It might be a bit awkward for us to be on a limb here but let’s be honest, credit cards are not for everyone. That’s right, they are not for everyone.
For some people, an access to a credit card can often lead to overspending and a lot of expenditures resulting in debt and bad credit. These are scary things to have. Another fact is that some people are not truly responsible enough to have a credit card.
In fact, they ought to remain with a debit card and leave credit cards aside.
However, we all live in a society where almost everything is done through a plastic card.
If anyone wishes to rent a car, book a hotel room, book a vacation, buy something online or from a shop, they often find themselves in need of a credit card. Luckily, there are options for prepaid credit cards present especially for those not sure of whether a credit card is for them, for those who cannot trust themselves with it or those who cannot get approved for a credit card.
Prepaid credit cards – how do they work?
Prepaid credit cards character is evident in their name.
They are similar to gift cards and the balances in these cards are paid in advance before they are able to use them for the sake of purchasing things (good and services).
With these prepaid balances, everyone will be able to make purchases as they would do so with a normal credit card but within the margin of their balance.
What are the different kinds of prepaid cards present?
There are two main kinds of prepaid credit cards which are as under:
1. Store brought prepaid credit cards
Store-brought prepaid credit cards are often the easiest ones to find. They are one-time use prepaid credit cards that have preset amounts of them like $25, $50, $100 and $150 etc. They can be purchased at most grocery stores and gas stations. They often make up for great gift options.
2. Prepaid credit cards issued by banks
Prepaid credit cards and there are some great bitcoin wallet issued by banks can be a little hard to obtain. If people wish to get a hold of one these cards, they will need to apply for one either through a bank or its website.
The balance on these cards depends on how much people want to invest on them and how much they want but up to a certain limit.
Prepaid credit cards on Visa
There are a considerable number of prepaid Visa cards in the market which are as under:
- KOHO.
- CIBC Smart Prepaid Visa Card.
- Vanilla Prepaid Visa.
- MogoCard.
Prepaid credit cards on Mastercard
Those who are looking for prepaid Mastercard cards, they should know that there are a few options in the market. Here is a quick view at some:
- Stack Mastercard.
- Vanilla Prepaid Mastercard.
- BMO Prepaid Travel Mastercard.
Stack Mastercard
The Stack Card is one of the newer prepaid credit cards which is taking this space by storm. It is backed by the People’s Trust Company; this card has some fun features to help it stand out amongst the crowd:
- Rewards and savings at select partners.
- Mobile pay through Samsung Pay and Fitbit Pay.
- Free stack-to-stack transfers.
- Financial tools, tips, and banking app.
- No fees and no foreign exchange fees.
The stack card even gives you the ability to supercharge people’s savings by rounding up all your purchases to the nearest $1, $2, $5, or $10, putting the extra money towards your savings goals. Stack also offers a nice referral program making card owners earn $5 for every friend they ever.
Vanilla Prepaid Mastercard
One of the most common types of prepaid cards present out there is the Vanilla Mastercard gift cards. They can be purchased anywhere and come with various activation fees. For a $25 card, the activation fee is $3.95 and for a $50 card, the activation fee is $4.95. For a $100 card, the activation fee is $5.95 and for a $200 car, the activation is $6.95.
These cards though come with expiry dates, the funds on the card will not expire. All that is needed is for cardholders to contact the customer service and put the remaining balance on a new card and mail it to them.
If cardholders make purchases in foreign currencies, they will be charged a 2.5% fee on those purchases.
