Best 0% intro APR credit cards of April 2024
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BLUEPRINT
Updated 1:29 a.m. UTC April 15, 2024
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A credit card with a 0% APR offer can be a smart way to pay off a big purchase over time or help you shed existing debt more quickly. Some of the best credit cards in this category feature interest-free financing periods of 15 months or longer, while keeping annual fees and balance transfer fees at a minimum. We analyzed a broad swath credit cards with low introductory periods cards to curate a list of the very best. Here are our selections for the best 0% APR offers of 2024
Best 0% APR credit cards
- Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card: Best for earning cash-back rewards on all purchases.
- Discover it® Cash Back: Best for first-year welcome bonus.
- Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card: Best for earning bonus cash rewards.
- Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card: Best introductory window for balance transfers.
- Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards credit card for Students: Best for students.
- Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card: Best for earning travel rewards.
- Wells Fargo Reflect® Card *: Best 0% APR credit card.
- BankAmericard® credit card *: Best for simplicity.
- Amex EveryDay® Credit Card *: Best for earning flexible travel rewards points.
All information about Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint.
Why trust our credit card experts
Our team of experts evaluates hundreds of credit cards and analyzes thousands of data points to help you find the best card for your situation. We use a data-driven methodology to determine each rating. Advertisers do not influence our editorial content. You can read more about our methodology below.
- 45+ cards analyzed.
- 5 data points considered.
- 5-step fact-checking process.
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Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card
Best for earning cash-back rewards on all purchases
Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card
Best for first-year welcome bonus
Discover it® Cash Back
Best for earning bonus cash rewards
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards credit card
Best introductory window for balance transfers
Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card
Best for students
Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards credit card for Students
Best for earning travel rewards
Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
Best 0% APR credit card
Wells Fargo Reflect® Card
*The information for the Wells Fargo Reflect® Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Best for simplicity
BankAmericard® credit card
*The information for the BankAmericard® credit card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Best for earning flexible travel rewards points
Amex EveryDay® Credit Card
*The information for the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
All information about Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint.
Compare the best 0% APR credit cards
Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months.
INTRO OFFER: Unlimited Cashback Match for all new cardmembers – only from Discover. Discover will automatically match all the cash back you’ve earned at the end of your first year! There’s no minimum spending or maximum rewards. You could turn $150 cash back into $300.
$200 online cash rewards bonus after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
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$200 online cash rewards bonus after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening – that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases.
Earn 10,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $2,000 in qualifying purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership
All information about Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint.
- APR: 0% intro APR for the first 15 months on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, then a 20.24%, 25.24%, or 29.99% variable APR applies thereafter. Balance transfers made within 120 days qualify for the intro rate and fee of 3%. After that a fee of up to 5%, with a minimum of $5 applies.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: 2% cash rewards on purchases.
- Welcome bonus: $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first three months of account opening.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3%.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: Get up to $600 of cell phone protection against damage or theft when you pay your monthly cell phone bill (up to two claims per 12-month period and subject to a $25 deductible).
- APR: 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and eligible balance transfers. Then, a variable rate of 17.24% to 28.24% applies. There’s a 3% intro balance transfer fee, up to 5% fee on future balance transfers (see terms).
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: 5% cash back on purchases at different places each quarter up to $1,500 spent each quarter when activated and 1% cash back on all other purchases.
- Welcome bonus: Discover will automatically match all the cash back earned at the end of the first cardmember year.
- Foreign transaction fee: None.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: Turn your account on/off with Discover’s Freeze it® feature, receive Social Security number alerts.
- APR: 0% intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases and for balance transfers made within the first 60 days, then a 18.24% to 28.24% variable APR applies. A 3% intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days; then a 4% fee applies to future balance transfers.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: 3% cash back in the category of your choice, 2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs (on up to $2,500 in combined choice category/grocery store/wholesale club quarterly purchases) and 1% cash back on all other purchases.
- Welcome bonus: $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3%.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: This card offers you the ability to choose which category of purchases you want to earn an elevated cash-back rate on.
- APR: 0% intro APR for 21 months on eligible balance transfers from the date of the first transfer and 0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases from date of account opening. After that, the variable APR will be 18.24% to 28.99%. Balance transfers must be completed in the first four months. A balance transfer fee of either $5 or 5% of each transfer, whichever is greater, applies.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: None.
- Welcome bonus: None.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3%.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: This is also a simple card with few fees and benefits, but it gives you four months from account opening to make qualifying intro APR balance transfers.
- APR: 0% intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases and any balance transfers made in the first 60 days, then a standard APR of 18.24% to 28.24% variable applies. A 3% intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days; then a 4% fee applies to future balance transfers.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: 1.5% cash back on purchases.
- Welcome bonus: $200 cash rewards bonus after spending at least $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3%.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: This is one of just a few student cards that offer a lengthy intro APR offer.
- APR: 0% intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases and any balance transfers made in the first 60 days, followed by a 18.24% to 28.24% variable APR. A 3% intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days; then a 4% fee applies to future balance transfers.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: 1.5 points per $1 on purchases.
- Welcome bonus: 25,000 points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days of account opening.
- Foreign transaction fee: None.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: Receive 15 billing cycles of intro APR financing on both new purchases and balance transfers, while earning 1.5 points per $1 on purchases.
The information for the Wells Fargo Reflect® Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
- APR: 0% intro APR for 21 months from account opening on purchases and on balance transfers made within the first 120 days, afterwards a 18.24%, 24.74%, or 29.99% variable APR applies. There’s a balance transfer fee of 5% with a $5 minimum.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: None.
- Welcome bonus: None.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% of each transaction converted to U.S. dollars.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: You receive 21 months of intro APR financing on new purchases and balance transfers when you make your payments on time, but this card doesn’t offer rewards.
The information for the BankAmericard® credit card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
- APR: 0% intro APR for 18 billing cycles for purchases and any balance transfers made in the first 60 days, and then a variable APR of 16.24% to 26.24%. An intro balance transfer fee of 3% of each transaction made within 60 days of account opening applies. After that, the fee will be 4% of each transaction.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: None.
- Welcome bonus: None.
- Foreign transaction fee: 3% of the U.S. dollar amount of each transaction made in a foreign currency.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: This card offers an intro APR offer, and it’s a very simple card that has few fees, but few benefits as well.
The information for the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
- APR: 0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months, followed by a regular APR of 18.24% to 29.24% variable.
- Annual fee: $0.
- Rewards: 2 Membership Rewards points per $1 at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year (then 1 point), 2 points per $1 on American Express Travel and 1 point per $1 on other purchases. Plus, use the card 20 or more times in a billing period and earn 20% extra points.
- Welcome bonus: 10,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $2,000 on purchases in the first six months of card membership.
- Foreign transaction fee: 2.7% of each transaction after conversion to US dollars.
- Other benefits and drawbacks: Membership Rewards points can be transferred to airline miles or hotel points. You also receive car rental loss and damage insurance¹ with the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card * The information for the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer. when you reserve and pay for your car at the rental car counter and decline the collision damage waiver (CDW).
All information about Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by Blueprint.
Methodology
Our credit card team has spent hours analyzing hundreds of credit cards. We took a deep dive into the details of each product and that analysis, combined with our years of experience covering credit cards, informed us as we developed these credit card rankings.
Should you get a 0% APR credit card?
If you have substantial credit card debt, then opening a new credit card with a 0% APR promotional financing offer on balance transfers can be a good idea. By transferring your existing balance to the new account, you will avoid interest charges during the introductory financing period. This will allow you to pay off your debt sooner, since your payments will be going entirely toward the principal of the debt instead of some toward the accruing interest.
Ideally, you should use these offers to accelerate the repayment of your debts, not to postpone it. The best strategy is to divide the amount of your balance transferred by the number of months remaining in your introductory financing period, and make that amount of payment each month, ideally using your card’s autopay feature. So long as you don’t incur any new balances, you’ll be debt free before interest begins to accrue.
Know that many balance transfer cards charge a balance transfer fee ranging from 3% to 5%. However, even after paying that fee, you can likely save money by doing a balance transfer compared to what’d you’d pay by carrying a balance on a card charging you interest.
Cards that offer 0% APR introductory financing on new purchases can be valuable for consumers who anticipate having to make large purchases that they can’t immediately pay off. You should still be strategic — budget for the monthly payment that will allow you to pay the balance off in full before the promotional period comes to an end.
Guide to 0% APR credit cards
There are many credit cards with 0% APR introductory financing, which is sometimes referred to as promotional financing. These products can offer interest-free financing on new purchases, balance transfers or both. By law, these offers must last for at least six months, but the most competitive cards include at least 15 months of 0% APR financing.
There are many types of credit cards that can offer 0% APR financing, including no-frills cards, student cards, cash-back cards and travel rewards cards. Thankfully, most 0% APR credit cards have no annual fee. However, nearly all cards will charge a balance transfer fee on the amount you’re transferring. And if you plan on using your card outside of the United States, then you should look for a card that doesn’t impose foreign transaction fees.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
When you have an outstanding balance on a credit card, you can transfer that balance to a card from a different issuer. The credit card issuer that you are transferring the balance to will essentially make a payment to the account that you are transferring the balance from. Most card issuers will add a balance transfer fee of 3% or more to the new balance.
Be aware that issuers do not allow you to transfer a balance from one of their cards to another. You can only transfer a balance to a card from a different bank than the one you’re currently carrying the debt on.
Ideally, you will want to pay off your balance before the promotional financing period ends and interest begins to accrue on your new balance. To do this, divide the new balance by the number of months remaining on your promotional financing offer. Pay that amount each month, preferably using autopay to ensure you never miss a payment.
By law, the card issuer must credit the account with the highest interest rate first. So, any payment you make above the minimum will go toward any balance on the card that’s not in a 0% APR period. For example, if your card only has interest-free financing on balance transfers, your payment will first be credited towards the purchase balance, not the balance transferred.
¹Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.
Editor’s Note: This article contains updated information from previously published stories:
*The information for the Amex EveryDay® Credit Card, BankAmericard® credit card and Wells Fargo Reflect® Card has been collected independently by Blueprint. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Blueprint is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor. The information provided is for educational purposes only and we encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific financial decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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