Self Lender - Credit Builder Account

Approvel Odds

Fair Credit

Bad Credit

No Credit

1. A new way to build credit. Build credit while you save (minus fees and interest)

  • 2. Self Financial helps you get a small loan that you save in a CD for 24 months
    3. All payments are reported to the three major credit bureaus as an installment loan which helps consumers build credit.
    4. Savings plans start at $25/month and include credit monitoring
    5. At the end of account term, you’ve built credit history and your CD savings unlock. (minus interest and fees)

     

    Sample loans: $25/mo, 24 mos, $9 admin fee, 15.92% APR; $35/mo, 24 mos, $9 admin fee, 15.97% APR; $48/mo, 24 mos, $9 admin fee, 15.72% APR; $150/mo, 24 mos, $9 admin fee, 15.88% APR. See self.inc/pricing

    Credit Builder Accounts & Certificates of Deposit made/held by Lead Bank, Sunrise Banks, N.A., SouthState Bank, N.A. each Member FDIC. Subject to credit approval.

Credit Strong - Instal & Revolv

Approvel Odds

Fair Credit

Bad Credit

No Credit

Multiple Ways to Build Credit.

A CreditStrong account is the fusion of a secured consumer installment loan and a savings account. During the life of your CreditStrong account you build both credit history and savings.

  • Instantly build revolving credit with no minimum monthly payment required with CreditStrong Revolv
  • Build installment credit and savings with low fixed monthly payments with CreditStrong Instal
  • Build supersized installment credit with supersized plans with CS MAX

Grow Credit

Approvel Odds

Bad Credit

No Credit

Grow Credit offers a free Mastercard you can use to pay your subscriptions and build your credit.  Build Credit For Free!

We report your on-time payments to all three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) which helps establish or boost your credit score.
  • Grow Credit is a line of credit and there is no hard credit check, and applying will not impact your credit score.
  • Grow Credit is a MasterCard which can be used to pay for subscriptions and build your credit. You can use your card to pay for any subscription, including Netflix, Spotify, Amazon Prime, and over 100 other services. You can set it and forget it. We automatically debit the cost of your subscription from your bank account every month, ensuring timely payment. Then, we report your progress to all three credit bureaus.
  • You don’t need to have any credit history to sign up, and there is no deposit required for our Build, Grow, or Accelerate plans. For those who do not yet meet our income requirements, Grow has a Secured card option, which requires a $17 deposit.
  • It is free to sign up for a Grow Credit Build account, and there is no obligation to upgrade to a paid account at any time. Free account holders have a $17 monthly limit that can be used exclusively to pay for subscriptions, but it’s reported to the credit bureaus as a $204 line of credit ($17 per month for 12 months).
  • The Grow premium tier comes with a $50 monthly limit, reported to the bureaus as a $600 line of credit. The Accelerate premium tier comes with a $150 monthly limit, reported to the bureaus as an $1800 line of credit.
  • If you don’t currently qualify for a Build account, you can open a Secured account. You will need to put down a $17 deposit, but that deposit will be refunded after 12 months of on-time payments.
  • See all terms and conditions on the application page.
Other FAQ
  • No hard inquiry
  • Grow Credit is available in all US states.

Kikoff Credit Account

Approvel Odds

Bad Credit

No Credit

Build credit with Kikoff.  The safe way to build credit..

We help you establish positive payment history and lower utilization, both important factors for raising your credit score.
  • No credit check. No hard pulls required
  • Starts at $5/mo. Cancel anytime
  • With 0% interest
  • Open your account in minutes
  • Easy & automatic.  With the optional Autopay, never worry about due dates.
How does Kikoff work? Kikoff is a credit-building service designed to help you build credit safely and responsibly. Our products are designed to target the 5 major credit score factors. Kikoff offers 2 products:
  1. Kikoff Credit Account – this is a revolving line of credit. This account builds monthly payment history and helps reduce your credit utilization.
  2. Kikoff Credit Builder Loan – this is an additional product for customers with positive payment behavior on Kikoff products. Credit Builder Loan is a 1-year savings plan for $10/month.
Is this a credit card? The Kikoff Credit Account is a revolving line of credit that gets reported to Equifax and Experian. You are able to use the Kikoff Credit Account to finance the purchase of goods and services from Kikoff. Unlike a credit card, the Kikoff Credit Account can only be used to make purchases from Kikoff (e.g. can’t buy gas or groceries) Which bureaus does Kikoff report to? Kikoff is an official data furnisher to the 3 major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Please note that reporting depends upon which Kikoff products you have: Kikoff Credit Account reports to Equifax and Experian. Credit Builder Loan (optional add-on) reports to TransUnion and Equifax. Please see all terms and conditions and state availability: https://kikoff.com/terms.pdf

Kovo Credit Builder

Approvel Odds

Fair Credit

Bad Credit

No Credit

Give yourself the credit you deserve. Sign up to build your credit easily with small monthly payments. Instant approval, no credit check, and no hidden fees. Plus, earn up to 1% on featured loans! The ideal alternative to secured credit cards.
 
Incredible value:
  • Your payment performance is reported monthly to TransUnion®, Equifax®, Experian®, and Innovis®.
  • Earn up to $1,225 in rewards. That’s 5x more value than the cost of Kovo.
  • Lower your monthly interest payments when you have a higher credit score.
  • Better credit makes owning a car and home possible, with higher odds for approval.
  • Get your FICO® Score and see your credit score journey progress every month.
How it works:
  1. Build with Installments: pay $10/month over 24 months.
  2. Learn with Courses: pick up useful skills.
  3. Earn with Rewards: up to 1% back on eligible loan offers.
Key features:
  • Flat monthly rate
  • Instant approval
  • No credit check / no hard pull
  • No bank account needed
  • $0 security deposit
  • $0 setup/admin fees
  • $0 annual fees
  • $0 late fees
  • $0 prepayment fees
  • 0% APR
Requirements:
  • You must be at least 18 years of age
  • You must have a valid U.S. Social Security Number
Available in all 50 states.

Credit Builder

Build (or rebuild) your score with curated, beginner-friendly tools from CreditVana. This page compares leading credit builder app options – like Self, Credit Strong, Grow Credit, Kikoff, and Kovo—so you can choose the path that fits your budget and timeline.

Pair your plan with creditvana credit monitoring for real-time credit monitoring, alerts, and personalized credit insights that help you improve credit score fast.

How our Credit Builder picks help you win

  • Self – Credit Builder Account: Save while you build. Fixed monthly payments are reported to all three bureaus; great for bad credit or no credit histories.

  • Credit Strong – Instal & Revolv: Multiple plans (installment + revolving) to diversify your mix – powerful for utilization and payment history.

  • Grow Credit: Use a free Mastercard to pay select subscriptions, then report on-time payments – an easy way to build credit with debit-like control.

  • Kikoff Credit Account: Low monthly cost, no hard check; focuses on payment history and utilization.

  • Kovo Credit Builder: Instant approval, no hidden fees, and rewards, an effective alternative to secured cards.

Why use CreditVana for credit building?

  • Actionable guidance: We explain what is a credit score, what is a good credit score, and exactly how to build credit fast without overspending.

  • Monitoring that matters: Track changes with CreditVana’s free credit score, weekly updates, and credit score monitoring that spots errors early so you can dispute credit report errors quickly.

  • One place to plan: From builders to cards and loans, compare everything in one hub, then apply with confidence.

Smart steps to get started

  1. Pick a builder that matches your cash flow (monthly amount + term).

  2. Turn on autopay in the credit vana app to avoid missed payments.

  3. Keep utilization low on any revolving products and add a secured card later to accelerate thickness.

  4. Re-check progress often – check my credit score for free using our Free Credit Score dashboard and adjust your plan.

Small note: We also list select partner offers (e.g., CreditCardBroker — https://creditcardbroker.com/) to expand choices.