Merrick Bank is not a conventional banking institute where you will find checking or savings accounts. It focuses on providing personal loans, credit cards, certificates of deposits and other acquiring services. They offer credit to people with lower and even poor credit scores as well as people who want to build or rebuild their credit history. They offer three different credit cards, two of which are secured ones. You can get up to $3,000 as a line of credit. However, it will depend on the type of card and the security deposit.
Merrick Bank Credit Card Reviews, Rules & Opinions
Merrick Bank provides credit to customers with lower or poor credit scores. MoneyGeek helps you understand how to apply for their cards, compare their different cards and find the best Merrick Bank credit cards.
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Doug Milnes, CFA
Head of Credit Cards at MoneyGeek
Doug Milnes is a CFA charter holder with over 10 years of experience in corporate finance and the Head of Credit Cards at MoneyGeek. Formerly, he performed valuations for Duff and Phelps and financial planning and analysis for various companies. His analysis has been cited by U.S. News and World Report, The Hill, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times and many other outlets. Milnes holds a master’s degree in data science from Northwestern University. He geeks out on helping people feel on top of their credit card use, from managing debt to optimizing rewards.
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Lee Huffman
Credit Card and Personal Finance Expert
Lee Huffman is a credit card and personal finance expert at MoneyGeek. He has spent 18 years as a financial planner and corporate finance manager, with 12 years of experience writing about early retirement, credit cards, travel, insurance and other personal finance topics. His writings are published on The Points Guy, Investopedia and NerdWallet. Huffman earned his business management degree from Pepperdine University and his master's degree in eBusiness from the University of Phoenix. He enjoys showing people how to travel more, spend less and live better through the power of travel rewards.
![](https://res.cloudinary.com/moneygeek/image/upload/c_scale,q_auto:eco,f_auto,fl_lossy,w_100,b_white/v1585262247/bbgpw5eliaweh29jfpd8.png)
Doug Milnes, CFA
Head of Credit Cards at MoneyGeek
Doug Milnes is a CFA charter holder with over 10 years of experience in corporate finance and the Head of Credit Cards at MoneyGeek. Formerly, he performed valuations for Duff and Phelps and financial planning and analysis for various companies. His analysis has been cited by U.S. News and World Report, The Hill, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times and many other outlets. Milnes holds a master’s degree in data science from Northwestern University. He geeks out on helping people feel on top of their credit card use, from managing debt to optimizing rewards.
![](https://res.cloudinary.com/moneygeek/image/upload/c_scale,q_auto:eco,f_auto,fl_lossy,w_100,b_white/v1622039788/Lee_Huffman_6307b39dce.jpg)
Lee Huffman
Credit Card and Personal Finance Expert
Lee Huffman is a credit card and personal finance expert at MoneyGeek. He has spent 18 years as a financial planner and corporate finance manager, with 12 years of experience writing about early retirement, credit cards, travel, insurance and other personal finance topics. His writings are published on The Points Guy, Investopedia and NerdWallet. Huffman earned his business management degree from Pepperdine University and his master's degree in eBusiness from the University of Phoenix. He enjoys showing people how to travel more, spend less and live better through the power of travel rewards.
Updated: July 26, 2024
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Featured Credit Cards Offered by Merrick Bank
There are two types of Merrick Bank cards that MoneyGeek researched, but three cards in total. Merrick Bank offers two secured credit cards and one unsecured credit card. The minimum security deposit for secured credit cards is $200. You get free FICO scores every month with their credit cards, and they report to all the three major credit bureaus.
The Best Merrick Bank Credit Cards in 2024
MoneyGeek lists the best credit cards from Merrick Bank every month on the basis of changes in reward categories, welcome bonuses and other criteria. The top cards of Merrick Bank in 2023 are as follows.
Rules for Applying, Acceptance & Welcome Bonuses
Applying for Merrick Bank credit cards is easy since the process can be completed online. You can apply for their secured credit cards even with a poor credit score.
Merrick Bank offers credit to customers with no credit history. As a result, you can apply for the Double Your Line Secured Visa and Secured Visa credit cards with no credit history and even no to poor credit scores.
According to FICO, a poor credit score means a credit score of less than 580. So, even if your credit score is below 580, you can apply for Merrick Bank Secured credit cards and rebuild your credit.
According to Merrick Bank’s policy, you can only own one Merrick Bank Secured Credit Card at a time. If you already have one of their secured credit cards and apply for another, it will be rejected.
Merrick Bank provides no clear information about how often you can apply for their credit cards. However, if you pay the security deposit and then your application gets declined, they refund the money within 30 days. So, you can re-apply once you get the refund. You can also go by the rule of thumb that you can reapply after 90 days if you have been declined earlier for the credit card.
Merrick Bank doesn’t specify anything about the number of times you can get approved for their cards. However, from their policy of one secured card at a time, it is implied that if you have already been approved with one of their secured credit cards and you are applying for another simultaneously, the application will be rejected.
Merrick Bank doesn’t offer any welcome bonus on any of its three credit cards.
Other Considerations About Merrick Bank
Before you apply for a Merrick Bank credit card, you need to consider different factors to evaluate and understand whether the card is suitable for you. The factors include customer services, mobile applications, rewards, charges and more.
Feature | Description |
---|---|
Customer Service & Satisfaction | Customer Service and customer satisfaction are Merrick Bank's top priorities. As per reviews found on the internet, Merrick Bank takes good care of their customers’ satisfaction. You can contact them by calling their customer service number. You can also send mail to their headquarters. |
Mobile Apps & Online Services | GoMobile is the mobile application that Merrick Bank offers to their customers. This app helps you check your account balance, schedule payments, view payment history and transaction details and more. You can also check and monitor the FICO scores using this application. The security measures are top-notch, and your data and information are protected. You can download this app from Google Play where it has a rating of 4.1. iPhone users can get the app from the Apple Store where it received a rating of 2.6. |
Security & Credit Monitoring Services | Merrick Bank prioritizes security above anything else. They secure customers’ information with multiple security layers like Transport Layer Security (TLS), which is a protocol for transmitting information securely over the internet. Then there are private keys to securely transfer data. The authentication process is mandatory for every customer. They also use encryption to process sensitive data. They even offer a firewall to prevent unauthorized access to their database and site. Moreover, there is an Intrusion detection system to detect any intruder into the system and to top it all, they do not even use emails to contact customers nor can customers email them. |
Loyalty Programs & Other Issuer Perks | Merrick Bank doesn’t have any particular loyalty program as of now. However, as they offer Visa cards, cardholders get benefits from Visa. The benefits and rewards include exclusive deals on travels, shopping, entertainment and more. |
Authorized Users | Merrick Bank does give you the opportunity to add an authorized user. For more information about how that works and the cost, contact the bank directly. |
Purchase Protection | Merrick Bank doesn’t offer purchase protection on any of its three credit cards. |
Co-Branding & Partnerships | Merrick Bank has a partnership with:
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Other Products Offered | Merrick Bank provides personal loans, acquiring services, recreational loans and certificates of deposits. It is mainly a financial institution that focuses on lending to people with poor credit scores. |
Overall Opinion of Merrick Bank & Their Credit Card Offerings
Merrick Bank offers both secured and unsecured credit cards. However, the secured ones are more popular because they are offered to people with lower credit scores. Merrick Bank also offers $0 fraud liability protection, FICO scores for free, and you can double your credit limit within just seven months by paying bills on time. Keep in mind that the APR is on the higher side, and Merrick Bank also charges foreign transaction fees.
Merrick Bank credit cards and the offerings can be suitable for the following people:
An individual trying to build or rebuild credit
With the Merrick Bank Double Your Line® Secured Credit Card and Merrick Bank Secured Credit Card Credit Cards, people with no credit history can apply and get a line of credit. By paying on time, they can not only get a higher credit limit but also improve their credit scores.
People looking to learn good financial habits
With Merrick Banks offerings like Moneysense or GoLearn, people who want to change their financial habits, like overspending, overutilization of credit or people looking to build good financial habits, can get help.
"Merrick Bank offers attractive credit cards for consumers who are looking to build or repair their credit score. Features like the ability to double your credit line and receive a review in just seven months reward consumers who act responsibly with their finances as they establish better behaviors. Getting a credit card from Merrick Bank can be a good jumping off point towards popular credit cards with the best benefits and rewards."
- Lee Huffman, credit card expert at BaldThoughts.com
Still Not Sure About This Issuer? Consider These Options.
Merrick Bank credit cards are a good option for people with low or no credit scores. However, you can compare Merrick Bank cards and other credit card issuers and their offering to find the one that suits your requirement the best.
Learn more about credit cards in general
About Doug Milnes, CFA
![Doug Milnes, CFA headshot](https://res.cloudinary.com/moneygeek/image/upload/c_scale,q_auto:eco,f_auto,fl_lossy,w_160/v1585262247/bbgpw5eliaweh29jfpd8.png)
Doug Milnes is a CFA charter holder with over 10 years of experience in corporate finance and the Head of Credit Cards at MoneyGeek. Formerly, he performed valuations for Duff and Phelps and financial planning and analysis for various companies. His analysis has been cited by U.S. News and World Report, The Hill, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times and many other outlets.
Milnes holds a master’s degree in data science from Northwestern University. He geeks out on helping people feel on top of their credit card use, from managing debt to optimizing rewards.
sources
- ConsumerAffairs. "Merrick Bank." Accessed January 13, 2022.
- Merrick Bank. "Contact Us." Accessed January 13, 2022.
- Merrick Bank. "Our Cards." Accessed January 13, 2022.
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