Best Low-Interest-Rate Credit Cards & Offers in 2024

MoneyGeek experts looked at several of the best low-interest-rate credit cards to find the top cards available. We compared cards based on their interest rates, rewards programs, and initial bonus offers. We looked for cards that offered 0% introductory APR offers as well.

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A credit card with 0% interest on balance transfers or new purchases can be seen as nearly an interest-free loan. It is quite popular to put a large purchase or transfer an old credit card balance to one of these cards, to utilize an interest-free loan.

Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card - Best for balance transfers The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card comes with an intro 0% APR offer on balance transfers for 21 months from the date of the first transfer. However, you need to pay balance transfer fees and must complete your balance transfers within four months from account opening. Its 0% APR offer on purchases lasts for 12 months from account opening. This card does not charge any annual fees.

Citi Simplicity® Card - Perfect for balance transfers The Citi Simplicity® Card’s 0% APR offer extends to 21 months for balance transfers and 12 months for purchases. You need to carry out your balance transfers within four months of account opening to take advantage of the offer, and you need to pay balance transfer fees. This card comes with no annual fees.

U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card - Ideal for purchases and balance transfers The no-annual-fee U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card comes with a 0% APR offer on purchases and balance transfers for the first 20 billing cycles. However, the offer only applies to balances transferred within 60 days of account opening, and you’re required to pay balance transfer fees. This card offers complimentary cell phone protection.

Wells Fargo Autograph Visa Card - Great for purchases and earning rewards The Wells Fargo Autograph Visa Card comes with an intro APR offer on purchases for 12 months but not on balance transfers. It’s also worth noting that not only will you be charged the regular APR for balance transfers, but you’ll also have to pay a balance transfer fee. You earn 3X points per dollar on restaurant, travel, transit, gas, phone plan and popular streaming service purchases. All other purchases earn 1X points per dollar. Additional benefits come in the form of cell phone protection, roadside dispatch and auto rental collision damage waiver. This card does not charge any annual fees.

Wells Fargo Reflect® Card - Perfect for balance transfers and purchases The Wells Fargo Reflect® Card comes with an intro 0% APR offer on purchases and balance transfers for 18 months. The bank extends the offer by three months if you make all your payments on time, taking the total to 21 months. You get 120 days to carry out balance transfers to take advantage of the offer. While you need to pay balance transfer fees for each balance transfer you carry out, you pay no annual fees. Added benefits include complimentary roadside dispatch and cell phone protection.

Citi® Double Cash Card - Best for balance transfers and cash back The Citi® Double Cash Card’s intro 0% APR offer applies on balance transfers for 18 months. You need to complete the transfer process within four months from account opening, and you’ll need to pay a balance transfer fee. This no-annual-fee card lets you earn up to 2% cash back on all purchases. You earn 1% when you make purchases and an additional 1% when you make your payments.

Chase Slate Edge℠ - Great for balance transfers and purchases The no-annual-fee Chase Slate Edge℠ Card comes with a 0% APR offer on purchases and balance transfers for 18 months. Using this card to transfer balances requires that you pay balance transfer fees. If you spend at least $1,000 each year and make all your payments on time, you get the ability to lower your regular APR by 2% every year until it reaches a predetermined minimum threshold. Making your payments on time and spending at least $500 within the first six months qualifies you for an automatic higher credit limit review.

Chase Freedom Unlimited - Great for purchases, balance transfers and cash back The no-annual-fee Chase Freedom Unlimited Card comes with a 0% APR offer on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months. Balance transfer fees apply. You can earn up to 5% cash back on category-based spending. Bonus categories include travel, dining and drugstore purchases. You also stand to earn a spend-based welcome bonus.

Chase Freedom Flex℠ - Perfect for balance transfers, purchases and cash back The Chase Freedom Flex℠ card charges no annual fees. It comes with a 0% APR offer on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months. You need to pay balance transfer fees when transferring balances from other cards. This card offers 5% cash back on different quarterly bonus categories and up to 5% cash back on bonus categories that stay the same at all times. A spend-based welcome bonus is also there for the taking.

Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card - Best for purchases, balance transfers and cash back You pay no annual fees to use the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card. Its 0% APR offer on purchases and balance transfers stays in place for 15 months. All purchases you make using this card come with 2% cash back. Meeting a simple spend-based requirement earns you a welcome bonus. This card also offers complimentary cell phone protection.

For those interested in reducing the amount they pay in credit card interest, the best way to avoid interest altogether is to pay your credit card balance in full. While that isn’t always possible, the next best thing is to consider a credit card with zero interest or low interest rates.

• Creditworthiness required: Qualifying for most low-interest credit cards requires that you have good to excellent creditworthiness. This means you should have a FICO score of 670 or higher.
• Annual fees: Some of the best low-interest cards do away with annual fees. However, you might need to pay annual fees if you’re looking for a card that also offers higher-than-usual rewards or travel benefits.
• Foreign transaction fees: You need to pay attention to this aspect if you plan to use your card outside of the U.S. While some low-interest cards charge this fee, you can find several cards that do not.
• Payment flexibility: Some low-interest cards let you pay for your purchases over time through plans that charge fixed monthly fees and no interest. The Chase Slate Edge℠ credit card makes for a perfect example.
• Introductory APR: The duration of the intro APR offer may vary from one card to the next. For example, the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card’s intro 0% APR offer applies for 21 months on balance transfers but only for 12 months on purchases. The U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card, on the other hand, comes with a 0% APR offer for the first 20 billing cycles on both purchases and balance transfers.
  >>MORE: APR vs. APY
• Ongoing APR: This aspect requires your attention if you plan to maintain revolving balances once the promo period ends. Bear in mind that any outstanding balance from your balance transfers starts accruing interest at the end of the intro APR period.
• Rewards: Not all low-interest-rate credit cards offer rewards or cash back. Moreover, while you may find cards that offer the same rewards-earning rate across all purchases, there are others that offer higher-than-usual rates on bonus categories.
• Sign-up offers: Depending on the card you select, you may earn a welcome bonus. For example, you might earn $200 as a cash reward by spending $1,000 within the first three months.
• Added perks: Added perks typically come at a cost, usually in the form of an annual fee. While $0 fraud liability is a staple across most consumer cards, you might not expect much else from most no-annual-fee low-interest cards. Some of the other benefits that cards on this page may offer include cell phone protection and roadside dispatch

A low-interest-rate credit card is an excellent product to have in your wallet to give yourself spending flexibility. In addition, using your credit card responsibly and ensuring your statement is paid on time each month can quickly improve your credit score.

However, just because a card has a low-interest rate doesn’t mean that any extra money out of your pocket is a good thing. When looking for a low-interest credit card, be sure to read the terms and conditions of each credit card carefully.

If the card advertises an APR over 12%, that would be considered a high-interest rate. Anything below 10% is regarded as a low-interest credit card.

>>MORE: WHAT IS A GOOD APR FOR A CREDIT CARD?

If you have a large purchase coming up, or revolving credit card debt, consider sitting down and running the numbers of how much interest you would accrue with a low-interest-rate credit card. Interest rates are important, but what you’ll spend in interest overall is just as crucial to consider.

Here are a few benefits to having a low-interest credit card.

• Short-Term Lending: If you are running into financial difficulty and need to make a purchase, a low-interest credit card is an excellent product to do that. If you go this route, be sure to pay your bill off as quickly as possible. The faster it’s paid, the less interest you’ll accrue.
• Rewards Programs: Typically, credit cards with 0% introductory APR offers don’t offer robust rewards for your spending. Low-interest credit cards will likely offer either travel rewards or cash back to incentivize spending.

Low-interest-rate credit cards are simple products. The credit card issuer offers you flexible spending and repayment terms while you pay them an interest rate for the service.

The benefit of using a low-interest-rate credit card is that you have flexibility with how much you pay back over time without unreasonably high interest rates. This strategy is typically good for a large purchase — such as a TV or appliance — that you plan to pay off relatively quickly. Once your monthly balance is calculated, you’ll be charged interest on the amount not paid off.

For example, let’s say you have a $1,000 balance on a low-interest credit card, and you only pay $100 per month at a 9% interest rate. Your total amount of interest you will pay is $36 over 11 months. For many, this interest rate is nominal compared to the overall balance.

However, with that same $1,000 balance on a card with an 18% interest rate, paying $100 per month will cost you $75 over 11 months. That’s double the interest accrued on a low-interest credit card.

It can be challenging to decipher the differences between low-interest-rate credit cards and regular credit cards. The standard interest rate for many credit cards will hover around 18%, which is high. At that interest rate, it’s not advised to have a revolving balance. Additionally, it’s rare to see a credit card ever advertised as “low interest.”

The chart below can help you distinguish between low interest rates, somewhat high interest rates, high interest rates and extremely high interest rates.

>>MORE: HOW DOES CREDIT CARD INTEREST WORK?

A low-interest credit card is a great tool to utilize when you need short-term financing for a purchase.

If you regularly carry balances on your credit card, it’s best to strategically have them on low-interest credit cards to avoid spending more money on interest than necessary. Additionally, you may also qualify for a 0% introductory APR where you can transfer your balance to a card that won’t accrue any interest for a select period.

Keep in mind that if you’re a loyal and on-time paying customer, a credit card issuer may lower your interest rate if you ask. Issuers spend millions of dollars in advertising to get your business, so it benefits them to lower your interest rate rather than lose your business.

The best way to reduce your interest payments is to bring down your outstanding balances as quickly as possible. To do this, you need to pay more than the minimum monthly payment, and ideally, as much as possible. Negotiating with your card’s issuer for a lower interest rate is an option, although there’s no guarantee that this will happen. You may also think about consolidating debt from multiple cards and moving it to a balance transfer card.

Our lists of the best credit cards are based on publicly available data from card issuers and other reputable sources like the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau.

We review each card's fees, interest rates, rewards, benefits and more to assign a rating for each feature. These ratings are stack ranked and weighted for each card category to determine our top selections for each type of user.

Because card details change regularly, we revisit our data each month to update our ratings, recommendations and other card information as needed. Learn more about our data collection and ranking process.

Low-interest credit cards can seem to be too good to be true, but they aren't. Low-interest options are an excellent choice for those who want purchasing power at a relatively small cost.

Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions about low-interest-rate credit cards.

Low-interest-rate credit cards are a great way to lower your expenses each month. The best way to save money is to avoid accruing interest altogether. When that isn’t an option, paying lower interest on your balances is always better.

Remember that as a customer of the credit card companies, they want to work with you. If you’re struggling to pay off credit card debt, or simply need your interest rates lowered, don’t hesitate to give customer service a call. It could help you out more than you think.

For Capital One products listed on this page, some of the benefits may be provided by Visa® or Mastercard® and may vary by product. See the respective Guide to Benefits for details, as terms and exclusions apply.