The Citi Secured Mastercard is a solid choice for those looking to build credit history, reporting to all major credit bureaus. While it doesn't offer rewards or cashback and has a high-interest rate, it charges no annual fee and provides credit-building educational tools and identity theft protection.
Read more
Ideal for beginners or those with limited credit history.
By Harlon Drosghic Apr 2026
See How to Apply
Citi Secured Mastercard
Citi • Mastercard
- Annual Fee
- Free
- Minimum Income
- —
- Interest Rate
- 2.166% a.m.
Score by category
Rewards
★★★★★ 2.8/5
Score by category
Rewards
Credit Building ★★★★★ 3.9/5
- Upgrade Path 2.5
- Credit Bureau Reporting 5.0
- Educational Tools 3.5
- Credit Limit Growth 2.5
- Approval Accessibility 5.0
Lower Fees ★★★★★ 3.8/5
- Annual Fee Value 5.0
- Cost Transparency 3.5
- Fee Waiver Potential 4.0
- Penalty Friendliness 2.5
- Foreign Transaction Fee 3.0
Purchase Perks ★★★★★ 0.6/5
- Purchase Protection 2.5
Travel Perks ★★★★★ 0.5/5
- No Foreign Tx Fees 3.0
Score by category
User Experience
★★★★★ 3.7/5
Score by category
User Experience
App / Experience ★★★★★ 3.8/5
- Ease of Navigation 4.0
- Self-Service 4.0
- Billing Clarity 3.5
- Feature Quality 3.5
- App Speed & Stability 4.0
Support Quality ★★★★★ 3.6/5
- Response Time 3.5
- Channel Availability 4.0
- Agent Professionalism 4.0
- First-Contact Resolution 3.5
- Resolution Effectiveness 3.5
Transparency ★★★★★ 3.6/5
- Terms Simplicity 3.5
- Billing Transparency 3.5
- Fee & Interest Clarity 4.0
- Charge Predictability 3.5
- Communication Clarity 3.5
Security & Control ★★★★★ 3.8/5
- Card Control Features 4.0
- Fraud Protection 4.0
- Virtual Card Experience 4.0
- Incident Resolution 3.5
- Real-Time Monitoring 3.5
Benefits Usability ★★★★★ 3.3/5
- Ease of Earning 3.5
- Ease of Tracking 3.5
- Real-World Value 3.0
- Rules Simplicity 3.5
- Ease of Redeeming 3.0
Pros & Cons Citi Secured Mastercard
Pros
- ✓No annual fee
- ✓Helps build credit history
- ✓Reports to all major credit bureaus
- ✓No foreign transaction fees
- ✓Free access to FICO score
Cons
- ✗No rewards or cashback
- ✗High-interest rate
- ✗Limited perks
- ✗Requires security deposit
- ✗Potential security deposit mismanagement
Expert Analysis
AI Analysis
Citocred AI
The Citi Secured Mastercard is a solid choice for those looking to build credit history, reporting to all major credit bureaus.
Full analysis
While it doesn't offer rewards or cashback and has a high-interest rate, it charges no annual fee and provides credit-building educational tools and identity theft protection. Ideal for beginners or those with limited credit history.
Best for
Credit-building individuals
Avoid if
Frequent travelers or reward-seekers
AI-generated analysis · Methodology by Harlon Drosghic
Credit-building individuals
Frequent travelers or reward-seekers
Frequently Asked Questions
Citi Secured Mastercard
What is the interest rate for the Citi Secured Mastercard?
Does the Citi Secured Mastercard include airport lounge access?
Does the Citi Secured Mastercard include travel insurance?
Who should get the Citi Secured Mastercard?
Is the Citi Secured Mastercard worth it?
The Citi Secured Mastercard provides a set of benefits designed to add genuine value to your financial routine:
Purchase Protection
Contactless Payment
Virtual Card
International Acceptance
See 9 benefits not included in this card
- Cashback See which cards include this benefit →
- Points Program See which cards include this benefit →
- Miles Program See which cards include this benefit →
- Lounge Access See which cards include this benefit →
- Travel Insurance See which cards include this benefit →
- Extended Warranty See which cards include this benefit →
- Concierge See which cards include this benefit →
- Apple Pay See which cards include this benefit →
- Google Pay See which cards include this benefit →
Features — Detalhes
Fees
Rewards
Premium
Digital
Additional Benefits
- • $0 Liability on unauthorized charges
- • Free access to your FICO score online
- • Mastercard® ID Theft Protection™
How We Rate Cards
Every card on Citocred is independently scored by our AI research team across six dimensions: fee value, rewards program, interest rates, digital experience, customer support quality, and overall value. Scores are derived from publicly available issuer data, cross-referenced and updated periodically.
We maintain full editorial independence — no issuer pays for ranking position. 'Apply' links may include affiliate referrals that support our free content. This never influences our editorial scores or assessments.
Read our full methodology →
Founder of Citocred · MBA in Finance (PUC Minas) · Creator of the proprietary card scoring methodology · 5+ years in programmatic media and financial content marketing.