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Balance transfer credit cards
Shift existing card debt to 0% interest for up to 34 months
Paying credit card interest? STOP. A balance transfer credit card can save you £1,000s by slashing the interest you pay. Our guide has full info and top picks, plus our Balance Transfer Eligibility Calculator will show the cards you've the best odds of getting.

Other MSE credit card guides...
0% Money Transfer Cards | 0% Credit Cards for Spending | All-Rounder 0% Cards | Debt Help | How credit cards work
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What is a balance transfer card?
With a 0% balance transfer you get a new card to pay off debt on old credit and store cards, so you owe it instead, but at 0% interest. A card will have a 0% period, during which you pay no interest – for example, 28 months – and sometimes you'll pay a small fee. It means you become debt-free quicker, as more of your repayments reduce the debt, rather than pay interest.
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Which balance transfer card is best?
First up, you can't transfer a balance between cards from the same bank/group. So where you're transferring debt from will narrow down the choice. Of those left, which to go for will largely be determined by which cards you're eligible for, as you'll need to pass a credit check as part of any application.
Our eligibility calculator will show your chances of acceptance for most of the top cards in this guide, with no impact on your credit score. If it shows you're eligible for many cards but you're unsure which to pick, follow this rule...
See which balance transfer cards you've the best chance of getting, in your own personal best-buy table.
Usually, applying is the only way to know if you'll be accepted for a credit card. Yet that marks your credit file, affecting your ability to get future credit. To help, our tool uses a 'soft search' to find your chances of acceptance before you apply.
Check your chances of acceptance
Top-pick 0% balance transfer cards
We've highlighted the standout cards here, yet our Eligibility Calculator has many more, so it's best to use that to get your personalised best-buy table. The calculator also shows if you're pre-approved for any cards, which can give certainty over which to apply for (especially important with 'up to' cards, where some are accepted and given fewer months at 0%).
If you need help to choose between cards, go for the lowest fee in the time you're sure you can repay. The longest charge a one-off fee, as a percentage of the amount of debt you transfer (for example, 2.7% is £27 per £1,000 shifted). But there are shorter options with no fee, so no cost if you can clear your debt within 22 months or less. If unsure, play safe and go long.
LENDER | 0% PERIOD + FEE (i) | APPLY |
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The standout if you need the longest 0% period – all accepted get the headline deal. Full card spec | |
- 34mths 0% - 2.7% fee - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
Apply* | ||
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Slightly shorter 0%, but £25 cashback offsets the fee. So it's cheaper if you can clear your debt in 33 months or less. Apply via our links for the cashback (it's not available direct) and shift £100+ in the first 60 days. It's then credited to your account by 30 Sep. If shifting £100-£900, the cashback is actually bigger than the fee, so you'll even be up a little. Full card spec |
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- 33mths 0% - 2.7% fee (min £5) - £25 cashback if shifting £100+ in first 60 days - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
Apply* | ||
Long 0% and even lower 1.5% fee – but it's 'up to' 30 months. This beats the cards above if you're transferring £2,100+ and can clear in time, though some accepted could get just 24 months at 0% unless showing as 'pre-approved' in our eligibility calculator. You'll need to request the transfer during your application to qualify for the 1.5% fee, it could be more if you wait. Full card spec | ||
- Up to 30mths 0% - 19.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
Apply* | ||
Longest 0% period with no fee, though you need an existing account to qualify. Also offered by sister banks RBS and Ulster Bank, each bank says you’ll qualify if you have an existing savings, credit card, mortgage or current account with it. If accepted for any of these cards, you’ll get the full 22 months at 0%. Full card spec | ||
- 22mths 0% - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
Apply* | ||
![]() Santander |
Top no-fee card that's open to all. So there's no cost at all if you can clear it within the 21 months – all accepted will get this. Full card spec |
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- 21mths 0% - NO FEE - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
Apply* | ||
The next-best 0% balance transfer cards. Here are quick details of decent alternatives. | ||
Tesco Bank | - Up to 33mths 0% - 2.59% fee - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* | ||
M&S Bank | - 32mths 0% - 1.99% fee (min £5) - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* | ||
Virgin Money | - 28mths 0% - 1% fee - 21.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* | ||
Sainsbury's Bank | - Up to 21mths 0% - 20.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* |
Important: (i) Fee as a percentage of debt shifted. To get the 0% and fee, you must usually do the balance transfer within 60/90 days of opening. You can't balance-transfer between cards from the same bank/group.|Representative APR (variable) after the 0% period is stated above – your balance transfer interest may be different.|See all official APR examples.
Top-pick balance transfer cards for poorer credit scorers

Warning – after the 0% rate these are VERY expensive, so plan how much to shift. All cards below have a horrid rep APR after the 0% (up to 34.9%), so compare against your current card's interest rate. If that's more, shift as much debt as possible, which'll depend on the credit limit you get. If less, only shift what you're sure you can clear within five to nine months, depending on the card you choose.
LENDER | 0% LENGTH + FEE (i) | APPLY |
Virgin Money |
The longest 0% for poorer credit scorers by a long way. All accepted get the full 16 months at 0%. Full card spec | |
- 16mths 0% - 29.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
Apply* | ||
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A lower transfer fee, so cheaper than Virgin if you can clear the card in nine months or less. All accepted get a credit limit of £1,000 (max transfer of £900, min £100) and nine months at 0%. Full card spec | |
- 9mths 0% - 29.3% rep APR |
Check eligibility | |
The next-best poor-credit balance transfer cards. Here are quick details of decent alternatives. | ||
Fluid | - 9mths 0% - 34.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* | ||
Aqua | - 6mths 0% - 3% fee - 34.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* | ||
Capital One | - 6mths 0% - 3% fee - 34.9% rep APR |
Check eligibility |
Apply* |
Important: (i) Fee as a percentage of debt shifted. To get the 0% and fee, you must usually do the balance transfer within 60/90 days of opening. You can't balance-transfer between cards from the same bank/group. (ii) We've only included a link to our eligibility calc as this card isn't available on Chrome's site.|See all official APR examples.
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Balance Transfer Calculator: Which card is cheapest for you?
Cashback sites may pay you for signing up
As an extra boon, members of specialist cashback websites can be paid when they sign up to some financial products. Do check that it's exactly the same deal though, as terms can be different. And remember that the cashback is never 100% guaranteed until it's in your account.
There is full help to take advantage of this and pros and cons in our Top Cashback Sites guide.
If you can't get a new 0% card, try the credit card shuffle to cut interest

If you're unable to get any of the cards above (use our eligibility calculator to check), you may still be able to slash the interest by asking for a low-rate or 0% deal on the card you already have.
If you've more than one credit card, you can then shift debt to the card which offers the lowest rate, though you'll need to factor in any one-off transfer fees.
Here's how to do it step by step:
- List all your debts. Take stock of your current situation and note down all your existing debts, including an overdraft if you have one. Our credit card shuffle worksheet may help.
- Check your account(s) for existing-customer offers. Lenders sometimes offer special deals (either a lower rate or 0% for a set period) for transferring new debt to your existing cards, though usually for a one-off fee. You can usually find these on your online account or by calling your card provider.
- Shift debts to the cheapest card. Do a balance transfer to shift your debt from the card(s) charging the most interest to the one charging the least (or the cheapest ones, if your credit limit isn't big enough to allow you to move it to just one card). You could even consider shifting debt away from any card that will offer you a 0% deal for transferred balances. You can then transfer it back along with debt from other cards to get the 0%. Though be aware of balance transfer fees that could wipe out the gain.
- Repay the most expensive debts first – the most crucial part. If you can't shift all your debt to one card, focus as much cash as possible on the most expensive one first and just pay the minimum repayments on any less expensive card. Once that's repaid, shift focus to the next highest-rate card and continue this until you're debt-free.
If you're paying debts at 18.9% APR on one credit card, and you can get a low-rate deal for 6.9% APR on another card you have, you could save about £120 interest in a year on a £1,000 debt.
Balance transfer FAQs

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