
Up to 1.5% cash back on eligible purchases after making 12 on-time monthly payments.
1% cash back on eligible purchases right away
2% - 10% cash back at select merchants
$300 - $10,000 credit limits
No credit score? No problem. If eligible, we'll create your Cash Score instead.
See if you're pre-approved within minutes without impacting your credit score.
Build credit alongside hundreds of thousands of Petal card members.
Petal reports to all 3 major credit bureaus.
No deposits required
Card issued by WebBank

*The information related to the Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card has been collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication. Terms apply.

Upgrade Cash Rewards Visa^®

LendingTree's Review

4.5

LendingTree's Review

4.5

Apply Now

on Upgrade's secure site

Rates & Fees

See if you’re preapproved with a soft pull to your credit when you apply. (The issuer may run a hard credit check when you submit your application.)

Rewards Rate1.5% cash back

Annual Fee$0

Regular Purchase APR14.99% - 29.99% APR

Recommended Credit

600-660

Fair

Get Your Free Credit Score

$0 annual fee
No security deposit required
Rewards for paying off purchases
Potentially high credit line
Potentially low APR

Interest charged on all purchases
Less flexible than standard credit cards
Foreign transaction fees

The Upgrade Cash Rewards Visa^® is one of the top soft credit check credit cards for fair credit because it has a $0 annual fee and earns rewards on every purchase. Its unusual structure offers plenty of predictability, allowing you to pay off each purchase in installments (and you can pay them off early to reduce interest). This can be a useful tool to help you avoid the minimum payment trap and make on-time payments as you build your credit.

$200 bonus after opening a Rewards Checking Plus account and making 3 debit card transactions*
1.5% unlimited cash back on every purchase
No annual fee
See if you qualify in seconds with no impact to your credit score
Combine the flexibility of a card with the predictability of a personal loan
Enjoy Visa Signature benefits, like Roadside Dispatch, Price Protection, Extended Warranty Protection, and more
Shop smarter with Upgrade Shopping! Get exclusive savings at stores, restaurants, and more
Contactless payments with Apple Pay® and Google Wallet™ Mobile app to access your account anytime, anywhere
Use your card anywhere Visa is accepted
Relax knowing that you are protected in case of unauthorized transactions with Visa’s Zero Liability Policy
*To qualify for the welcome bonus, you must open and fund a new Rewards Checking Plus account through Upgrade and make 3 qualifying debit card transactions from your Rewards Checking Plus account within 60 days of the date the Rewards Checking Plus account is opened. If you have previously opened a checking account through Upgrade or do not open a Rewards Checking Plus account as part of this application process, you are not eligible for this welcome bonus offer. Your Upgrade Card and Rewards Checking Plus account must be open and in good standing to receive a bonus. To qualify, debit card transactions must have settled and exclude ATM transactions. Please refer to the applicable Upgrade Visa® Debit Card Agreement and Disclosures for more information. Welcome bonus offers cannot be combined, substituted, or applied retroactively. The bonus will be applied to your Rewards Checking Plus account as a one-time payout credit within 60 days after meeting the conditions. This one-time bonus is available through this Upgrade Card offer and may not be available for other Upgrade Card offers.

Best soft pull store card

Apple Credit Card*

LendingTree's Review

2.7

LendingTree's Review

2.7

Learn More

See if you’re approved with just a soft pull to your credit before you accept the offer. (The issuer may run a hard credit check when you accept the offer.)

Rewards Rate1% - 3% Daily Cash

Annual Fee$0

Regular Purchase APR18.24% to 28.49% variable

Recommended Credit

N/A

Get Your Free Credit Score

$0 annual fee
Financing for Apple products
Solid rewards when you use your card with Apple Pay
Extra cash back at Apple and other select merchants

No sign-up bonus
No intro APR deal
Only a fit for Apple Pay users
Accepting the card will cause a hard inquiry

The Apple Credit Card is an easy-to-get store credit card with a soft pull that lets you see if you’re approved for the card before you accept the offer and initiate a hard pull on your credit. It’s easy to use and integrates seamlessly with Apple tools and products. It’s unique because you get elevated cash back earnings every time you use the card with Apple Pay. Plus, you get financing with installment payments on Apple products and can share the card with members of your Apple Family Sharing Group.

Earn unlimited Daily Cash Back that you can use right away
No annual fee, no over-the-limit fee, no foreign-transaction fee and no late fees
Get 2% Daily Cash every time you use Apple Card with Apple Pay, 3% Daily Cash on all purchases made directly with Apple and select merchants and 1% on other purchases made with your physical Apple Card.
Invite family members to share the benefits of your Apple Card with Apple Card Family
Request a number-less titanium metal Apple Card Mastercard to pay when Apply Pay isn’t available

*The information related to the Apple Credit Card has been collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication. Terms apply.

What is a soft pull on credit?

A soft pull on credit, also known as a soft inquiry, is a credit check that doesn’t affect your credit score and is typically done for purposes other than extending credit. Common scenarios in which a soft check is done include getting prequalified for a credit card or loan. In some cases, you can apply for a credit card without a hard inquiry.

A hard pull on credit, also called a hard inquiry, can impact your credit score for a year and remain on your credit reports for two years. One hard pull typically only has a small impact on your score. But if you’re planning to apply for a card with a hard pull, you should check to see if you’re prequalified for the card first. This will help you avoid too many hard pulls on your credit, which can add up and drag your score down more than a single inquiry.

→ Learn more: What’s the Difference Between a Hard and Soft Pull?

Soft pull vs. hard pull

Soft credit pulls	Hard credit pulls
Performed by creditors to provide preapproved credit offers	Performed by creditors when you apply for a form of credit
Previous soft pulls are visible on your credit report to only you	Previous hard pulls may stay on your credit report for any creditor to see for up to two years
May be done without your prior approval	Must have your written approval
No impact to your credit score	Can cause your FICO Score to drop by up to 5 points

If you want to check your credit score without negatively impacting your credit, you can sign up for a free credit score through LendingTree Spring.

What credit cards do a soft pull?

Many credit card issuers will let you see if you’re prequalified for a credit card with just a soft pull, which doesn’t affect your credit score. And some card companies will let you apply for a credit card without affecting your credit score because they do a soft pull instead of a hard pull to see if you qualify. These no-impact credit cards typically are either secured cards or cards designed for building or rebuilding credit.

Getting credit cards with no hard inquiry isn’t the norm, but it can be done if you choose the right card, usually one that lists “no credit check” as a perk.

Some credit cards, such as secured credit cards or cards for beginners or people with bad credit, will advertise “no credit check required” as a perk. But unless that’s stated in the terms, a credit card issuer will do a hard inquiry as soon as you apply for a card. This is likely to cause a slight dip (less than 5 points) in your credit score for about a year and will stay on your credit report for two years. But some cardholders in online credit forums claim that you can get a credit card without hard inquiry in some cases, such as if you apply for an Amex card when you’re a current cardholder.

→ Learn more: Does Opening a New Credit Card Affect Your Credit Score?

Banks that offer soft pull credit cards

Most banks let you get prequalified for any credit card with just a soft pull, a credit check that doesn’t harm your credit score. Many offer online forms on their websites, where you can submit basic financial information to get a list of prequalified cards. Here are the top credit card issuers that offer prequalification for a card with only a soft pull.

Issuer	Preapproval offered	Required information
American Express credit card preapproval	Yes	Name, address, Social Security number and income
Bank of America credit card preapproval	Yes	Name, birth date, Social Security number, address and type of credit card you’re interested in
Chase credit card preapproval	Yes (online tool is not always available)	Name, address and Social Security number
Citi credit card preapproval	Yes	Name, Social Security number and address
Discover credit card preapproval	Yes	Name, address, birth date, student status, monthly housing expense, income and type of card benefit you’re interested in
Navy Federal credit card preapproval	Yes (only available to Navy Federal members)	Active duty status, income, monthly housing expense
U.S. Bank credit card preapproval	Yes (only available to existing customers via mail offers)	Confirmation code that came with offer and ZIP code
Wells Fargo credit card preapproval	Yes	Wells Fargo customer status, name, address and Social Security number

There are online services, such as LendingTree’s TreeQual tool, that let you see if you’re prequalified for a card from a variety of issuers with only a soft pull.

Which soft pull credit cards are easiest to get?

If you have no credit or bad credit, these options can allow you to build or rebuild credit without jumping through a lot of hoops to qualify:

Secured credit cards: Secured cards can be easier to qualify for, because they require a security deposit that serves as your credit line, reducing the risk to the lender. Most will allow you to see if you’re preapproved before you apply, and some — like the OpenSky^® Plus Secured Visa^® Credit Card — don’t require a credit check at all.
Credit cards for bad credit: You can find both secured and unsecured cards that are easier for applicants with bad credit to qualify for.
Beginner credit cards: Credit cards for beginners are designed to help those with no credit profile build credit. For that reason, issuers of beginner credit cards will accept applicants with limited credit and may not require a credit check in some cases.
Store cards: It’s often easy to get approved for a card through a retailer that you frequently shop with. A store representative may even be able to run a prequalification check for you in-store before you apply.

→ Learn how to apply for a credit card in 7 steps

Methodology: How we chose the best credit cards with soft pull

To bring you this list of soft-pull credit cards, we use an objective rating and ranking system that compares features across a large set of credit cards (over 200 of them from over 50 issuers). We use calculations to estimate the value of each card for the average cardholder, based on LendingTree and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Credit cards for building credit: We calculate how much the average cardholder can save with the card on a yearly basis. If it is a rewards card, we use U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and $300 in monthly spending (the typical starting credit limit for an introductory card) to calculate how much the average cardholder can earn in rewards. We then subtract fees — including annual fees and maintenance fees — from this amount.
Rewards credit cards for good or excellent credit: We calculate the rewards earned for the average cardholder using Bureau of Labor Statistics data and an annual spend of $20,000, minus the annual fee. This value includes sign-up bonuses and annual bonuses (including annual free night certificates). For travel cards, this value includes travel perks like lounge access and travel credits. We look at the average rewards earned over two years to balance out a card’s ongoing value with its first-year value.

Depending on the category, we also look at the flexibility rewards, foreign transaction fees, features for building credit and how the card’s overall list of benefits compares to other cards.

Frequently asked questions

If you apply for a credit card, the card issuer typically does a hard inquiry on your credit in order to make a decision. However, there are some credit cards, such as some cards for beginners or for bad credit, that may only require a soft pull.

A soft pull does not affect your credit. In fact, soft pulls on your credit can’t be seen by anyone except you.

A soft credit check isn’t bad for your credit. This type of credit check doesn’t harm your credit score, and lenders can’t see it on your credit reports.

There are some secured cards that don’t do a hard pull on your credit. All of the secured credit cards we featured above can be obtained with just a soft pull.

There is no limit to the number of soft pulls you can have on your credit. In fact, you really can’t control the number of soft pulls on your credit because a lender can do a soft credit pull without your permission in order to make you an offer for a credit card or loan.

Whether a credit limit increase requires a soft pull or a hard pull will depend on your credit card issuer. The credit card company may perform a hard pull on your credit to see if you’re eligible for a credit limit increase. But if your card issuer offers automatic credit limit increases, it may result in a soft inquiry, which doesn’t affect your credit. For example, Bank of America uses a soft pull before increasing your credit limit.

In a soft credit pull, your credit card issuer will look at how you manage your debt and credit history. This may include late payments, collection activity or other credit pulls.

1.The secured Chime Credit Builder Visa® Credit Card is issued by The Bancorp Bank, N.A. or Stride Bank, N.A., Members FDIC, pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa credit cards are accepted. Please see the back of your card for its issuing bank.

2.Out of network ATM withdrawal and over the counter advance fees may apply. See here for details.

3.Money added to Credit Builder will be held in a secured account as collateral for your Credit Builder Visa card, which means you can spend up to this amount on your card. This is money you can use to pay off your charges at the end of every month.

The information related to the Petal^® 2 Cash Back, No Fees Visa^® Credit Card, Apple Credit Card and Chase Freedom Rise® Credit Card has been independently collected by LendingTree and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card prior to publication. Terms apply.

The content above is not provided by any issuer. Any opinions expressed are those of LendingTree alone and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any issuer. The offers and/or promotions mentioned above may have changed, expired, or are no longer available. Check the issuer's website for more details.

Best Soft Pull Credit Cards in 2025