Credit Card Rates Inch Up, But Not A Trend
While this week’s IndexCreditCards.com Credit Card Monitor recorded a slight increase in credit card rates in some categories, the changes were hardly enough to be called a trend.
The average credit card rate for non-reward consumer credit cards increased to 14.21%, from 14.15%. The average consumer reward card rate remained at 15.58%. Neither of these numbers are much of a departure from those seen six months ago.
Those rates indicate what an “average credit” consumer could expect to be offered, but those with excellent credit are usually offered better rates. For consumers with excellent credit, the average credit card rate stands at 11.02% for non-reward credit cards and 13.14% for rewards credit cards.
Student rates have moved up more significantly, now up to an average APR of 16.64%. This is a full quarter-point higher than the 16.41% average of July.
Business credit card rates also moved up ever so slightly, but again not enough to be worthy of close inspection. The average rate for non-reward small business cards stands at 12.27%, while the average rate for rewards business cards is 14.22%.
Financial institutions represented in the survey include Advanta, American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Discover, National City, Pulaski Bank, U.S. Bank, Washington Mutual, Wells Fargo and more.
-
1.Discover® More Card - 0% APR on balance transfers for 12 months & 6 months on purchases, 5% cashback bonus in popular categories, up to 1% cashback bonus on all other purchases
-
2.Chase Freedom Card - 0% Intro APR and no Annual Fee, 5% bonus cash back in popular categories , 1% cash bank on everything else
-
3.Citi® Platinum Select® MasterCard® - 0% on purchases & balance transfers for Up to 18 months, APR as low as 9.99% variable. $30 statement credit.
-
4.Blue Cash® from American Express - Earn up to 5% cash back on gas, groceries and drug store purchases, and up to 1.5% back on all other purchases, no annual fee, fast approval under 60 seconds
-
5. -
6.American Express® Gold Card - 10,000 American Express Membership Rewards bonus points when you use the card for at least $500 in purchases within the first 3 months.
-
7.TrueEarnings® Business Card from Costco & American Express - 4% cash back for annual gas purchases up to $6,000, 3% restaurants, 2% travel, 1% everywhere else, 0% APR on purchases for first 6 months
