February’s best balance transfer credit card offers

If you’re not feeling the love from your credit card balance, here’s how to ditch it and save with 0% interest for up to 36 months.

If you don’t pay off your credit card by the due date each month, you’re not alone. Finder’s research shows it takes us an average of 6.5 months to pay it off.

But even if you spend less (or more) time paying it off, you’ll typically be charged interest – which can add to the cost and how long it takes you to repay it.

This is a compromise no one wants to make with a credit card, and balance transfer credit cards give you a way to avoid it. These cards come with an introductory low or 0% interest rate when you transfer your current balance over to the new card.

Right now, introductory periods can give you as much as 3 years of breathing space from interest charges, so there’s a good chance you’ll be able to pay off that balance before the higher ongoing rate applies. With that in mind, here’s our pick of balance transfer offers you can get in February 2022.

How did we pick this month’s line-up?

We selected the February line-up based on the length of the 0% p.a. balance transfer period, the annual fee and other valuable features of credit cards offered through Finder in February 2022.

A good balance transfer deal has a lengthy 0% p.a. interest offer, no balance transfer fee and a low or $0 annual fee. We’ve picked cards available through Finder with the longest 0% period and then weighed up their other features. There’s no one best credit card for everyone, so check details that matter to you. (And remember: You may not be eligible for a balance transfer offer from your current credit card issuer or bank.)

Best long-term balance transfer offer

HSBC Platinum Credit Card

• Balance transfer offer: 0% p.a. interest for 36 months with no balance transfer fee.
• Revert rate: 21.99% p.a.
• Annual fee: $29 in the first year, then $129 after that.
• Purchase rate: 19.99% p.a.
• Eligible debts: You can transfer up to 90% of your approved credit limit from credit cards or store cards not issued by HSBC.

The HSBC Platinum Credit Card gives you a way to pay no interest on your credit card balance for a huge 36-month introductory period. Analysis of Finder’s database shows this is the longest 0% balance transfer period currently offered by any credit card in Australia.

It also offers a $29 discounted annual fee in the first year, which goes to $129 in following years.

To give you an idea of the potential savings, if you had an average credit card balance of $2,877 and an average standard interest rate of 19.94% (both based on RBA figures), you’d save around $1,074 with this balance transfer offer.

We used Finder’s balance transfer calculator for this example, which also factors in the annual fee costs during the 36-month introductory period. To see how much you can save, just put your own balance and interest rate into the fields at the top of the balance transfer comparison table.

HSBC Platinum Credit Card also offers 2 airport lounge passes a year, complimentary international travel insurance and cover options for new purchases, plus a rewards program. But as the balance transfer interest rate goes to 21.99% p.a. after the introductory period, you’ll usually get more value by paying off what you owe in the short-term before making use of these features in the long-term.

HSBC hasn’t listed a date when this offer will end, but to get it you’ll need to apply while it is available and include your balance transfer request as part of the application.

Note: We chose the HSBC Platinum Credit Card for February because it has a long 0% balance transfer period and a discounted annual fee in the first year. If you want to transfer balances from a mix of credit cards and personal loans, or if you have a card issued by HSBC, you could also look at the Citi Clear Credit Card, which currently offers 0% interest on balance transfers for 36 months, no balance transfer fee and a $99 annual fee.

Best 0% p.a. balance transfer and $0 annual fee offer

Kogan Money Black Card – Exclusive Offer

• Balance transfer offer: 0% p.a. for 30 months with no balance transfer fee.
• Revert rate: 21.74% p.a.
• Annual fee: $0 (ongoing).
• Purchase rate: 20.99% p.a.
• Eligible debts: You can transfer up to 80% of your approved credit limit from credit cards, store cards, personal loans and lines of credit issued in Australia.

Exclusive to Finder, this offer on the Kogan Money Black Card gives you 0% interest on balance transfers for 30 months with no balance transfer fee and no annual fee ever. This offer is only running until 28 February 2022, so to get it you need to apply before then and request your balance transfer within 90 days of approval.

A highlight of this offer is that Kogan Money allows balance transfers for personal loans and lines of credit, as well as credit cards and store cards. So if you’re juggling a few balances, you could use this offer to consolidate them on one account.

Just keep in mind that after the 0% balance transfer period ends, any amount you’re still paying off will be charged a 21.74% p.a. interest rate.

If you’re not sure how long you need to repay your balance, you can use a credit card repayment calculator to work it out. As a quick example, with a $5,000 balance you’d need to make monthly repayments of $167 (or more) to pay it all off within the 0% balance transfer period.

The Kogan Money Black Card also offers $50 Kogan.com Credit when you apply by 28 February 2022 and spend $1,000 on eligible purchases in the first 60 days, plus points per $1 spent that you can use to get money off your shopping at Kogan.com. You won’t get interest-free days on purchases when you have a balance transfer debt, so these features could be something to look forward to once you’ve cleared your balance.

Best 0% balance transfer and 0% purchase rate offer

Bankwest Breeze Classic Mastercard

• Balance transfer offer: 0% p.a. for 15 months with no balance transfer fee.
• Revert rate: 9.90% p.a.
• Annual fee: $0 in the first year, then $49.
• Purchase rate: 0% p.a. for 15 months, then 9.9% p.a.
• Eligible debts: You can transfer a minimum of $500 from credit cards not issued by Bankwest, with a maximum amount of up to 95% of your approved credit limit.

If you want to pay off your balance and have upcoming expenses, this offer on the Bankwest Breeze Classic Mastercard gives you a 0% interest rate on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months. This offer also has no balance transfer fee and a $0 annual fee in the first year, which goes to $49 per year after that.

The Bankwest Breeze Classic is a low rate credit card, with a 9.90% p.a. interest rate that applies to both purchases and balance transfers after the 15-month introductory period.

This rate is 10.04 percentage points lower than the average standard credit card interest rate in Australia, so it’s very competitive. Especially when you compare it to cards that charge a higher cash advance rate for any balance transfer you’re still paying off after the introductory period.

At the end of the introductory interest-free period, a 9.90% p.a. interest rate applies to both purchases and balance transfers, which is 10.04 percentage points lower than the average standard credit card interest rate in Australia. This makes it a competitive low rate credit card, even after the introductory period.

As well as this 0% interest rate offer, Bankwest offers a digital credit card that you can set up within 24 hours of being approved, and then add to your Apple Pay, Google Pay or Samsung Pay mobile wallet, even before the plastic card comes in the mail.

While Bankwest has not listed a date when this offer will end, it is only available for a limited time. So you’ll need to apply when the offer is still available to get 0% interest on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months.

Compare these balance transfer offers side by side

Images: Finder, Getty Images, Supplied