USAA Secured Visa Platinum Card Review

Note: This card is no longer available to new applicants. Looking for a secured credit card? Check out the best secured cards currently available.

The USAA Secured Visa Platinum Card is the US-military-focused company’s secured credit card offering. Secured cards can be great options for those that are struggling with their credit score or are lacking a credit history. These cards usually target users with lower credit scores, but — as a trade-off — require the user to place down a security deposit.

This Visa Platinum Card is a fairly standard secured card with a potentially low APR and no base rewards. It also comes with the gamut of regular credit card benefits.

Of course, because this card is offered by USAA, you’ll need a way to get a USAA membership. That means you must be either active or former military or be an eligible family member of someone who is active or former military.

It’s worth noting that this card isn’t specifically designed for business use. However, using a personal card for your business purchases is a perfectly viable strategy. Using the USAA Secured Visa Platinum Card and paying your balance on time will build your credit, helping your business in the long term.

Unsure if this card is right for your business? Keep reading to get the full breakdown!

USAA Secured Visa Platinum Card At A Glance

Eligibility

Because USAA crafted this as a credit-building card, you’ll likely only need a poor credit score to qualify (roughly around 500). Those without a credit history may also be eligible. If your credit score is better than poor, check out our post on the best business cards for fair credit.

Don’t know your credit score? We’ve compiled our favorite free credit-checking websites to help you on your way.

Also note that because this card requires a USAA membership, you’ll either need to be active or former military (or an eligible family member) in order to apply.

Rewards & Fees

USAA hasn’t included any traditional reward features in their Secured Visa Platinum Card. While this is disappointing, USAA offsets this by offering low APR and minimal fees.

The general, variable APR for this card can start as low as 11.90% and rise as high as 21.90%, depending on your creditworthiness. These rates are relatively low, especially when compared to other competing credit-building cards.

Additionally, military recruits, either those deployed or those with a permanent change of station, can get a special introductory APR of 4% for their account’s first 12 months. This isn’t terribly exciting when some other cards offer 0% intro rates; however, it is still an impressively low rate for a credit-building card.

You will also have some flexibility when it comes to choosing your credit line. Because you’ll be putting down a security deposit, you’ll get to select exactly what you want your credit line to be. Note that USAA does require a minimum deposit of $250 and allows up to a maximum of $5,000.

Those who travel overseas will appreciate that this card does not come with a foreign transaction fee. However, there is a 3% fee applied to both cash advances and balance transfers. There is also a $35 annual fee, which is a lower number than most cards with annual fees.

Other Benefits

The USAA Secured Visa Platinum Card also comes with an array of standard credit card extras through the Visa Signature Benefits program. These bonuses include a free collision damage waiver to pay for physical damage or theft to most vehicle rentals. You’ll also have access to an extended warranty, which will double the original manufacturer warranty (up to 24 months) in many cases.

You can obtain a monthly Experian VantageScore and a yearly Experian credit report at no additional cost. These credit-tracking tools are especially handy if you are working at increasing your credit score.

USAA further enables its credit cards to work with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. If you take advantage of this feature, you’ll be able to use your phone when making payments at select merchants.

Final Verdict

Is the USAA Secured Visa Platinum Card right for your business? You might want to apply for this card if:

• You are an active or former military member (or an eligible family member) looking for a secured credit card.
• You need to either build or rebuild credit.
• You don’t need rewards but would like a potentially low APR.

On the other hand, you might want to pass if:

• You aren’t an active or former military member or otherwise can’t become a USAA member.
• You have a high enough credit score that you may qualify for cards with better rewards and benefits.
• You’d prefer a card that offers rewards.

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