Last updated on January 9th, 2023
Nobody like paying interest on their credit cards. That’s probably why cards that offer 0% introductory periods are so popular! Thinking of getting a new card and want to ensure you get the best possible deal? Here are our top picks for the best 0% intro APR credit cards:
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Low Rate & Balance Transfer Cards
Many banks like to provide a suite of credit card products that address a variety of consumer needs and concerns. One of the most common card types is low rate or balance transfer credit cards. Low rate (or low APR) credit cards provide the ideal platform for getting a lower-than-average APR on purchases or transfers, 0% APR, and no annual fee.
Citi Simplicity® Card
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0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases
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0% intro APR for 21 months on balance transfers
☆ Choose Your Payment Date
☆ Contactless Payment - Tap and Pay
☆ No Annual Fee
Citi offers two impressive 0% intro APR credit cards – both of which closely mirror each other. The first of Citi’s low rate and 0-interest credit cards is the Citi Simplicity.
The Simplicity offers two introductory interest rate periods – one for balance transfers and one for purchases. First, new accounts enjoy 12 months of no interest on purchases. Second, they’ll enjoy a whopping 21 moths of 0% interest on balance transfers – the longest introductory period available.
Citi® Diamond Preferred® Credit Card
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0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases
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0% intro APR for 21 months on balance transfers
☆ Choose Your Payment Date
☆ Contactless Payment - Tap and Pay
☆ No Annual Fee
The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card is Citi’s other low APR credit card. Like the Simplicity, the card offers 0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases and 21 months on balance transfers – also with no annual fee.
So how do the Citi Simplicity and Diamond Preferred differ? The biggest difference between the two is the regular APR, but even that variation is modest. The Diamond Preferred features a regular APR one-percentage point lower than the Simplicity.
Chase Slate Edge
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0% introductory APR on purchases and balance transfers for 18 months from account opening
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Get a one-time review for a higher credit limit when you pay on time, and spend $500 in the first six months
☆ 2% APR Reduction Consideration Each Year (Terms Apply)
☆ $0 My Chase Plan® During Intro Period
☆ No Annual Fee
The Chase Slate Edge is Chase Bank’s latest low rate credit card. The card offers the chance at an automatic credit line increase, plus 0% intro APR for 18 months (with a variable APR after that) and automatic APR reduction when you pay on time after meeting minimum spending requirements– all for no annual fee.
Wells Fargo Reflect Card
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0% intro APR for 18 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers
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ntro APR extension of up to 3 months with on-time minimum payments during the introductory and extension periods
☆ Cell Phone Protection
☆ Roadside Dispatch
☆ No Annual Fee
The Wells Fargo Reflect Visa is a low APR credit card that offers one of the lengthiest intro APR periods available. The card, which features no annual fee, starts with 18 months of 0% APR on purchases and balance transfers, with that period extending to up to 21 months when the cardholder makes their minimum payment due each month.
The major talking point with the Reflect Card is the impressive 0% intro APR period it provides. New accounts enjoy 18 months of zero interest on purchases and qualifying balance transfers. Qualifying balance transfers are any eligible transfers made within 120 days (roughly four months) of opening an account. However, Wells Fargo is upping the ante by extending that period up to 21 months, provided the cardholder pays their minimum balance due every month. Those 21 months (subject to on-time payments and remaining balances) is the longest introductory period from a major US lender, making the Wells Fargo Reflect a mammoth of a balance transfer credit card
Rewards Cards
Rewards cards are an excellent way to maximize value, thanks to cash back, rewards points, and an ever-increasing number of introductory APR periods for new accounts.
Citi Custom Cash℠ Card
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Earn 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent, 1% cash back thereafter
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Earn $200 in cash back after you spend $750 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening
☆ 5% Categories Include Gas, Streaming, Groceries, Travel, & More!
☆ 0% Intro APR for 15 Months
☆ No Annual Fee
The Citi Custom Cash℠ Card is Citibank’s latest cash back credit card. The card earns 5% back on your highest spending category each billing period, making it a direct competitor to the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards, Wells Fargo Active Cash, or the Chase Freedom Flex.
The 5% back categories with the Custom Cash include the following and is limited to the first $500 spent every billing period: dining, drugstores, fitness clubs, gas stations, grocery stores, home improvement stores, live entertainment, select travel, select streaming services, and select transit.
Like its rivals, the Custom Cash also features a lengthy introductory period on balance transfers and purchases. That 0% intro APR period extends for 15 months, making the card rewarding, versatile, and convenient.
Citi® Double Cash Card – 18 month BT offer
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Earn 2% back on everything
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Earn 1% back when you make a purchase and 1% back when you make you pay off that balance
☆ Balance Transfer Only Offer: 0% intro APR on Balance Transfers for 18 months
☆ No Reward Caps or Categories
☆ No Annual Fee
The Citi® Double Cash Card does not offer a special rewards categories Instead, Citi provides 2% cash back on all eligible purchases. The card earns a flat-rate 1% cash back on all eligible purchases – and another 1% back when the account holder pays off that balance.
The lack of an annual fee, the 2% back , and the 0% introductory APR on balance transfers for the first 18 months make the Citi Double Cash Card the perfect everyday card that just happens to reward your streaming habits.
Chase Freedom Flex
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5% on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter
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0% intro APR for 15 months
☆ 5% Back on Chase Travel
☆ 3% Back on Dining & Drugstores
☆ No Annual Fee
The Chase Freedom family of credit cards has long been one of the most popular options for cash back rewards. The family includes a range of excellent cash back cards, topped off by the ever-impressive Chase Freedom Flex.
The Freedom Flex World Elite Mastercard earns 5% cash back on rotating categories each quarter after activation, 5% back on travel booked through Ultimate Rewards, 3% back on dining and drugstore purchases, and 5% cash back on eligible gas station purchases on up to $6,000 spent in the first year. The card’s rotating categories are always popular, with Q2 2022 including Amazon purchases and select streaming services – making now the time to jump on the Flex to maximize those streaming rewards.
The Flex also features a lengthy 0% APR period to match its impressive rewards. New accounts enjoy 15 months of no interest on both purchases and balance transfers. This combination of rewards and introductory APR is tough to beat – before you even mention the no annual fee.
Chase Freedom Unlimited
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5% on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter
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0% intro APR for 15 months
☆ 5% Back on Chase Travel
☆ 3% Back on Dining & Drugstores
☆ No Annual Fee
The Chase Freedom family also includes the Freedom Unlimited, the bank’s unlimited cash rewards credit card. The Freedom Unlimited earns an unlimited 1.5% cash back on all purchases, with the exception of extra enhanced categories that mirror the Flex.
Like the Freedom Flex, Freedom Unlimited cardholders enjoy 15 months of no interest on BTs and purchases, plus up to 5% cash back in select categories. While the 5% back is limited to Chase travel (via Ultimate Rewards), the 3% back categories include restaurants and drugstores, making this card’s value truly unlimited.
Discover it Cash Back
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5% cash back in rotating categories each quarter, up to the quarterly maximum, when you activate
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0% for 15 months from account opening
☆ Discover Cash Back Match
☆ Redeem Points with Amazon
☆ No Annual Fee
Consumers perennially favor the Discover It family of credit cards – and it’s easy to see why. All Discover credit cards come with the bank’s Cashback Match after year one.
Equally impressive, however, are the 0% intro APR offers that come with some of the issuer’s card products. The Discover It Cash Back, Discover It Chrome, and Discover It Miles all come with 0% introductory APR for 14 months on both purchases and balance transfers.
The Discover It Cash Back is a versatile cash back rewards card that earns 5% back on a rotating selection of categories. On the other hand, the Chrome Card is 2% cash back at gas stations and restaurants on up to $1,000 per quarter and 1% back on all other purchases. The Miles Card, Discover’s travel credit card, earns an unlimited 1.5X miles on all purchases.
Discover it Miles
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Earn unlimited 1.5x Miles for every dollar spent on all purchases
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0% for 15 months from account opening
☆ Discover Cash Back Match
☆ Redeem Points with Amazon
☆ No Annual Fee
As mentioned, the Discover It Miles is another Discover credit card with a lengthy 0% APR period. The It Miles features the same 15 months of no interest as the chrome and It Cash Back, but earns unlimited miles versus cash back. Those miles are earned at a rate of 1.5X miles per dollar spent, with no cap and no miles expiration. Even better, the card also enjoys Discover’s Cashback Match.
Other Options to Consider
Want some more 0% intro APR credit card options to consider? Here are two cards that just missed out on our top spots:
Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card
The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card touts 3X points at U.S .supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases, 2X points at U.S. gas stations and 1X points on other eligible purchases. New accounts also enjoy 0% intro APR for 12 months on purchases.
U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card
he U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card is designed to compete directly with BT heavyweights like the Chase Slate Edge and the Citi Simplicity. The card comes with an array of 0% APR offers and more.
Featured photo by shotput / PixaBay
