Can you transfer your credit card balance to another card

Balance transfers can help you to lower the cost of your credit card borrowing and consolidate multiple debts.

What is a balance transfer?

Transferring your balance means moving all or part of a debt from one credit card to another.

People often use them to take advantage of lower – sometimes 0% – interest rates.

Switching to a card with a lower interest rate lets you:

• pay less interest on what you currently owe (but you’ll usually pay a fee)
• organise your finances by consolidating multiple monthly payments into one.

What is a money transfer?

A money transfer is like a balance transfer, but instead of the money going from one credit card to another, the money from the credit card goes into your chosen current account.

This allows you to pay off an overdraft, or cover an essential or unexpected bill using a credit card, which might charge you a lower interest rate. 

How to transfer a balance

When you apply for a new low or zero-interest credit card, you’re given the opportunity to transfer any other balances on other cards at that point. Or you can contact your credit card provider to arrange a transfer.

You’ll need:

• the details of the card you want to transfer
• the card number and the provider
• the balance you want to transfer.

You might be able to do this online.

How much it costs

Credit card companies usually charge a fee for balance and money transfers. This is often around 2-4% of the amount you’re transferring, which will be added to your outstanding balance.

Make sure you check the fee and take this into account when calculating potential savings, especially if the 0% promotional period is quite short.

Things to watch out for

• Interest rates — most balance transfers offer a better interest rate (often 0%) for an introductory period. When that period ends, the interest rate will go up. So it’s important that you know when it finishes. Check how well the final rate compares with other cards, and see if you can get a better deal elsewhere.
• Check transfer limits — check with your credit provider what limits might exist. 
• Be aware that if you spend using your balance transfer credit card, the purchases you make might not be included in the 0% rate.

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If you have high-interest credit card debt, paying it off can seem insurmountable. But if you move your debt to a balance transfer card with a lower APR or a 0% APR offer, you can make more progress on paying off your debt and eventually knock out that obligation for good. That’s because the less money you’re paying toward interest, the more money you can put towards your principal debt.

But before transferring your existing debt to any old card, make sure you make the most out of your money move by arming yourself with knowledge about the process and following eight simple steps.

How Does A Balance Transfer Work?

A balance transfer moves a balance from one card or account to another. Ideally, the debt moves to an account with a lower interest rate or an introductory 0% interest rate. In many cases, a balance transfer can save you money, but there is a catch: The rate is an introductory rate, meaning that it will end. Also, there will typically be a balance transfer fee ranging from 3% to 5% of the amount of your transfer.

Featured Partner Offers For Balance Transfer Credit Cards

Should I Do A Balance Transfer?

Balance transfer cards are typically only available to those with good or better credit. And even if you are approved, it’s important to have a plan to pay off the debt before the end of the introductory period. If you’re still carrying debt on your balance transfer card at the end of the low or 0% interest promotional period, the card’s regular variable interest rate will apply and it may be higher than the card you transferred debt from—and you could wind up accruing debt all over again.

1. Review Your Existing Debt

Take some time to review your credit cards that have a balance. Take note of how much you owe and what the interest rate is for each card. Your interest rate and your APR are the same thing when it comes to credit cards—though for other financial products, they can differ.

You can find your credit card’s APR on your monthly statement or you can call the number on the back of your card and ask customer service for the information. Your goal is to move your debt to a card with a lower interest rate than what you’re already paying on your existing debt.

2. Decide Where to Transfer Debt

Do your due diligence to find potential cards to shift your balance to. Are you hoping to take advantage of a limited-time 0% APR balance transfer offer? Or do you want a longer runway than what typically comes with a promotional offer? If so, you might be better off moving your debt to a card that has a low ongoing APR.

You may already even have a card with a regular APR that’s significantly lower than the account you’re looking to transfer debt from—or one with a temporary 0% APR offer available. Depending on your credit history, that could be an appealing option as it means you won’t have to apply for a new card, which can temporarily ding your credit score.

3. Review the Offers on Other Cards

Know the Difference in Offer Types

If you’re primarily interested in a 0% APR balance transfer offer, compare what’s available to find a card that will help you save the most money overall. Cards with 0% APR offers don’t all work the same way. Some let you bypass interest payments on purchases and balance transfers, but others only extend the offers to one or the other. A card that has an interest-free period just on purchases won’t help you much with a goal of paying down existing debt.

Consider the Offer Length

Pay attention to the length of time for any introductory balance transfer offers. The promo period can vary greatly between different cards, ranging anywhere from six months to nearly two years. Make sure any card you’re considering offers enough time for you to make a serious dent in your debt, if not wipe it out completely.

Remember: No Transfers Within the Same Issuer

You should also know that most issuers do not allow you to transfer a balance from one of their cards to another one of their cards. In other words, Chase card to Chase card balance transfers, Citi to Citi cards transfers, etc., are not allowed. You can sometimes get around this by using a balance transfer check where you write a check to yourself, deposit it into a bank account, and can use that money to pay anything you want, even a balance on a credit card from the same bank.

4. Compare Your Top Picks

Even if you find cards that offer the same promotional length of time on a balance transfer, pay attention to the terms surrounding a transfer.

Do the Transfer Fee Math

Most balance transfer cards charge a balance transfer fee, usually 3% to 5% of the amount being transferred. Make sure you include this fee in your card comparisons to see if you’ll actually be saving money by doing a balance transfer.

When deciding between seemingly similar options, it helps to calculate the amount you’re looking to transfer plus any balance transfer fees, along with how many months you’ll need to pay off the debt. This can help you narrow down the balance transfer card that makes the most sense for your particular circumstances.

Read the Fine Print

Sometimes that 0% APR offer comes with a catch. If you miss a payment or pay late for example, it could nullify the offer. This means you’ll have to pay whatever the standard variable interest rate is for that card, which could end up costing you more overall. Make sure you know the exact details when it comes to any card that’s a contender for your balance transfer.

Be Aware of Transfer Deadlines

You should also note the amount of time you’ll have to do the transfer as every card has a different window of time before the ability to transfer at the promotional APR expires. Some require a transfer to be requested within 30 days, others 45 or even 60 days. You might find one choice more appealing than another, especially if you hope to consolidate balances from multiple cards onto one new card.

5. Apply for the New Card

The process of applying for a balance transfer credit card is the same as applying for any other credit card. You’ll have to supply some basic information about yourself including your Social Security number, birthdate, income and housing or other monthly expenses.

It’s a good idea to know your credit score before applying for a new balance transfer card because credit cards have recommended credit scores for approval. Your expectations should be in line with your qualifications. The best balance transfer offers tend to be reserved for those with good-to-excellent credit, although it may be possible to find low or no-interest offers with fair credit.

You can access your credit score through a number of credit card issuers for free. You can also order your score from one of the three main credit agencies: TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. The easiest way to check your credit report is by using annualcreditreport.com, but this will not give you access to your credit score.

You may also want to check and see if you’re pre-qualified for any balance transfer cards. Several issuers, like American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citibank and Discover will let you check to see if you’re pre-qualified for any of their cards. Keep in mind that pre-qualification doesn’t ensure approval. But it does mean that the lender, based on some of your basic credentials, thinks you have a good shot.

6. Gather Information

Here’s the tricky thing when it comes to getting a balance transfer card: Although you may get approved for the card that you want, you won’t find out your credit limit until you receive approval. This means, for example, that even if you had planned on transferring $10,000 in debt to a new card, it’s possible you may not get as high a credit limit as you need to do that.

Unfortunately, there’s no way to know for sure just how much of a credit limit you’ll be approved for. If you end up getting a lower limit than what you’d hoped, you can try calling the issuer and asking if they’d consider increasing your initial limit. That said, know that even if you get your desired credit limit, it’s possible for issuers to cap the amount of debt that can be transferred.

After you’re approved and you know what the credit limit is on the new card, now is the time to collect the information you’ll need to transfer your debt. This will include the account numbers of any accounts you’re looking to transfer from as well as the amount you plan on transferring.

Don’t forget to calculate the amount of any balance transfer fee into the amount you’ll be putting on the new card. For example, if you’re looking to move $10,000 worth of debt to your new card and there’s a 3% balance transfer fee, your new card will have a balance of $10,300. Some banks will add the amount of the balance transfer fee to the amount you can transfer, meaning someone with a $10,000 limit and a 3% balance transfer fee will only be able to transfer $9,708.

7. Make a Payment Plan

If you’re taking advantage of a 0% APR offer, then ideally you’ll create a payment schedule based on the number of months you have to pay off your debt without accruing interest. But even if paying off your debt completely within the promotional period isn’t realistically attainable, you should still aim to make as much headway on that balance as possible to take advantage of the interest-free period.

8. Make Your Balance Transfer

Sometimes you can request to do a balance transfer during your card application online. If this isn’t an option or you decide to do it later, contact the bank that issued your new card to initiate the transfer. You’ll need to provide information about the card you’re looking to transfer a balance from including the name of the issuing bank, the account number and the amount you’d like to move to the new card.

It can take anywhere from five days to as long as 21 days to complete the transfer, depending on the policies of both the bank you’re transferring a balance to and the bank you’re transferring from. Make sure to stay current on the card you’re transferring from in order to avoid a late payment fee.

Find the Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards Of 2022

Bottom Line

It takes time and discipline to whittle away at high-interest credit card debt. A balance transfer can help give you a leg up towards reducing that financial burden, but it’s not a perfect solution. Make sure you do the math first to calculate if what you’d save on interest is greater than the amount of any balance transfer fees. It’s also helpful to calculate if you’ll be able to knock out a significant portion of your balance before the intro period expires.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How long does it take for a balance transfer to go through?

Every bank has a slightly different policy for how long it will take to process a balance transfer. Typically it will range from five days up to 21 days to complete the transfer, depending on the bank you’re transferring a balance to and the bank you’re transferring from. It’s crucial to continue to make any payments due on the card or cards you’re transferring from in order to avoid a late payment fee.

Can a balance transfer be denied?

Typically, if a balance transfer is denied, it’s for one of two reasons. One possibility is that banks generally don’t allow balance transfers from one of their cards to another. For example, you can’t transfer a balance from a Chase-issued card to another Chase card. Some issuers also have limits on the amount you can transfer, even if the new card has a higher credit limit than the amount you’re looking to transfer.

Can I still use my credit card after a balance transfer?

If you haven’t used up your credit limit with the amount you’ve transferred, you can still use your card to make purchases. If your card came with a 0% offer on purchases too, you can enjoy an interest-free period on that spending as well.

However, keep in mind that if you max out your credit card or come close to doing so, it will have a negative effect on your credit score. In addition, putting new spending on a balance transfer card is generally a bad idea, because it can hamper your efforts to get out of debt.

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