Credit Cards & Loans
The best balance transfer cards
Which provider tops this week’s league table?
Just hours after NatWest and RBS announced a 0% 26-month balance transfer credit card, Barclaycard retaliated with a table-topping 0% 27-month balance transfer card, moving to the top of the best buy table.
Balance transfer cards can provide one of the cheapest solutions for those looking to clear debt and this latest offering is great news for consumers who need a little extra time to pay back what they owe without accruing extra interest.
Yet, while Barclaycard may have fought back once again to retain its stranglehold, uSwitch.com says that the 3.5% fee is steep and 0.85% more than NatWest and RBS. This means people would pay £8.50 extra when transferring a £1,000 balance.
Sarah Robb, credit card expert at uSwitch.com, said: “Our advice is to think carefully about how long you really need to pay off your debts – you may actually only need a card with a 16 or 18 month interest-free period.
“If this is the case, not only could you have a better chance of being accepted, but you’ll save some money on the balance transfer fee too. There is a huge choice of cards available on the market and it is always worth shopping around to find the best deal to suit your needs.”
The best balance transfer cards, to date:
| Top balance transfer cards | Transfer interest free period | Transfer fee rate | Representative APR (variable) | Transfer fee (transfer amount £2,000) |
| Barclaycard Platinum with 27 months balance transfer | 27 months | 3.50% | 18.9% | £70.00 |
| NatWest Platinum with balance transfer | 26 months | 2.65% | 18.9% | £53.00 |
| RBS Platinum credit card MasterCard | 26 months | 2.65% | 18.9% | £53.00 |
| Barclaycard Platinum with 25 months balance transfer | 25 months | 2.40% | 18.9% | £48.00 |
| Halifax balance transfer credit card | 25 months | 2.50% | 18.9% | £50.00 |
| Tesco bank Clubcard balance transfer | 25 months | 2.90% | 16.9% | £58.00 |
source: uSwitch.com
