USAA Secured American Express

USAA's secured American Express is a deposit-backed credit builder with no annual fee, which is the right shape for the job: put down a deposit, charge a little each month, pay it off in full, and let the account build history for you. It also charges no foreign transaction fee, which is worth noting on a starter card, since it stays usable on a trip abroad. The catch is that it does nothing beyond that: there is no earn rate on any category, so none of your spending comes back to you. The ongoing APR is a flat 26.4%, high enough that carrying a balance would undo the point of building credit carefully. Treat it as a stepping stone, use it lightly, and graduate to a card that actually pays you once your file is established.