When a credit card company issues a credit card, they are in effect giving you a loan for the credit limit. Credit card issuers need to know that they can trust the cardholder to pay them back. And the best way to hedge their bets is to only issue cards to borrowers who already have good, very good or excellent credit. This makes them feel more secure.

There are some types of cards that are specifically designed for those with fair or bad credit. These cards often have higher interest rates, more fees and lower credit limits than cards for those with good credit.