Below are our staff picks for 2020's best low-interest credit cards. These cards feature the lowest annual percentage rate (APR) on purchases and transfers for qualified applicants.
INTRO OFFER: Discover will match ALL the cash back you've earned at the end of your first year, automatically. There's no signing up. And no limit to how much is matched.
Earn 5% cash back at different places each quarter like gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, Amazon.com and more up to the quarterly maximum, each time you activate.
Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases - automatically.
Redeem cash back any amount, any time. Rewards never expire.
Use your rewards at Amazon.com checkout.
Get an alert if we find your Social Security number on any of thousands of Dark Web sites.* Activate for free.
INTRO OFFER: Discover will match ALL the cash back you've earned at the end of your first year, automatically. There's no signing up. And no limit to how much is matched.
Earn 5% cash back at different places each quarter like gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, Amazon.com and more up to the quarterly maximum, each time you activate. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases - automatically.
Redeem cash back any amount, any time. Rewards never expire.
100% U.S. based customer service.
Get your free Credit Scorecard with your FICO® Credit Score, number of recent inquiries and more.
Get an alert if we find your Social Security number on any of thousands of Dark Web sites.* Activate for free.
INTRO OFFER: Discover will match ALL the cash back you've earned at the end of your first year, automatically. There's no signing up. And no limit to how much is matched.
Earn 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants on up to $1,000 in combined purchases each quarter. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases - automatically.
Redeem your cash back for any amount, any time. Cash rewards never expire.
100% U.S. based customer service.
Get your free Credit Scorecard with your FICO® Credit Score, number of recent inquiries and more.
Get an alert if we find your Social Security number on any of thousands of Dark Web sites.* Activate for free.
UNLIMITED BONUS: Discover will match ALL the Miles you’ve earned at the end of your first year, automatically. For example, if you earn 35,000 Miles, you get 70,000 Miles. That’s $700 towards travel! The more you earn, the more you get.
Earn unlimited 1.5x Miles for every dollar spent on all purchases - with no annual fee.
No Blackout Dates. Simply pay for travel purchases like airlines, hotels, rental cars, and more with your Discover it® Miles card.
Miles Pay You Back. Easily redeem Miles as a statement credit for travel purchases. Or get cash.
Freeze your account in seconds with an on/off switch either on the mobile app or website to prevent new purchases, cash advances, and balance transfers.
Get your free Credit Scorecard with your FICO® Credit Score, number of recent inquiries and more.
One-time $150 cash bonus after you spend $500 on purchases within 3 months from account opening
Earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on every purchase, every day
No rotating categories or sign-ups needed to earn cash rewards; plus, cash back won't expire for the life of the account and there's no limit to how much you can earn
0% intro APR on purchases for 15 months; 15.49%-25.49% variable APR after that
0% intro APR on balance transfers for 15 months; 15.49%-25.49% variable APR after that; 3% fee on the amounts transferred within the first 15 months
3% Earnings on purchases at gas stations, restaurants, and office supply stores; 1% Earnings on all other purchases; plus, 5% Earnings on purchases of GM parts, accessories and service at authorized GM dealers - all of which can be exclusively redeemed toward the purchase or lease of an eligible, new Chevrolet, Buick, GMC or Cadillac vehicle
No annual fee, no limit to how much you can earn and redeem, and your Earnings don't expire on an open Account; plus, a 0% Intro APR on purchases for the first 12 months and a variable APR of 18.49% after that
Earn $500 bonus cash back after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening
Earn 5% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at office supply stores and on internet, cable and phone services each account anniversary year
Earn 2% cash back on the first $25,000 spent in combined purchases at gas stations and restaurants each account anniversary year
Earn 1% cash back on all other card purchases with no limit to the amount you can earn
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel
No delivery fees for a minimum of one year on qualifying food purchases with a DashPass subscription from DoorDash -over a $100 value. Activate with your Chase Sapphire card by December 31, 2021.
Earn 5X points on Lyft rides through March 2022. That's 3X points in addition to the 2X points you already earn on travel.
Earn 80,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $1,000 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
Earn 3 points per $1 on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year
Earn 1 point per $1 on all other purchases - with no limit to the amount you can earn
Points are worth 25% more when you redeem for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards
Redeem points for travel, cash back, gift cards and more - your points don't expire as long as your account is open
INTRO OFFER: Discover will match ALL the cash back you've earned at the end of your first year, automatically. There's no signing up. And no limit to how much is matched.
Earn 5% cash back at different places each quarter like gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, Amazon.com and more up to the quarterly maximum, each time you activate. Plus, earn unlimited 1% cash back on all other purchases - automatically.
Good Grades Rewards: $20 statement credit each school year your GPA is 3.0 or higher for up to the next 5 years.
No annual fee. No late fee on first late payment. No APR change for paying late.
Get 100% U.S. based customer service & get your free Credit Scorecard with your FICO® Credit Score, number of recent inquiries and more.
Freeze It® on/off switch for your account that prevents new purchases, cash advances & balance transfers in seconds.
Qualified applicants will receive exclusive benefits such as 1% cash back rewards on all purchases, no annual fee, and a competitive APR. Terms apply.
Manage your account quickly and easily from your mobile device by using the Credit One Bank mobile app.
Use your Apple device to make purchases securely through Apple Pay®. Apple Pay is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc.
Your account is safeguarded against unauthorized charges with Zero Fraud Liability at no additional charge.
Take advantage of free online access to your Experian credit score and credit report summary so you can track the key factors impacting your credit health. Terms apply.
No credit check necessary to apply. OpenSky believes in giving an opportunity to everyone.
The refundable* deposit you provide becomes your credit line limit on your Visa card. Choose it yourself, from as low as $200.
Build credit quickly. OpenSky reports to all 3 major credit bureaus.
99% of our customers who started without a credit score earned a credit score record with the credit bureaus in as little as 6 months.
We have a Facebook community of people just like you; there is a forum for shared experiences, and insights from others on our Facebook Fan page. (Search "OpenSky Card" in Facebook.)
OpenSky provides credit tips and a dedicated credit education page on our website to support you along the way.
Finding the lowest interest rate on a credit card can be tricky, especially when low-interest offers mix an ongoing APR rate with a special introductory rate. Below is a simply summary table to help you better determine the best low interest credit card for your financial needs.
A low credit card APR is a valuable commodity if you ever carry a balance, as the higher your interest rate, the more you’ll be charged in interest fees. Indeed, an increase of just a few percentage points can make a huge difference in how much money you’ll pay over the course of a year.
But, how do you ensure a low interest rate? Here are a few steps to keeping your rates low.
1. Always Pay Your Bill on Time
In addition to paying late fees on late or missed payments, many credit cards will also start charging you what’s known as a penalty APR. Typically much higher than your normal purchase APR, penalty rates can cause your interest fees to skyrocket.
Fortunately, the CARD Act of 2009 makes it much more difficult for credit card issuers to give consumers penalty rates. However, if you have a delinquency on your credit card of 60 days or more (meaning you’ve missed at least two payments), you may trigger a penalty rate. This means the credit card company can increase your rate on your existing balance, and they aren’t required to lower it until you regularly pay your bill on time for the next six months.
Always pay your bill on time. Create reminders in your phone or calendar if you have trouble remembering due dates, or, better yet, set up automatic payments from your bank account. If your minimum payments are too high, call your credit company and ask if you can make other arrangements — before you get in trouble and find yourself with a higher interest rate (and a balance that grows more quickly).
2. Negotiate Your Interest Rate
Believe it or not, some credit card companies will lower your APR upon your request. Call your credit company, sell yourself as a good customer and remind them how many years you’ve been banking with them. Let them know about competing credit card offers from other banks with much lower APRs. Mention how you’d like to stay loyal to them and ask for a lower APR.
If they say no or do not offer a low enough rate, ask to speak to a supervisor or someone in the retention department. No luck? You may want to try calling again a few days later and see if a different representative can help.
3. Transfer Your Balance
If you have high-interest credit card debt and your current issuers won't reduce your APR (or won't reduce it enough), then transferring your debt to a new card with a lower APR may be a good solution for saving on fees.
If you have at least good credit, many banks offer great introductory credit card offers with 0% interest on balance transfers for a year or longer. Just read the fine print so you know what interest rate to expect once the introductory period ends. If it’s higher than your current rate, it may not be a great deal unless you make major progress on your balance during the 0% introductory period.
Additionally, be aware of any applicable balance transfer fees. Most credit cards will charge a fee — typically 3% to 5% of the total transferred amount — to transfer a balance to the card. While this fee can be well worth it for a good 0% APR offer, crunch the numbers to see if it’s worth paying for lesser APR decreases.
4. Avoid Variable Rates
When you have a variable rate on your credit card, it is tied to an index (generally the US Prime Rate). As the market fluctuates, so, too, will your interest rate. You can avoid this by getting a credit card with a fixed rate so you will always know what your rate will be.
The only problem? Fixed rate credit cards are harder to find since the CARD Act went into effect, so you may need to do a decent bit of hunting to find one. Most major credit card issuers don’t have fixed-rate cards, but you may have better luck with your local credit unions or community banks.
Maintaining a low credit card APR is easy if you follow some basic steps.
Editorial Note: Opinions expressed here are author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
The information on this page was reviewed for accuracy on .
About the Author
Brittney Mayer Finance Contributor
Brittney is a Credit Strategist and Finance Expert who has spent years honing her knowledge of the credit industry both personally and professionally. Brittney applies her more than a decade of research experience to crafting in-depth consumer guides designed to help CardRates readers make better, more informed financial decisions.
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Advertiser Disclosure: The credit card offers that appear on this site are from credit card companies from which CardRates.com receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). CardRates.com does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. See the credit card issuer's website for specific terms and conditions of each card.
