The days of 0% APR no fee balance transfers are over-for now. This week, Citi stopped offering no fee balance transfers with its Citi Professional Cash card. This was the last no fee balance transfer offer from a major bank. While Bank of America currently offers a 1.9% APR on no fee balance transfers with its Make a Wish card, this APR is only for 6 months. Paying a balance transfer fee and getting a 0% APR for 1 year provides much more savings. Now that the market currently lacks a no fee balance transfer credit card, consumers should focus on credit cards that charge low balance transfer fees.
What is a low fee balance transfer? In a nutshell, a low fee balance transfer is one with a limit on maximum fees. Currently, all major credit cards are charging a 3% balance transfer fee per transaction. However, some credit cards have no limit on balance transfer fees, while others cap fees at $75.
Finding a low fee balance transfer credit card can provide a great deal of savings. For example, if you transfer a $5000 balance to a credit card that has no limit on balance transfer fees, you would spend $150 in fees. The same balance transfer, if done with a low fee balance transfer card, would only cost $75.
We have compiled a complete list of balance transfer credit cards here for easy comparison.
Even though balance transfer fees are now unavoidable, the amount of money you can save with a 0% APR balance transfer is still significant. For example, if you have a $5000 balance on a credit card with a 12% interest rate, you can save over $620 this year on interest. If you factor in the balance transfer fee, you still save over $550 on interest.
To find out how much you can save with a 0% APR balance transfer, check out our balance transfer calculator before applying for a new credit card online.
