Save money through Credit Cards

Credit Cards

Don’t pay interest, get a card that offers an interest free balance transfer. As soon as the interest free period expires on the credit card, find another one and move your balance. Just watch out for the fee they charge to transfer the balance, if you have a significant balance on your credit card the charge could be quite significant.

While you are in the interest free period, start paying back as much as you can. Make the most of your interest free period to pay back your credit card debt, because you aren’t being charged interest you’re money will work harder for you and you’ll reach a zero balance faster.

Rewards points, get a card that gives you rewards on purchases. You can then save the points and put them towards a purchase. Just make sure that you use any points earned within the allocated timeframe.

Cashback, get a card that pays you a percentage back. Therefore when you do use your credit card, you’ll get some of it back. It won’t be very much, but every little helps.

Avoid late payment fees by sending in your payments as early as possible, taking into account any weekends or public holidays that may slow down the payment. A late payment can set you back with a hefty financial penalty, which in turn means you owe more.

Setup a monthly standing order or direct debit that will cover your minimum payment. While this will go some way towards paying off your credit card debt, it will also ensure that you do not incur any late payment fees.

Ask for a lower APR. If you have to have a solid credit history behind you, call your credit card company and ask them to reduce your APR. If they aren’t being very forthcoming, you could threaten them with an account closure.

Keep your credit healthy, which will mean you will be eligible for those better credit cards. The easiest way to keep your credit healthy is never to miss a payment.

Watch out for ID theft. There are so many scams where criminals aim to get your credit information and start making purchases in your name. There are ways to avoid becoming a victim of credit card fraud such as never emailing your credit card details to anyone, shredding your statements (and any other financial documents) before throwing them out and being cynical about emails purportedly from your bank.

Keep any eye on your credit card report. Sometimes the details on your report are old or inaccurate, which means you can develop bad credit. In the US you are able to request a free credit report once every year, guaranteed by law. Get yours here.

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