This Mercury credit card review will cover all that you need to know about the Mercury™ Mastercard®. You are about to learn all that you need to know about this card and decide if it’s the best fit for you.
Do you have credit issues and want to work your way up to a positive credit score? If yes, then the Mercury credit card may just be the card for you. But before you decide, it is time to learn more about the card.
Mercury™ Mastercard® At a Glance
The Mercury™ Mastercard® is designed for people with poor credit scores. It is a no-annual fee unsecured card that helps those with challenging credit to boost their score. The interest rate that comes with this card is quite high. However, if you can religiously pay the statement balance in full, you have nothing to worry about. With this card, you are on your way up to credit-building success.
Who is the Card For?
This card is ideal for the following categories of people:
- Those who have had credit issues in the past.
- Those who want an unsecured card that does not charge an annual fee.
- If you plan to pay your balance in full every month.
- Those who have received a pre-approval letter from Mercury™
Mercury™ Mastercard® Features
With the Mercury credit card, people with average credit can boost their credit score with responsible use of the card. The Mercury card is issued via First Bank & Trust of South Dakota. It charges no annual fee. This makes it one of the few credit cards in the market that does not pass the yearly maintenance costs to cardholders. Since this card does not charge an annual fee, it makes it one of the best credit cards for people with a bad credit score.
FICO Score Access
Just like you would expect from any credit builder credit card, the Mercury Mastercard offers complimentary access to an individual’s FICO score every month. Cardholders have access to their credit score via the app. This helps them keep track of their credit-building progress every step of the way.
The Mercury App
Along with the Mercury, the credit card comes an app. The Mercury Mastercard app offers cardholders a secure way of checking their account balance and transaction history. It also helps them in managing their linked bank accounts to pay their monthly statements. Just like you would expect from any app, the Mercury Mastercard app also has some not-so-good sides about it. Most cardholders that are either Barclay’s holdovers or new to Mercury complain about encountering issues with both the app and the card’s website.
Be it as it may, the Mercury Mastercard app is not all bad. Also, you have to understand that negative reviews likely represent a small portion of the card’s clientele.
The Mercury App is available in both the Google Play Store and App Stores depending on your device specifications.
No Annual Fee
The Mercury Mastercard makes an exception from the way most unsecured cards operate. It charges no annual fee, which makes it an excellent tool for boosting a credit score without incurring additional costs. One of the major problems with credit cards for average credit scores has always been annual fees. This makes it a burden especially when a score improves. This is because 15% of a FICO Score is based on the average age of credit. Closing accounts have a way of damaging a credit score. This implies that those with sub-prime credit cards that charge an annual fee are trapped in a cycle of paying a yearly fee for a card they no longer want.
A Very High APR
This particular feature puts the Mercury card in the same trap as other sub-prime credit cards. This is because it features sky-high interest rates. The rate with the card is variable. However since the card is targeted at those in the process of rebuilding their credit, the rates do not vary that much.
But even at the lower end of the interest rate spectrum, the card’s APR for purchases and balance transfers is still above 25%. Those at the tail end of this range are getting an interest rate closer to 28%. Understand that both rates are considerably higher than the national average APR for those with fair credit scores which currently stands at 24%.
Other Card Features
- The Mercury Mastercard benefits from the global acceptance of the Mastercard payment network. But that’s not to say it is the best card option for using outside of the United States. The card features a foreign transaction fee of 3% of the transaction cost in US dollars. Even though this is not the worst rate out there, it is certainly not as good as a card that charges no foreign transaction fees at all.
- Cardholders enjoy a variety of perks, like $0 fraud liability coverage if their card is lost or stolen.
- Cardholders enjoy Mastercard ID Theft Protection and emergency wallet replacement. With this, they never have to worry about their missing card or fraudulent activities on their account.
Mercury™ Mastercard® Fees
- Regular Purchase APR –99% to 28.99% variable depending on creditworthiness and the Prime Rate.
- Balance Transfer APR –99% to 28.99% variable depending on creditworthiness and the Prime Rate.
- Cash Advance APR –99% to 30.99% variable depending on the Prime Rate
- Annual Fee – None
- Credit Required –Fair
- Return Penalty Fee –Up to $40
- Late Payment Penalty Fee –Up to $40
- Foreign Transaction Fee –3% of the transaction cost in US dollars
- Cash Advance Transaction Fee –Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance whichever is greater
- Balance Transfer Transaction Fee –Either $5 or 4% of the amount of each balance transfer whichever is greater
Any Rewards?
Unfortunately, Mercury does not provide up-front information on the rewards that users can earn as they use their cards. The Mercury card offers cashback rewards to some users, but not for others according to myFICO. These rewards can range from 1% cashback to 2% cashback on all purchases with no cap. Unfortunately, since the rewards vary, it is quite impossible to say what reward points you may get with your reservation code or application. The same is the case for credit limits and credit limit increases.
Did Barclays Buy Mercury?
Even though the Mercury Mastercard is issued by First Bank & Trust, the card is actually the product of CreditShop. CreditShop is a financial services company that purchased a significant portion of the Barclays’ credit card portfolio in 2018. This purchase has resulted in some Barclays cardholder’s accounts being switched to the new Mercury Mastercard.
The Mercury Mastercard is not affiliated with Barclays or Barclaycard. Rather it shares ownership with a company that purchased a large share of the Barclays portfolio. Especially credit cards for people with average credit or bad credit.
Should You Apply for the Mercury™ Mastercard®?
The Mercury credit card would be an ideal option for those who are looking to rebuild their credit score. However not for those who don’t want to be tied down with a substandard card that charges an annual fee once their score improves. The regular reporting to all the major credit bureaus with no annual fee is also another point to consider. However, bear in mind high-interest rate charges.
Another limiting factor is the fact that First Bank & Trust only allows, those who receive a reservation code in the mail to apply.
Since this card requires a fair credit score, it may be difficult to get for those with a credit score in the low. Say 600s or a credit score of 580 or more.