United States of America

United States dollar

Personal/Business

Deserve is a fintech and card-as-a-service (CaaS) company. They provide leading financial institutions with the ability to offer their customers branded credit cards (white-label). Deserve has built out a CaaS platform with tools, analysis, and education for its customers. Deserve is not a bank and uses Celtic Bank, a Utah-chartered industrial bank and Member of the FDIC, to issue its credit cards.

Card Issuers

Cards

Deserve

Great

Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Instagram

Pricing of the services

Social media presence

Popularity of the service

Onboarding difficulty

Support quality

API integration

Card Programs

Card providers

Cash withdrawal

Credit cards

Crypto Cards

Crypto-friendly Account

Wallets

White label

Wire Transfer Acceptance

It will be a great choice to opt for this card, for those who just start building a credit history, especially International Students. All great except that it might need little update with the card payments processing. Like, if card payments gets processed and account reflect with updated  balance instantly or at max in a business day.

Payments processing

I got a cc with $1000 limit but the interest rate is very high.

I got a cc with $1000 limit but the…

Great credit card

One of the best platforms to get a credit card if you are an international student.
They increase your credit limit with you even asking about it. 
really happy to have then and build a credit l.

Best credit card for international students

good

Good product with good perks for students with no credit, provided they are credit savvy.

Good product with good perks for beginners

As the first credit card that I was able to get approved for out of high school, it really helped me get to where I'm at today in terms of credit standing.

As the first credit card that I was…

Easy

This card helped me a lot when I did not have SSN.

Credit card without SSN

Deserve is easy to work with and understand. Perfect first card for a student!

Deserve is easy to work with

Not good cash back. They don’t increase your credit limit on request. Really good for students. Not so many perks abd offers.

Not good cash back

If I can give this company a 0 star I will definitely do. I filed a dispute over a service I didn't got, and mistakenly click on the " withdraw case " button literally mistakenly.  I emailed this company I got no reply, I called and customer service mentioned they can't do anything about it but rather email them again. Which I did, but till today I still haven't got a reply. You guys need to step up on your game when it comes to customer service, it's soo poor man. It's been more than 2 weeks I'm trying to reach out but no response.

I will like to give ZERO star

I have had a smooth experience as a first time credit card user

I have had a smooth experience as a…

My first credit card, love the color scheme on it, credit reports monthly, and fair credit limit.

Great product

I like that they accepted me for a credit card when I initially had no credit, and that with my on time payments, my credit limit has been increasing a lot. Thanks to them, I have a good, developing credit score.

Deserve: the beginning frontier

If you are a student with zero credit history and low income this credit card is a solid option. When I applied I had no credit score and very little income and I was accepted. The Deserve Edu does help build credit, because they report your payments to both Experian and Transunion, however they do not report to Equifax. Another great aspect of this card is that credit limit increases, in my experience, are common. Rewards are lackluster, the amazon prime signup bonus is good, but the 1% cash back is quite bad considering you can only recieve your cash back after you accumulate $25. This means you must spend $2500 to recieve ANY cash back. Overall I would recommend this card, but certain aspects of it keep my rating at a 4/5.
Edit: After reading the reply I attempted to find my equifax reports. They do indeed report to Equifax as well. Changing review to 5 stars.

Great beginner card with some flaws

although the initial credit limit was only $500, i noticed after more activity on the card and obviously paying on time,  my limit was raised to $2500. i do not have any cards with $500 credit line and quite a few of them are well over $10,000 but now the issue is resolved and i don't see a reason to cancel my card because of low credit limit.$500 to me means if i want to keep my utilization below 10 percent i can only charge maximum of $50 on a card and that's why for keeping my scores above 770 (average) i need to follow this rule.

credit limit was increased twice within a year from $500 to $2500

Customer service was so so terrible. Called AND emailed multiple times and talked to several people who did not have the answer to a simple question. International call center does not work at all. Card was also declined many many times abroad at places it should have worked. Credit limit was JUST increased from $500 to $1,000 after a full year even though I have two other credit cards (american express and bank of america) offering a $8,000+ credit line. I have never paid a bill late and always pay the full amount I can. The rewards are also terrible. I can literally get double the amount of rewards through any other bank. Will be cancelling this card very soon. UPDATE: I would like to note that I responded to customer service representative below to give them feedback and they repeatedly ignored me and did not respond to any my communications.

Worst Credit Card on the Planet

I disputed a GooglePlay charge. I did buy the service (a feature in an app) but was it never delivered. The developer didn't respond either. After disputing the charge, maybe 5 months ago, the dispute still hasn't been resolved. Would recommend to give up the card entirely.

5 months on, disputed charge still not solved

Amazing card

It’s great, easy and simple. The process of applying for a credit card is amazing. Even as a long time card holder for them, their app is easy to use and helps you see all your payment activity. Most of all, you get to see your credit score for free. This is a great card for beginners who need to begin credit history! Overall, I highly recommend it!

It’s great, easy and simple!

good credit card to start with, especially if you have no credit built up.

good first credit card

I am using deserve credit card from last one year..they didn't increase my credit limit.. they increase the limit after one year which is very bad  because i regularly used card and paid before the time and i not have any penalties....i have call several time to increase my limit...the customer service  is not good...

I am using deserve credit card from…

After spending and paying off more than $53,000 in a 7-8 month period, I had a PayPal purchase from an out of state vendor that provided me a defective product. I attempted to work in good faith with the vendor for a couple of months, with lots of requests for my patience when I called in to inquire and telling me someone would get back with me to provide an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization). After couple months of being run around and no resolution in sight, I realized that I needed to just dispute the charge.

Given my history with other Credit Cards I filed directly with my card company (Deserve) - spoiler alert... I should've just filed with PayPal.

I provided quite a bit of documentation including dates, times, and money expended attempting to have professionals troubleshoot the product I'd received before ultimately concluding it was defective or poorly designed. After filing everything via e-mail (as the Dispute team will NOT actually talk with someone over the phone), I received an e-mail several weeks later saying that they had not found in my favor on the dispute. Once I requested the evidence used to determine the decision, I was sent a mostly blank form sent to them by the seller with the only evidence being in the notes section. It said:

“Hi, the customer had 30 days to return the unit they have not done so. Please provide a tracking number. Thank You”

So after providing ample documentation of initiating conversations well within the 30 day return period (side note, PayPal protects you for 6 months against defective products regardless of the return policy), and then demonstrating they had continually kicked the can down the road by refusing to provide me an RMA #, the determination was based on the seller saying essentially "well, they had 30 days... too bad sucker!"?

Over my last 20 years or so using credit cards, the odd disputes I've filed have all been either conceded by the seller or found in my favor by the Credit Card Company. Between all my Credit Cards, I typically spend around $15-20k/mo (and have the occasional month where I spend $250-300k in a month for business). I have never been so disappointed with shear lack of concern or effort put forth by a Credit Card provider.

If you are able, stick with Chase Bank, AMEX, & Apple Credit Cards. They actually work to protect their users.

No Consumer Protection

The problem of card failure often occurs, but the card with other banks can be passed. Now I have brought other credit cards with me and put this card in home

The problem of card failure often…

This is the best credit card for students. Not only do I get a percentage back but I earned a credit increase. I hope that pattern continues.

This is the best credit card for…

Really help to build your credit score. Loving it!

Really help to build your credit score

Very bad in increasing credit limits

Great credit card to get started on. They gave me a credit card (without taking a deposit from me) even before I had an SSN when I was an International student. This was a great place to start and I highly recommend it for students.

Great credit card to get started on

Deserve is a life saver in multiple ways. As an international student they were the only ones giving me a chance to show that I can be as trustworthy as a native,helping me build my credit. Easy and clear. I recommend them to all.

Deserve is a life saver

Really good card for International Students!

This card was my first in the US and helped me start building my credit score. Decent credit limit initially and does give limit increases when you use it responsibly.

Really good card for International…

Pretty solid in terms of a intro credit card, your limit goes up with them and it's easy to apply into.

Pretty solid in terms of a intro credit…

great service

I have loved being with Deserve! Not only is their app easy to use, but their customer service when I have issues is excellent.

I have loved being with Deserve

The only issue I faced with Deserve is that sometimes my cashback rewards isn't automatically applied in time. 
Other than that, it's been great.

The only issue I faced with Deserve is…

I've been having a decent experience with Deserve, paying my bills on time, however the app on the Google Play store hasn't been updated for almost a year. People worry about security and when banking apps are updated on a frequent bases it's to make sure customers see the company is in there best interest. Improve your mobile app, respect your user base that has issues with it, it has issues.

Mobile App Neglected By Deserve

I googled "good credit cards for first time-card holders" and Deserve was highly touted.  I am 18, making pretty good income for my age, and have zero credit.  I was rejected and when I called in to figure out why the agent said "contact a credit analyst".  NOT A GOOD CARD FOR FIRST TIMERS!  Stay away.  They must be great at getting their name out on Google, but not good at anything else.

Stay Away!!!!

I have been rejected 4 times already despite having an excellent credit and reason being pointless in antibodies opinion. Am currently a student based on the reasons how do you expect me to fulfill them. Almost like asking for a 23 year old workers but with ten years experience

I have been rejected 4 times already…

Useless bank. Bunch of cults work here. Blocked my account for $450 transactions and sent out an email. After replying I called every day for 3 days and hearing the same thing we dis not receive your reply. Duck you I’ve all the proofs. Don’t ducking lie to customers. I don’t want to waste my time writing review for this bank useless. People who are reading this please don’t consider this bank. It’s useless and you will be ducked.

Useless bank

To whoever is looking for a card and you select deserve credit card do not and I repeat do not apply for this car there are liars you're going to waste your inquiry on your credit report and bring your score down I have a score of 661 and they declined my application so don't waste your time this is what they're stating Serious delinquency and public record or collection filed
●   Number of accounts delinquent
●   Length of time accounts have been established
●   Proportion of current loan balance to original loan amount

To whoever is looking for a card and…

It is extremely rare for me to say something positive about a bank.  Deserve Pro Mastercard has a no frills, but adequate website and their credit lines are chinsy (they gave me $2k), but their app is good, they are straightforward getting cash back (no hoops with points, they just auto post it to your account every month), and they give  a generous 3% on travel and entertainment and 2% on restaurants.  (No rolling categories to keep track of).  I use this card as my go to card for those categories.  NO foreign (international) ATM fees. The low credit line is fine because they only give the 3% and 2% cash back up to $500 in charges per month, and above the $500 they give 1%.  That's the only negative for me, hence the four stars and not five. They have good info info the site for people building credit and paying off your balance every month, which you won't find on Wells Fargo's site!!   Their rules applying for the Pro card  were inconsistent, in fact one place on the site said the Pro card was by invitation only, but they let me open it without one.  I like this card.

It is extremely rare for me to say…

It’s really inefficient and unreliable. I should get my card in the beginning of September and this is what the company asks me to expect for. But I didn’t get one until the day they mentioned and I called them for the reasons. They replied there was a shipment problem and they would send out a new one that day so I was expected to get it by Sep. 28. However, they sent me an email on Sep. 24 saying there was another shortage producing the card, so all the process would be delayed. I wrote back in anger that they didn’t obey their commitment and they replied the next day that I need to wait for another 7-10 business days for my card, which would be mid-October. They don’t inform every problem until you contact with them. It’s really in worse service and I recommend applying a BoA credit card instead. :)


The phone calls are not working at all. Sometimes no one answered but it was during business hour! Sometimes they didn’t even ring!

It’s really inefficient and unreliable

Horrible customer service. They don't reply for weeks and there is no way to contact the required team. The customer support representatives have little to no information to handle request related to disputes. No effort is taken to verify the information. Highly disappointed with the service. Unsecure.

Update: The team from Deserve replied on Trust Pilot in 1 hour but they haven't contact me in 20 days as they mentioned in their reply. When I try reaching out to them they say please email for which I never get a reply. I have been following on my dispute for 3 months now and have not received any reply from Deserve. This is not the way to handle your loyal customers. Totally disappointed.

Horrible customer service. Don't get

Great Service

App interface could be better, but overall the service quality and reliability has not given me any significant problems. Would reccomend to people who are just starting off with credit cards!

Pretty decent

Best platform for starters, especially without SSN

Best platform for starters

Deserve provides card to students without SSN. Thanks for letting me start my financial journey in USA.

Deserve provides card to students…

I've been using this credit card since 2019 and I love it soo much to the point that it protects me from scams. I love the app and everything is clear. The only issue with this credit is that it is hard to insrease your limit since it is based on your history with them other than that I am happy with the service and products

Amazing Credit Card & Protected from Scams

I had an absolutely horrible experience from Deserve. I was approved for the Deserve EDU Mastercard on June 23rd and after more than a month, they still haven't sent me the card (August 12th now), despite multiple calls to their customer support. I'll get the second billing statement next week, and still no card!
It's just been a total headache dealing with their customer support, who just keeps endlessly pushing back the timeframes for me to receive the card- they made me wait one full month before re-issuing the card, and kept on asking me to wait for a couple more days every time I call them after the standard 5-10 business days time frame. And I've verified my address multiple times, so it seems something is terribly wrong with their shipping, since I've been getting other USPS mails just fine. Just know that if at all something goes wrong, their customer service might just keep giving you false promises without trying to sort out the issue properly.
I finally got tired of contacting their customer support, filed a complaint with the CFPB (unsurprisingly, Deserve Inc was not even registered with the CFPB), and got a credit card from Discover- and I finally have some peace of mind.

No card, it's almost two billing cycles now!

Best for students

Great card. App could be better. I wish I could see a more complete breakdown of the money that was owed and due on the account. They purposely make it slightly more difficult to view a breakdown of your balance, but other than that, great card. They even increased my credit limit after a couple months!

Great card. App could be better.

I've really enjoyed using this card and the app; the notifications are helpful and payments couldn't be easier. The app is extremely intuitive and secure, and I got a replacement card in the mail really quickly when I lost my first one. Also, I love keeping track of my score in the app. I would recommend this cars to anyone, especially new credit card users like myself.

Excellent First Credit Card Experience

easy to use, thanks for this type of card, especially for ones that don't have SSN in the beginning.

easy to use

I have enjoyed having this card. I got amazon prime for a year free. I have no problems and they increased my limit because of my responsible use. Easy credit card to have!

I have enjoyed having this card

Deserve was my first ever credit card and it has done nothing but help me. The payments are reasonable! I do hope for a lower interest rate but soon I am sure.

Deserve was my first ever credit card…

Great starter card. I am a college student with zero credit history. I applied for a few cards before I head about education cards for students like myself. I wanted one that had ok benefits, but more than anything, wasn't going to take my money. This card gives me 1% cash back with zero monthly/annual fees. It also sends frequent reminders letting me know my payment is due soon/has been received, etc. After one year of use, I have no complaints and I recommended it to my siblings. App is a little janky, but nothing you can't figure out. Overall I'm very happy with it.

Great starter card

Deserve is the best student credit card that provides lots of amenities and advantages.

Best student credit card

It is good

I helped my daughter try to get this card as her first credit card, starting college. The application process was a nightmare. We followed all the instructions, and then they demanded a copy of her studend ID card. She only had a digital copy, as she hadn't started school yet. Went back and forth with them for weeks, playing phone tag, unable to reach anyone who would answer the phone. Hours wasted, I finally sent an email of my frustrations. A supervisor called and said the digital copy would be fine. So she submitted it again and a week later her whole application was denied because of the lack of student ID (which she had sent successfully numerous times). Total waste of time, we will be going elsewhere and never doing business with Deserve again.

*Update. Their response to me directly provided no actual assistance. Their reply on this website was just for show.

New student unable to get card

Love this app…

I don't normally write reviews because I don't bother to put in the effort even when it's a bad service. But I had such a bad experience with them, especially at the end that I put in the effort to just create an account here so that I can write one to warn anyone considering opening one in the future (even put my real name!). I was with deserve for 3+ years because it offers easy applications for international students and I wanted to build credit. It was really good at the beginning but the more I use the worse it got encountering problems after problems. 

I decided to close my account a week ago after getting fed up and it has to be the biggest hassle I've ever experience. The final straw was them charging me interest out of nowhere and how they don't tell you when they will charge. They don't answer emails apparently and also looks for ways to charge you extra. Apparently I will also not get my cashback that I worked to build up by spending using their account cause I closed it (a good company would give their customer what's due when they close their account because that's what they owe/promised). 

They don't care about their customer! I've been a consistent daily user of their credit card and pay off my dues on time and in full every week. Anyone who see my statements and history can vouch how good of a user I am! So imagine how good of a long term customer I am and they still treat my badly, any new or short term users would be even worse! Very disappointing, heavily NOT recommended, if there's any review you should believe or look at, please take this one into consideration!

-------
**Edited section towards deserve team's response: I already tried emailing you guys at that email, the first time you said you will reply in 1-2 business days but it's been a week and haven't gotten a reply. When I try to email deserve again (and just now!), I couldn't as it seems you guys blacklisted my email whether or accident or on purpose because you don't want to deal with me/close my account. So I can't even email you guys anyway at that email even if I wanted to. Also when I email you at another email instead, it works but you just sent me an automated response saying to email you at the one that's on the system for security purpose (which is blacklisted). So you can see how I'm just going in a circle right lol. There's literally no way to contact you by email.

Horrible service for a long term user, not reccomended!

I have loved my Deserve card! I have had no problems thus far, the app is easy to use and follow and I like that there is an option to set up automatic payments despite the fact that I make them manually every month. I like that there is still an option in case I feel the need to use that instead. I have had no issues and I can't wait to keep shopping with it!

I have loved my Deserve card!

Excellent Deserve  in every way !

I just love the app. So easy to use and efficient.

I just love the app

Limited operating hours. Payments can sometimes post late when you pay them the day before or on due date. I recommend to always screen shot your payment with date time and confirmation code, to send ad proof if there’s an error of payment posting on time. They are friendly and they do work well to resolve issues. I do like the app. Charges are immediately push notified to your phone. Balances seem to always be real-time. Card can easily be paused on app within 2 seconds.

Nice Yet Small Credit Card Company

Best credit card for international students. No SSN required, 1% cashback, 1 year amazon prime and much more. (To get $30 bonus, use referral code EE643 while applying)

Made for international students

A great company and give people a chance to rebuild there credit thanks you so much

A great company and give people a…

It is great to use and easy to access everywhere.Great customer service. Fun designs on the cards.Use it for vacations, emergencies. Always there when I need it.

great features and great security

I’ve come to really enjoy this little card. Initially I wasn’t impressed because of the small credit line I had for a long time. But, recently, after regular use, my credit limit has been extended. The rewards system seems to be on par with other reward cards.

I’ve come to really enjoy this little…

Good card for fair or no credit beginners. There is good cashback value and no international transaction fee

Good card for beginners

Great credit card to get my credit started. I opened my account when i turned 18 and my credit has been great

Great credit card to get my credit

very disappointed with this credit card customer service

very disappointed with this credit card…

Deserve EDU Mastercard was one of the only options I had with no credit history as a college student. They took a chance on me and slightly over a year of having the card they raised my credit limit thanks to me always paying on time and in full. Now my credit score sits at around 711 and so many credit card pre-approvals come in the mail. I'll stick by Deserve for them taking a chance on me. I would recommend it to any friends with little to no credit history that are students.

Deserve EDU Mastercard was one of the…

App is super easy to use. Tracking payments, balance, and rewards is extremely simple.
I'm a student with very limited income and I had no credit but I was still approved and I'm extremely grateful. My credit has grown from the opportunity.

Very satisfied

Great credit card for students! Good customer service as well.

Great credit card for students

You guys are excellent

I love how the application was easy to use, interactive and would provide the necessary information at a glance.

Enjoyed the experience

Good card

Very good credit card for students who want to build credit history.

Very good credit card for students who…

Amazing Credit Card, recommended to students with no credit!!!!

Amazing Credit Card

tres bon services

I waited over 6 weeks after approval to receive my card via mail despite living in a major city. The customer service have been very pleasant however gave me different information each time I called them. When they offered to repost a new card, they would not give free expedited shipping, and instead I had to wait an additional 7-10 business days

I waited over 6 weeks after approval to…

Good job but need to improve on the credit limit

Good job but need to improve on the…

Love my deserve card! The app is simple to navigate and the card is a beautiful piece of plastic. I have no complaints yet!

Love my deserve card

What I appreciate about Deserve is that they will do their own periodic credit reviews.  If you're in good standings, etc., then they'll increase your limits without having to request a credit limit increase.

What I appreciate about Deserve is that…

Excellent service, easy payment method. Love the cashback too.

Excellent service

I've had this card for a while now. It only earns 1% cashback which is applied as statement credit in multiples of $25 unlike Discover which allows you to redeem cashback anytime for any amount. The customer service is fine. I've had prompt email replies and statisfactory experience over phone as well.

Excellent

The credit line they approve at the first place. As being an international student they gave me credit limit only for $300 which is nothing. My college tuitions is $10000 per semester. I personally think Deserve should really take a look in to it. Eventually my credit was increased which took one year to get $1300 limit from $300.

The credit line they approve at the…

I was reluctant to apply for new credit cards due to past credit issues.  I was using cash and debit. A credit monitoring service informed me of how important and necessary credit is and recommended Deserve to get started.

I was initially a bit cynical and reluctant since I had never heard of them. I finally applied a couple of years ago and it is the BEST decision I could have made.. great interest rates, low minimum payments, fair credit increases, no hidden fees, excellent customer service.

I went from having NO credit to having 3 cards with generous credit limits and a credit score over 740. If you are looking for your first credit card or rebuilding after financial difficulty, I highly recomnend this card.

Thank You Deserve ☺👍

BEST CARD TO BEGIN BUILDING CREDIT

Better cashback offers required

Been very accurate in providing the details. Customer service is good. Not faced any problems till date.

Been very accurate in providing the…

Pretty amazing service from Deserve. The credit-line increase accurately reflects your credit score. Plus the Cash Back is on point especially Amazon Prime discounts for Deserve Edu card holders.

Pretty amazing service from Deserve

First time I read about the Deserve credit card was on Nerd Wallet as a recommendation for international students or anyone looking to establish/rebuild their credit. I was extremely skeptical since I had never heard about them before, but figured if they’re recommended and highly rated on Nerd Wallet, they must be legit, so I applied...
Application process was simple, even as an international student, just needed to provide corroborating documents. And voila, had my valid and working MasterCard in a few days. Since then my credit scores have been climbing, and I’ve already received one automatic credit limit increase in just 4-5 months...
Straight forward 1% cash back, free 1yr Amazon prime membership and no int’l fees are also legit features...
Wish I had learned about Deserve when I first arrived in the US, my credit score would probably be in the high 700s already, approaching 800...😂😂😂
Only minor complaint is the delay in processing payments to the account, but that’s just a consequence of not having brick and mortar locations, so just schedule accordingly...
I highly recommend Deserve to anyone in the above scenarios...

Awesome So Far...

Very poor app design and user interface! Spend some money and make it look decent

Very poor app design and user…

A great card for people (students) starting their credit. Have had for 2yrs now with 0 issues, any reason I’ve had to call support they’re always helpful, and I have never had to request limit increases as they’ve been given to me at the perfect times.

Deserve

Services

Total Score

About Deserve

Pricing

Currency

Trustpilot reviews