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money transfer credit cards

Money transfer credit cards

Shift cash from a card to your bank account at 0% interest

Chris Collier
Chris Collier
Updated 17 March 2023

A 0% money transfer allows you to shift cash from a card to your bank account to clear your overdraft or give yourself a 0% cash loan for up to 14 months. This guide has full info and best deals, plus our eligibility calculator will show cards you've the best odds of getting before you apply.

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In this guide

Best 0% money transfer cards

Who's this guide for? Anyone looking to transfer cash to their bank account. If you've already got card debt, and you want to make it cheaper, try a balance transfer credit card.

Other related guides... 0% Purchase Credit Cards | Cut Overdraft Costs | Cheap Loans | Debt Help

What is a money transfer card?

A 0% money transfer card is a type of credit card that pays cash straight into your bank account, for a one-off fee. During the 0% period you won't pay any interest, though you do need to make at least the minimum repayment.  

You'll need to ask the lender to transfer the money to your chosen account for it to count – you can't just withdraw it as cash and pay it in (doing so usually incurs expensive interest and fees). When the 0% period ends, interest kicks in. So always aim to clear the card before then. 

what is a money transfer credit card

How best to use a money transfer card

Money transfers usually mean new borrowing – which can be dangerous. So ensure it's planned, budgeted for and affordable. The best way to handle these debts is to treat them like a loan.

Once you've done the transfer, divide the debt by the number of 0% months and pay that amount each month so you clear the card before interest kicks in. It's best to set up a direct debit or standing order to do it.

Here are two examples where a money transfer card comes into its own.

  • Beat loan rates for purchases under £5k – where card isn't accepted. A 0% spending card offers the cheapest way to pay, as there are no fees at all. Yet for cases where credit cards are not accepted, using a money transfer card to get cash is often much cheaper than a personal loan – provided you can get a large enough credit limit.

    For example, use the top money transfer card to move £2,000 to your bank account and – as long as it's fully repaid within the 14 month 0% period – you'd only pay a one-off fee of £70. Yet a loan over the same period (even at the cheapest loan rate of 12.3%) would cost you around £157 in interest, so over double the amount. 
  • Pay off expensive debts – overdrafts, payday loans and high-cost loans. Use the cash from the card to pay off your highest cost debt. Then, as you're no longer paying interest, more of your payments go towards clearing the balance on the card.

    You'll need to be disciplined though, and ensure you don't slip back into your overdraft or need to borrow again, or you'll be in even more debt. See our Budget Planner, Cut Overdraft Costs and Payday Loans guides for more help.

The four golden rules

A money transfer can be one of the cheapest ways to borrow up to around £5,000 (though more's possible if you're lucky enough to get a higher credit limit). But make sure you know what you're doing...

  • 1. Repay AT LEAST the monthly minimum or you may lose the cheap rate

    Set up a direct debit for at least the minimum repayment as soon as you're accepted. Even though you pay 0% interest, you still need to make repayments each month. If you miss one, you may lose your 0% deal, get a £12ish charge and a missed payment marked on your credit report, which may make it difficult to get other credit.

    Aim to pay more than the minimum – unless you've pricey debts elsewhere, in which case focus max repayments on them. Minimum payments are designed to make debts last as long as possible – try to avoid this. See tips to beat this in Danger: Minimum Repayments.

  • 2. Clear debt or shift again before the 0% ends, or costs rocket

    These cards are designed to make lenders money when you fail to pay them off within the 0% period. At that point, the interest rate jumps massively, to a standard 22%-ish APR.

    Your aim should always be to clear the amount you transferred during the 0% period, minimising interest. If you've not cleared it in time, see our Best Balance Transfers guide to move it to another 0% card.

  • 3. Check your card's rate before spending and don't withdraw cash – it's usually at an expensive rate

    While money transfers on these cards are interest-free for a number of months, you'll need to check if other uses, such as spending and balance-transfers, are as well. For example, from our best buys below, both the Tesco Bank and Virgin Money cards offer a 0% period on spending in addition to transfers, but purchases made on the MBNA card would incur interest (unless cleared in full each month).

    Cash withdrawals are a different case, and you'll usually pay interest from the date of making the cash withdrawal until it's paid off.

    This means you'll most probably see an interest charge on the first statement after the cash withdrawal, which is the interest charged from the date you made the cash withdrawal until the date the statement was issued.

    But you may also see interest charged on the following statement. There'll be a delay between your statement being drawn up, and you paying it. It may be a couple of days, it may be a couple of weeks. But you'll be charged interest on the cash withdrawal until you pay it off.

  • 4. To get the 0% and the fee, you usually have to do the money transfer within the first 1-3 months

    For most cards, the 0% period is only reserved for money transfers that are made within the first 60 or 90 days – though always check your card for its time limit, as it does vary. After this has passed, any transfers would incur expensive interest at the card's normal rate, unless it's paid off in full.

    This can sometimes apply to the one-off transfer fee too, so it's likely you'd incur a higher fee on later transfers, in addition to interest.

 Credit Card Eligibility Calculator

See which money 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 applying.

Check your chance of acceptance

Best 0% money transfer credit cards

The standout cards are below, but it's still best to use our eligibility calculator to see which you've the best chance of getting. 

Top 0% money transfer cards for new cardholders

LENDER 0% LENGTH + FEE CHECK ELIGIBILITY / APPLY




 MBNA		 The clear standout – longest 0% period with the lowest fee. Sadly it's not in our eligibility calculator, though the link takes you to MBNA's own calculator, so you can check your odds of being accepted before applying.

- 14mths 0%
- 3.49% fee

- 22.9% rep APR

Apply (not in our eligibility calc)

strawberry credit card

Tesco Bank		 A shorter 0% period with a higher transfer fee – all accepted get the full 12 months. But unlike MBNA's card above, here you can use our eligibility calculator to check your odds of being accepted before applying.

- 12mths 0%

- 3.99% fee

- 20.9% rep APR

 Check eligibility
Apply*

TABLE_CELL_STYLE

 

 

Virgin Money

 

 A contender if you've low eligibility scores for the Tesco card above. Another definite year at 0%, though a tad higher fee.

- 12mths 0%

- 4% fee

- 22.9% rep APR

Check eligibility
Apply*

Important: To get the 0%, you must usually do the money transfer within 60 or 90 days of opening. Representative APR (variable) is stated above, but your money transfer interest may be different. See all official APR examples.

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