List of zero percent credit cards and balance transfer offers for 2013

By Joe Taylor

When credit card issuers faced the 1-2 punch of an economic crisis and new regulations, it seemed like 0% introductory APR balance transfer offers landed on the endangered species list. Now that banks are flush with cash and ready to lend, it's time to start saving money by paying down debt with no interest.

Why balance transfer offers?

A few years ago, I loved making free money by requesting zero percent introductory APR balance transfer checks from new credit cards, then depositing them into high interest savings accounts until just before the point where I'd have to start paying interest. The banks must have gotten tired of giving me all that free cash, since those kinds of deals have completely disappeared. It's no longer profitable for banks to let consumers surf balances from card to card without a little friction. Therefore, even the best 0% introductory APR balance transfer deals require you to pay up to 5% as a flat fee.

Find the right credit card for you

0% Balance Transfer

Cash Back Credit Cards

0% Balance Transfer No Fee

Still, the balance transfer process has become easier than ever for consumers who really do need to save some money on their bills each month. You can use a balance transfer check to cover utility bills or an occasional car payment, then use my same trick to make a little of that money back at the end of the year. Instead of paying down that 0% introductory APR balance, park your payment in an online savings account or in a short-term CD. Even if your investment only nets a point or two, you're still making back some of the money you had to spend on your transfer fee.

Here is my personal list of the best 0% intro APR balance transfer credit card offers

To help you get started, I've put together a quick list of the very best zero percent introductory APR balance transfer offers on the market right now.

The choices were made after reviewing and balancing all terms and considerations such as length of 0% intro APR offer duration, whether any balance transfer fee applies, whether the 0% intro APR applies to purchases as well, and whether there are any additional rewards for purchases:

Capital One Platinum Prestige Credit Card Over a year at 0% introductory APR on both balance transfers and purchases, with a low balance transfer fee.
Slate from Chase The 0% introductory APR on balance transfers and purchases that lasts 15 months. And as an introductory offer no balance transfer fee on transfers made within 60 days of account opening. All other transfers: Either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater. In addition Chase supercharged this credit card with Blueprint, a set of online tools that help you budget your way out of debt.
Chase Freedom Visa 0% introductory APR for 15 months on balance transfers and purchases, plus you can take advantage of a cash back bonus that puts $100 back in your wallet after you make $500 in purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. That could even cover the cost of the initial balance transfer fee, if you're clever enough.

Right now, a couple of the banks are letting cardholders surf balances with no balance transfer fee. Keep an eye out for the offers because the no balance transfer fee offers are primarily for a limited time. Otherwise, it's up to smaller, regional banks and credit unions to carry the no balance transfer fee banner for their local account holders.

In the meantime, you can take comfort in knowing that you've capped your first year interest to 3-5% with any of these cards. Just keep in mind that a handful of balance transfer offers may require you to make other purchases on your card to maintain your deal and free credit report. Whatever you do, remember to pay your monthly minimum payment on time or risk paying double-digit interest on your entire balance the following month.

This entry was posted on 4/4/08 (Modified on 4/28/13) and is filed under Credit Cards , Deals and Offers , Make Money . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.

Disclaimer: Discover is a paid advertiser of this site.
Reasonable efforts are made to maintain accurate information. See the Discover online credit card application for full terms and conditions on offers and rewards.

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46 Responses to “Low Interest Credit Cards|Zero Percent and Balance Transfer Credit Cards for 2012”

Scott says:
July 26, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Be careful if the card requires you to make a purchase on the card each and every month. You wil be charged interest on the new purchases every single month until you pay the new purchases off. The catch here is that your transfer balance came before your monthly purchases, so until your high balance transfer is paid for, you have accumulating monthly interest on all of your new purchases. That interest keeps accruing and cannot be paid off until you have paid off your balance transfer. I know, it happened to me. Dropped that card in a hurry. You are better off to pay the transfer fee.
Christos says:
August 13, 2009 at 3:01 am
What Scott said is completely true unfortunately. For example, some credit cards that offer 0% on balance transfers for "X" amount of months will charge you their interest rate on any new purchases. The catch is that their annual fee on the card (if there is one) or any other fee they put on your card other than what you transferred over, is considred to them as a "new purchase", so you will begin paying finance charges on those "new charges". The ONLY way out of paying the new finance charges with them is to pay off the credit card in full, which includes their new charges as well as your balance transferred. I just had this experience with Air Canada's Aeroplan Bank of America card.
Renee says:
August 30, 2009 at 10:19 pm
I will have 14,000 balance on a BofA Visa that is due 10/28 or they will retroactively put 29% interest on it. Help? It was a cash advance which I already paid the 3% fee on the $18,000 limit. Does anyone have suggestions? I have good credit and am looking for another card to transfer the balance to with the lowest interest rate.
Dave says:
August 31, 2009 at 11:08 pm
Looking for a card with no balance transfer fee and 0% interest for 6 or 12 mths
Please contact me ASAP,I have excellant credit
Thank you
DB
Wendy Bernard says:
September 14, 2009 at 4:22 pm
I have several cards . One is shut down, but I keep making payments and the interest is 15 % or less on others. I do have two chase cards , one at 30% for $5,000 and one at 18% for $9,000. I want to transfer the $5,000 one first and pay it off. What are the numbers I am looking at. I don't understand the cap or how to do the balance transfer. Please advise. WB
Walt says:
October 7, 2009 at 6:12 pm
Careful with Chase (and, I guess this goes for all of the scoundrels).

I've been a Chase customer for several years now. Last year they offered me several "special offers" including a 0% transfer - UNTIL THE BALANCE WAS PAID OFF. I went with the deal and transferred a balance from another card and closed the other account. Thinking I could pay off the balance fairly rapidly with the entire payment going to principal, I thought I was golden.

Then, in July, they sent me a "change in terms" document (which I ignored -stooopid me). In August, imagine my surprise when I noticed a 14.24% APR on the balance I thought was supposed to be 0%. What? What about "the deal"??

I've contacted them several times now with no resolution. Apparently any special offer can be made null and void if *they* decide to change the terms (they can do it according to the "original" fine print in the agreement), not if *I* decide it should change. So much for accepting any kind of deal nowadays.

I am so p*ssed at Chase now that I want to transfer the balance from that card to another 0% card. I realize the new card will eventually go up, but at least I'll know months in advance and can plan for it.
Jon M. says:
October 18, 2009 at 1:01 am
I have excellent credit and have used 0% cards for years. My problem is that now I have cards with every bank. Citi, chase, bofa, discover, etc. These banks don't want to offer me a new card since I already have an account with them. I several thousand dollars on different cards that promo rates are about to expire. What should I do?
Vitaly says:
October 22, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Please remember that as of Feb 2010 no credit card co will be able to "screw around" with the % rates. Obama passed the law where they will not be able to change the rates, minimums, policies easily. Because of that you see many credit card copamnies raising % rate. I just got a notice in mail that % rate is going up on my Chase credit card as of January 11, 2010. Please pay attention to what you are getting in mail from the credit card companies! I am in the process of "shopping around" for an interest free transfer. Having hard time finding free transfer with no fee. Discover offers 5% balance transfer fee while Capital One 3%. I am looking further.
Chase Chaser says:
October 27, 2009 at 12:43 am
Hey, the Chase Slate Card With Blueprint is offering 0% balance transfers and 0% purchases for up to 12 months (3% balance transfer fee though). Though Blueprint From Chase is not promoting the card as a balance transfer credit card, it's right there in the terms black and white!
Credit Card Chaser says:
November 10, 2009 at 12:24 am
My personal favorite is the Discover More card but you have a nice list overall. I would also add that the Discover More American Flag card has a better balance transfer offer than the other Discover More cards in the More card series.
Norma Jones says:
November 16, 2009 at 8:59 pm
please send me offers on 0% credit card transfers
hazz says:
March 5, 2010 at 1:59 pm
Can you transfer your balances from one 0% credit card to another if it is the same company? For instance, from a Chase Slate to a Chase Freedom?
sharada ananth says:
March 27, 2010 at 2:17 am
Hi guys,

you can go for suncorp platinum card at 3.9% on balance transfer for the life of balance transfered. this is also a card from city group. the best card. right now as on 27/03/2010. go for it . enjoy paying off faster. :)
Bob says:
May 4, 2010 at 9:33 pm
Sharada, from the post above, fails to mention that the Suncorp platinum card comes with a hefty annual fee:

"Subject to your acceptance of the card, an annual account fee which is currently $205 for the Primary Suncorp Clear Options Platinum card..."

Judging by the infrequency of posts, by both the site owner and readers, there are very few deals out right now and this one is definitely not a deal.

Read everything thoroughly.

Best wishes
Debbie says:
May 23, 2010 at 3:43 pm
I need a credit card i can transfer an 8000.00 balance onto. Citi bank only offered me 4500.00 and then wanted 3% for a transfer fee. Why say on the websit first off that you do not charge a transfer fee if that is not true, they get you sucked into creating an application and then they decide to let you know they are going to charge you a 3 percent transfer fee, that is ridiculous. I had Capial One, when i decided to close the account they jumped my interest rate from 8.9 to 17.9. When i called them they said they had sent me a notice last year that if i closed the account the rate would go up, but hey 9 percent that is really absurd. I guess there are no "good" deals out there anymore, is there no recourse for the everyday person?
alan says:
June 1, 2010 at 2:38 pm
Just got some checks for my Citi Pref. Diamond Card account that says 0% APR until Dec. 01, 2011 with a 4 % fee.

I'm transferring 2500 to it. Does this sound ok? FYI the rate on this (discover without a late payment in over a year is 28.99%
KJS says:
July 23, 2010 at 2:55 am
Capital One did a bait and switch on me. I applied by phone and was told I was approved for a 0% balance transfer for 12 months, with no balance transfer fee. But what they sent me was a card with 14.9% balance transfer rate (terms sent under separate cover from the card).
When I called to straighten out the error, i was transferred from one party to the next for 2 hours. Finally a "Sr. Acct. Manager" said she was going to transfer me to someone who would trade out my current card for the one I was promised, but in fact I was transferred to someone in the Phillipines who told me I didn't qualify for that card. I have excellent credit, so I know that can't be the case; and even if it was, why did they approve me for those terms if they thought I didn't qualify? Looks like they were trying to trick me into transferring my balance at the much higher rate.
FYI, the FTC has an online site where you can register complaints against such practices. Suggest you do so when this kind of fraudulent activity happens.
And stay away from Capital One!
B Ronin says:
September 2, 2010 at 3:58 pm
I am in "same situation" as another post listed above. I've been playing the Transfer Balance Game every year [to payoff a lump sum under 5k] so now I have every card under the sun -- AMerican Express, Citibank, Chase, Discover, Bank of America, Capital One, HSBC, etc. What I noticed is that these Credit Card Issuers/Processors PENALIZE existing customers by offering Promos with 0% to new customerly ONLY, while sending Balance Transfer checks to me valid for eight (8) months in hopes of TRAPPING me into 19.99% afterwards. What a Bunch of Con-Artists these Financial Companies are!

What I dont understand is that why are Credit Cards in the United Kingdom offering 0% for balance transfer for 15 months, like the Virgin card???
B Ronin says:
September 7, 2010 at 4:03 pm
I decided to research Balance Transfer offers from "banks only" and this is what I found.

CURRENTLY:
1) www dot Citizensbank dot com is offering "0% introductory APR on balance transfers for twelve months"

2) www dot 53 dot com is offering "0% APR Introductory APR on Purchases and Balance Transfers for 12 months"

3) ALWAYS Read, Read, Read the Fine Print.....
P Nelson says:
October 15, 2010 at 6:04 pm
Are there no credit cards left with a cap on the 0% balance transfer offers? They all have 3% or higher and I can't find any with a cap such as $99 or $150 anymore. I've been doing the 0% balance transfer shuffle for 2 years now and it's getting harder/ now impossible to find any offers. Am looking for another place to park $15,000 for 6 -12 months @ 0% rather than sell my investments to pay this off. I am unwilling to spend $400-500 in balance transfer fees @3% when I can make at least 5% in the market by keeping that money invested. Are there no 0%, no fee or capped fee cards left?