Tips on how to avoid paying costly fees and interest on your credit card

If you don’t pay your balance in full by the statement due date, your credit card balance will attract interest and will cause your debt to grow. The more interest you collect, the more difficult it will become to repay your balance. To keep your credit card costs low and your debt under control, here are seven tips you can use to avoid interest with your credit card.

1. Get a 0% purchase credit card

Purchases that aren’t paid by the statement due date will attract the purchase interest rate. Depending on the card, this can range from 9% to 28%. If you are planning on making a large purchase and think you might have trouble paying your balance in full by the end of the statement period, a card with a 0% promotional rate could come in handy.

As this only lasts for an introductory period between six and 18 months, you’ll need to repay your entire balance before the promotion ends. Once the promotion ends, the standard interest rate applies to any remaining debts and future purchases.

2. Maximize your grace period

All credit cards offer interest-free days after the close of each billing cycle. The number of days offered will vary, but it’s usually between 21 and 25. This can allow more time to pay off your shopping, especially if you time it at the start of your billing cycle.

The most important thing is to make at least the minimum payment, often between 1% and 3%, before the due date. If you don’t, most credit cards may impose a penalty APR of up to 32%. This can last indefinitely and cause you to lose any 0% intro APR period.

3. Repay your balance before the statement due date

This way your purchases won’t collect interest. But if you struggle to repay your balance on time, there are a few things you can do to get your repayments in check. It could be as easy as setting up reminders in your calendar or smartphone. Or you could set up automatic payments to transfer money from your bank account to your credit card each month.

If you struggle to gather enough money to repay your balance each month, you could contact the bank to move your statement due date so it’s closer to your payday. This might help manage your cash flow and ensure you have enough funds to repay your balance and avoid interest.

4. Consider a 0% balance transfer credit card

A balance transfer involves moving your debt from one card to another. With a 0% intro APR period, you can repay your debt without paying any interest for as long as the introductory period is in place, which can be from six to 21 months.

Depending on your balance, this can result in significant savings that could instead go towards paying off your debt rather than paying interest. They’re not entirely cost-free, though. You might need to pay a one-off balance transfer fee.

5. Avoid cash advances

Using your card to make a cash advance will attract high interest. Depending on the card, the cash advance interest rate can range between 26% and 28%. You’ll also be charged a cash advance fee of 3% to 5% of the transaction amount, with a minimum of $5 to $15. Unlike purchases, the cash advance interest will apply from the moment you make the transaction.

Cash advance transactions include ATM withdrawals, gambling transactions, money transfers and other cash equivalent transactions including foreign currencies, gift cards or prepaid cards.

6. Take out a personal loan

An unsecured personal loan could be an option to help you save money on interest. But it could only work if you have a stellar credit score. That’s because personal loans come with an APR of 4% up to 36%. With a higher credit score, you’re likely to get a loan at the lower end of interest and lower than your current credit card APR. This way, you’ll pay less interest for a loan than you would for a credit card.

7. Take home equity loan or a line of credit

Homeowners have the option to take a loan or a line of credit on the equity of their home. Home equity loans come with a fixed interest rate, while the line of credit comes with a variable rate. This can be often lower than the APR on your credit card and it may cost you less interest to pay off your credit card debt.

However, your home becomes collateral and you could lose it if you fail to pay off your debt. Because of that, this option is not recommended.