The Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards

A balance transfer is a good option to get rid of debt. You can find great deals, but there is a risk that you may not pay off your debt by the end of the introductory time period. Even if you don’t pay off your debt in that time period, you could still save money by not having to pay interest on your balance for those 12-18 months, depending on the introductory time period.

For a step by step guide on balance transfers, read this post

Important points before you do a balance transfer

• Cards will often offer you an introductory APR on your balance transfer and your purchases. Make sure you know what rate you are getting for each. Ideally, the rate is 0% APR.
• There can be a set time period when you need to do the balance transfer or else you end up jumping to the higher Variable APR (e.g., 30 or 60 days to do a transfer)
• The introductory period for the lower interest rate can vary by card. Understand what period it covers.
• Usually there is a fee associated with a balance transfer (e.g., 3-5% of the balance). Make sure you calculate this fee. Some cards offer no fees.
• You may not be able to transfer your entire balance depending on how much debt you have.
• The best cards and rates are offered to those with good or excellent credit.

Here are our top 3 picks

Chase Slate

Chase Slate is great since they don’t have a fee for balance transfers. The downside to this card is that there is no rewards program or points for purchases beyond transfers. But maybe that’s a good thing if you’ve sworn off credit cards!

Introductory: 0% APR for first 15 months on both purchases and balance transfers
Ongoing: 16.99%-25.74% Variable APR
Balance Transfer Fee: $0 (within first 60 days, after 60 days $5 or 5%, whichever is greater)
Other: Access FICO score monthly for free
Rewards: None
Annual Fee: $0

Capital One Quicksilver Cash Rewards Credit Card

Capital One generally has good customer service and has great mobile apps. A great perk to this card is that it’s one of the few balance transfer cards that have a rewards program. This makes it more likely that you may use after this introductory period, as long as you make sure to pay off the statement in full every month after.

Introductory: 0% intro APR for 15 months
Ongoing: 17.24% - 25.24% variable APR
Balance Transfer Fee: 3% fee on the amounts transferred within the first 15 months
Other: Spend $500 on purchases in first three months get $150 cash bonus
Rewards: 1.5% cash back of all purchases (unlimited and never expires)
Annual Fee: $0

American Express Everyday Credit Card

American Express has great customer service. Just like the Capital One Quicksilver Card, this credit card has a rewards program so that you can continue using the card after the introductory period.

Introductory: 0% intro APR for 15 months
Ongoing: 15.24% - 26.24% variable APR
Balance Transfer Fee: 0% fee on the amounts transferred within the first 15 months
Other: Spend $2,000 on purchases in first three months to earn 25,000 membership reward points
Annual Fee: $0

Related reading: Hacking Your Way Out Of Debt – What Your Bank Won’t Tell You