Christmas Cash: Do you need a Christmas Credit Card?

Christmas is near, and it’s important that you equip yourself with the right credit card.

Card providers have come up with some very good offers on credit cards and if you feel that you will need to spend on a credit card this Christmas, now is the time to have a look at your card situation and fix it so that you can take advantage of the best offer on the market.

Best Christmas Credit Card Offer

The Citibank Clear Platinum offers a super low introductory rate on balance transfers for the first 6 months along with a low ongoing rate on purchases and is a truly amazing card offer. If you are looking for a credit card that will give you the flexibility to spend without racking up credit card interest this Christmas holiday season, this is a great card to consider

• $99 annual fee
• 11.49% p.a. on purchases
• 0% p.a. for 7 months on balance transfers
• Cash Advance Rate of 21.24%
• Minimum Income Requirement of $50,000 p.a.
• Comes with a range of complimentary insurance cover

Click here to read the Citibank Clear Platinum Visa Card terms and conditions

Now is the time to review your cards and your spending, to ensure you have the right cards in your arsenal to stay on top of your finances this Christmas.

Credit Card	Card Details	Interest Rate (p.a.)	Cash Advance Rate (p.a.)	Balance Transfer Rate (p.a.)	Annual fee	Interest free days (up to)
Citibank Clear Platinum Visa Card	Editor’s Choice: Purchase & Balance Transfers A platinum credit card with a competitive low interest rate, 0% balance transfer offer, discounts and free travel insurance.	11.49%	21.24%		$99	55
ANZ Low Rate MasterCard	Editor’s Choice: Balance Transfer A very popular card choice with a low rate, annual fee and attractive 0% balance transfer offer.	13.24%	21.49%		$58	55
St George Vertigo	Low 11.49% p.a. interest rate and balance transfer rate, from one of Australia’s most respected banks.	12.49%	21.24%		$55	55
Citibank Silver Card	Features a free rewards program along with no point expiry.	20.74%	21.24%		$89	55
Citibank BP MasterCard	5% off petrol at BP. 0.5% cashback for every other purchase made on the card.	20.89%	20.89%		$79	55
ANZ Balance Visa Credit Card	One of the better reward program credit cards in Australia. You gain reward points for every dollar you pay off your balance. Also a modest annual fee and low purchase rate.	14.24%	21.49%		$79	55
HSBC Credit Card	Editor’s Choice: No Annual Fee $0 annual fee for the life of the credit card and a 0% p.a. for 6 months balance transfer offer.	16.99%	20.75%		$0	55

Review the 0% balance transfer offers

Did you realise that at the moment there are companies offering 0% balance transfers? These are a great advantage, especially for someone who has a very high interest rate card. Some of the older cards on the market have over 20% interest rate on them and if you transfer the credit balance onto a card with a 0% interest balance transfer rate, you are saving a lot of interest. There is one aspect you need to watch though, and that is whether the company you are transferring to has a transfer fee. This can be a set value or a fee charged on a percentage basis.

It may be cheaper to take a low interest with no fee on transfer, so check it out and see which suits you best. If you are transferring say, $5,000 you would be better off with a capped transfer fee of $50 than an interest of 4.99%.

Also check what the interest rate is when the balance transfer reverts to the standard rate after the introductory period.

ANZ Low Rate MasterCard, ANZ Balance Visa Credit Card and Citibank Clear Platinum, are offering 0% p.a. for 6 months, 0% p.a. for 6 months, and 0% p.a. for 7 months on balance transfers.

Citibank BP MasterCard is offering 1.9% p.a. for 12 months whilst Citibank Silver Card is offering 2.9% p.a. for 12 months on balance transfers. So if you feel that it is going to take you a while to pay off the balance transfer, the fact that these cards have 12 months low interest, could be the best deal for you. St George Vertigo is offering 2.99% p.a. for 6 monthson balance transfers.

Low interest cards

If you are not going to look for a balance transfer perhaps you should look at a low interest card. These cards are especially good if you are not going to be able to pay your credit card balance in full each month.

This could be a good option for a Christmas credit card and if you do want to go this way don?t leave it too late before you apply because the weeks are passing by very quickly.

Currently BankWest Lite MasterCard is charging 10.75% on its card with a $59 annual fee and 1.99% p.a. for 9 months on balance transfers. This is a very good rate. St George Vertigo has a standard interest rate of 10.75% and a
$55annual fee with 2.99% p.a. for 6 months on balance transfer as mentioned earlier. Another Citibank card worth considering is the Citibank Clear Platinum Card at a standard interest rate of 11.49%, an annual fee of $99 but 0% p.a. for 7 months on balance transfers.

The cashback option

A cashback reward option could be beneficial and cashback offers are becoming very popular as a rewards incentive. They can offer a true value instead of vouchers and in most cases are easier to redeem.

Citibank BP MasterCard offers 5% off petrol and purchases made at BP petrol stations, and offers 1.9% p.a. for 12 months on
balance transfers. Commonwealth Bank Awards Card has a bank rewards program, but there must be a minimum of 4000 points. The Citibank card charges 20.89% interest and the Commonwealth card charge 20.49% standard interest rate. ANZ Balance Visa Credit Card gives 1 reward point for every $1 you repay to your balance and cashback amounts can be redeemed in $20, $50 or $100 lots and this card also has a low interest of 14.24% standard rate with 0% p.a. for 6 months on balance transfers.

Fee-free

As for a fee free card it really does depend what you are going to use the card on. If you are travelling overseas it would pay to get a card that has specific benefits for overseas travel as regards fees on purchases, money exchange and insurances.

There are monthly cards like American Express and there are credit cards where you can roll a balance over.

With cards for use in Australia there are several but they all have different criteria. Some only have an introductory offer of 6 or 12 months and others are only on offer after a particular $ spend.

At anytime you are going to be applying for a card or are going to be using a card considerably more than usual know how you are going to use it then research the cards to make sure you find the best one for your particular use, such as a Christmas credit card.

• Comparison of Top 10 Credit Card Offers

Editor's Choice: Our Top Credit Cards

Credit Card	Card Details	Interest Rate (p.a.)	Cash Advance Rate (p.a.)	Balance Transfer Rate (p.a.)	Annual fee	Interest free days (up to)
HSBC Credit Card	Editor's Choice: 0% for 6 months Balance Transfer & No Annual Fee Featuring a $0 annual fee for life, and 0% p.a. balance transfer for 6 months, the HSBC Credit Card was voted the Best Transactor Credit Card for 2010.	16.99%	20.75%	0% for 6 months	$0	55
Suncorp Clear Options Standard Visa Card	A great 12 month balance transfer offer, combined with a low annual fee and a good interest rate on purchases.	12.24%	17.99%	1.9% for 12 months	$39	0