The content is accurate at the time of publication and is subject to change.

Can one even survive without a credit card in the year 2011? It seems that it’s almost impossible to be without one. A very long time ago, cash was king. Now, cash will not get you everywhere (some places yes, but most places:  no).

Take into consideration the whopping fact that many hotels, cruises and airlines don’t accept strictly greenbacks. And even if they do, your credit card number is still required to reservethe entitled spot. So people with little next to no credit may find it hard to work around this obstacle and this may be all for working with what is called a prepaid credit card.

Prepaid credit cards allow the consumer to make credit card like purchases without having an actual credit card. These prepaid cards are perfect for young children as well as adults who for whatever the reason do not have a bank account or have credit that’s nothing to brag about.

Prepaid credit cards are not exclusive and in fact almost anyone can get one. This is because they are not credit cards; the prepaid cards are more in the gift card family. Why? Well, because they take from money already on the account. Consumers who are interested in the car must refill or load their card when funds become low.

Although this is not a real credit or debit card, beware of overdraft fees, because prepaid cards will still charge you those. Choosing a prepaid account can be a little bit of an ordeal, because there is so much fine print and not to many know about the cards.

Here are two of the best Prepaid cards that we found when searching for options:

UPside Visa Prepaid Card

This card allows you to use direct deposit to load money on your card. Also, there are over 50,000 locations where you can add money. The card has no sign up fees, but has a bunch of other ones. The card charges 99 cents a month if you add $500 or more to your card. For any deposit under $500, it jumps to $2.99 a month. Also there is an ATM fee of $1.70 and a 99 cent charge for balance inquires at an ATM.

Mango MasterCard Prepaid Card

This card offers some relatively low rates. No activation fee, no fee for direct deposits, no fee for loading money onto the card, no charge for customer service calls, and a $20 sign on bonus. This card also allows you to send money through text messages for 50 cents. The ATM withdrawal fee is $2.

tags : No Credit Prepaid Cards Visa Mastercard

Disclaimer: This editorial content is not provided or commissioned by the credit card issuer(s). Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of the credit card issuer(s), and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuer(s). Reasonable efforts are made to present accurate information, however all information is presented without warranty. Consult a card's issuing bank for the terms & conditions.
All rates and fees, and other terms and conditions of the products mentioned in this article/post are actual as of the last update date but are subject to change. See the current products' Terms & Conditions on the issuing banks' websites.