What Are The Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards of 2018?

We examined over 50 balance transfer credit card options to see which worked best for cardholders. Our research indicates that the Citi Simplicity® Card is the best balance transfer credit card because of its exceptionally long 0% intro APR period, which can save you thousands. Applicants more interested in eliminating balance transfer fees or earning rewards would be better served by some of the more tailored cards mentioned below.

All of the cards listed above are great for dealing with costly credit card debt, and we've included detailed explanations of why that is below along with strong runner-ups for you to consider. We also created a tool, which allows you to estimate how much interest savings you could achieve by transferring your balance over to one of these cards. Lastly, we created a thorough guide explaining how to select a balance transfer credit card for yourself.

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In-Depth Reviews of the Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards

We'll discuss how each of the cards on our list can reduce your interest and overall debt burden below. Our team of analysts studied each card closely and these cards have the potential to save you thousands of dollars in credit card interest. Even better, some of these cards actually put cash back in your wallet through cash back rewards.

Longest 0% Intro APR Offer For Balance Transfers: Citi Simplicity® Card

The Citi Simplicity® Card is our top recommendation for those interested in a balance transfer credit card because its 21 month 0% intro APR period is 3 months longer than the next most competitive offer. After the intro period your APR will be 15.99% - 25.99%* (Variable), based on your creditworthiness. This long 0% intro APR period means you'll have more time to pay off your debt interest-free. Unfortunately, you will have to contend with a transfer fee that's on the higher end of what our analysts saw ($5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater). We suggest using our calculator below if you want to see whether you can save more money on a longer 0% intro APR offer or by avoiding transfer fees.

One aspect we like about the Citi Simplicity® Card is that it doesn't charge users late fees. Other cards on the market typically charge users $35 if they're late to pay their bill. Another aspect we really like about this card is that it doesn't have a penalty APR, while other cards' APRs generally shoot up to 29.99%. Most balance transfer credit cards lack the type of safe guards that come equipped with this one.

Alternative: HSBC Gold Mastercard® credit card

The HSBC Gold Mastercard® credit card is another solid credit card with a longer than average 0% APR period. Cardholders can go interest-free for 18 months from account opening (3-6 months longer than what's standard). Then a Variable APR of 12.99%, 16.99% or 20.99% will apply after the Introductory Period. The transfer fee is on the higher end of what we tend to see of either $10 or 4% of the amount transferred, whichever is greater. Still, if you're taking full advantage of those 18 months of no interest, you'll likely save much more than you pay towards that fee.

Best Balance Transfer Credit Card with No Transfer Fee: Chase Slate®

The Chase Slate® has two features that, when combined, allow consumers to maximize their savings and efficiently reduce their credit card debt. First, the card has a 0% introductory APR on balance transfers and purchases that lasts 15 billing cycles — this is on the longer end of what cards typically offer. This card also uniquely waives the balance transfer fee when you transfer a balance during the first 60 days your account is open. Other credit cards—including other ones on this list—will charge between 3% and 5% for each transfer. Depending on how much debt you have, that fee can cost you hundreds of dollars. By skipping the transfer fee, the Chase Slate® allows you to put all your available funds toward paying down your debt.

Like most balance transfer cards, the Chase Slate® has limited value after the promotional APR period ends. It has no rewards program or other bells and whistles that would make it useful for you in the long run. If that's an issue for you, we recommend checking out balance transfer/rewards cards hybrids.

Alternative: BankAmericard® Credit Card

From a features perspective, the BankAmericard® Credit Card is almost identical in the introductory APR and transfer waiver to the Chase Slate®. The reason we moved the BankAmericard® Credit Card down as an alternative is because of Bank of America's lower satisfaction ratings. Chase consistently ranked higher in J.D. Power's 2017 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study. In all regions of the study, Bank of America performed below average—sometimes coming in near the bottom. Therefore, if you have a choice, we recommend going with the Chase Slate®.

Best Balance Transfer Credit Card with Rewards: Discover it® Balance Transfer

The Discover it® Balance Transfer is one of the only credit cards we've seen that does an outstanding job as both a balance transfer and rewards credit card, at the same time. Most cards will specialize in one or the other. Cardholders get a 0% APR on balance transfers for 18 months, which is extremely long compared to most credit cards out there. In fact, among the 50 cards we surveyed, only the Citi Simplicity® Card came with a longer zero interest period.

On the rewards side, this is also one of also our favorite cash back credit cards. Users get 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in purchases each time they activate. This rewards rate applies to categories that change every quarter. For a point of comparison, most credit cards struggle to provide cardholders with more than 2% back.

Alternative: Citi® Double Cash Card

The Citi® Double Cash Card is another top cash back credit card, but it can be an amazing balance transfer card as well. Cardholders get a very long zero percent interest period on balance transfers (18 months vs an average of 12 across the credit card industry); after that cardholders get a standard APR of (15.49% - 25.49%* (Variable)). If you have the choice, we recommend applying for the Discover it® Balance Transfer because it has a lower transfer fee. However, if you prefer Citibank, or already have card debt with Discover, the Citi® Double Cash Card can be a great alternative.

On the cash back end, this card gives rewards that can't be rivaled by most cards. Users get 1% cash back whenever they use this card to make a purchase, and then another 1% back when that purchase is paid off. That effectively translates to a 2% cash back rate. Very few credit cards give their users 2% back on every single purchase. Most do so in one or two shopping categories.

Best Business Balance Transfer Card: The Blue Business℠ Plus Credit Card from American Express

The Blue Business℠ Plus Credit Card from American Express is one of the few small business credit cards to come with any sort of 0% APR offer. The card offers a 0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for 15 months. That's extremely competitive, even when compared to non-business cards. After that, your APR will be 13.24% - 21.24% Variable, based on your creditworthiness. The 15 months is among the longest we've seen for a business card. If you want the most time you can possibly get to pay down any major capital expenditure, this card is our #1 recommendation.

This card also doubles as a fantastic, easy-to-use rewards credit card. You'll earn a 2% rewards rate on all purchases, up to $50,000 each year. This is an extremely competitive return, matching some of the best business cards. The simple 2% rewards structure is also fantastic for busy entrepreneurs who don't want to manage special categories, and instead want a card that will provide them with outstanding value across the board.

Alternative: Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card

The Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card is another one of the few top balance transfer business cards available for entrepreneurs. With the card you get to skip paying interest on balance transfers for a full year. While that's not as impressive as other cards on here, keep in mind that there aren't that many options available for business owners. After the introductory period, the card still comes with some of the lowest ongoing interest rates we've seen on a business card. That means debt your firm takes on with this card is likely to be much cheaper than other business cards.

Unlike most other balance transfer cards, the Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card is also a rewards credit card, which gives it significantly better long-term value than its competitors. The card awards some of the highest cash back rates you can get on common office-related expenses. This sort of rebate can take some pressure off your bottom line, making it slightly easier to manage cash flows when times are tough.

How Do the Best Cards Compare?

The best way of selecting a balance transfer credit card is to pick one based on your specific financial situation. Using our tool below, you can enter your current amount of debt, estimated monthly payments and current interest rate, and our tool will figure out which credit cards will provide you with the best value, ranking them from highest to lowest value. If you would like to know more about some of the top cards, look to our picks above.

How to Choose the Best Balance Transfer Credit Card

Most top-rated balance transfer credit cards are only open to individuals with good-to-excellent credit (FICO 680+). If you're a student or have a poor credit history, you likely won't be able to find a balance transfer card until your score improves.

No matter what balance transfer credit card you get, it should have no annual fees, a 0% intro APR period that lasts at least 12 months, and average interest rates below 20% once the intro APR runs out. It's vital to pick a card with no annual fee, because all your available funds should be going towards paying down your principal balance.

You should not open a balance transfer credit card with a bank at which you already have outstanding credit card debt. Our researchers found that buried in most cardmember agreements is a clause that prevents you from transferring balances between cards issued by the same bank.

In your search, we recommend choosing a credit card with the longest 0% APR period you need to pay off your debt. For example, if you think that you can pay off your balance within 12 months, seek out cards that give you 0% interest for around 12 months. Generally, the longer a 0% period lasts, the harder a card will be to qualify for. We recommend you use the calculator below to figure out how long you need to pay off your debt, given your current financial situation. Make sure to consider scenarios where you don't pay a transfer fee, as that may lead to higher savings. However, know that among cards that don't charge transfer fees, you shouldn't expect to get anything more than 15 months of no interest.

You should only look at balance transfer/rewards credit card hybrids if the balance transfer part of a card is the best that's available to you. We recommend that our priority be minimizing interest charges, not earning rewards. That's because credit card rewards tend to provide no more than a 5% return. At the same time, you will pay, on average, 15% through credit card APR.

How We Arrived at Our Recommendations

Our team considered over 51 different credit cards when coming up with this guide. While our researchers gathered data and information on the various card offers, our team of developers built an interactive model to help gauge the relative money-saving power of each balance transfer card. The tool allowed us to narrow down our search by understanding how each card could help pay down different amounts of debt. We considered different payment schedules and different amounts of debt when coming up with our rankings.

We outline the selection criteria used in our rankings below. For each criteria, we considered industry averages, and made sure to select cards that performed above and beyond the norm.

Selection Criteria

0% Intro APR that lasts at least 12 months. We found that the average 0% term lasts 12 months, so consumers shouldn't consider any card with a shorter promo period. Most of the cards we recommend provide no interest for 15 months, and a select few push the upper bound at 18-21 months.

No annual fees. There are plenty of great balance transfer credit cards that don't charge an annual fee. Therefore, no one should settle for anything other than a no fee card. The added benefits that come on cards with an annual fee are generally not worth the added cost.

Ongoing APRs below 20%. Once the 0% period runs out, you may still carry debt from time to time, which is why a low ongoing interest rate is important. Generally, consumers should look for cards that have interest rates below 20%. We categorize anything higher than that as too expensive, compared to industry standards.

Strong preference to cards with no transfer fees. While balance transfer fees are standard (the average is between 3-5% of the transferred amount), most of our spreadsheets indicate that skipping the fee results in the greatest overall savings. Even if you end up with a card that gives you a slightly shorter 0% APR period, not having to pay the transfer fee makes a significantly bigger impact on your overall debt. If you want to know for certain which will be better for you, we recommend using our calculator above.

Great Balance Transfer Cards That Missed The Cut

We wanted to recognize a few credit cards that had amazing terms for balance transfers, but were missing just one or two things that got them cut from our list. You can consider these options, if their limitations do not bother you.

Wells Fargo Platinum Visa® Card: Another fantastic 18-month balance transfer credit card. What kept this card from our list was its high ongoing APR, after the 0% interest period expires. That makes this card a very bad choice for people who are worried about having to potentially carry a balance on their card in the future.