Low interest credit cards keep the dangers of snowballing debt low, even for those consumers that carry a higher balance. Look - anytime you can avoid carrying a balance, you should. No matter how low an interest rate is, any interest paid still hurts your overall bottom line. That said, sometimes carrying a balance is unavoidable - be it because of emergencies or otherwise - and in those instances, having a low ongoing interest is crucial to your ability to pay down your debt.
A lot of credit cards promote carrying a low ongoing interest rate, but very few can boast a starting variable APR under 12 percent. The cards below are the lowest of the low when it comes to ongoing interest, however it's important to remember that an individual's APR varies based on their creditworthiness. There's no guarantee that you'll be approved for the lowest variable APR, but these cards give you the best shot to carry a low interest long after the introductory period expires.
Here are the best credit cards with low interest rates that start under 12 percent, in order of lowest starting variable APR:
Barclaycard® Ring MasterCard®
One of our favorite low interest credit cards is the Barclaycard® Ring MasterCard® - it's also one of the most interesting, hands-on cards in the industry. No other card lets you vote on the new features you hope to see on your card, which is precisely what this card offers. Cardholders also "share in the profits" of the card, which according to Barclaycard is based on the estimated financial performance of the Ring card community. It doesn't hurt that the APR for this card is 8 percent flat. If you're looking to take part in a new and unique credit card experience while carrying a low APR, this is an excellent card to consider.
Discover it®
Then there's Discover it®, which combines one of the lowest starting regular APR variables of any cash back card (10.99% - 22.99% (V)*) with an exemplary fee structure. There's no annual fee to carry this card, Discover won't increase your APR for paying late, and they'll even waive the first late payment fee (it's $35 thereafter). Not that you should ever pay late, but if one payment slips your mind it's nice to know Discover has your back. This is another good-to-excellent credit offer, and the ongoing APR is just one of a dozen reasons to carry this card.
Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card - 0% Interest for 18 Months!
Finally, one of the most trusted credit card issuers in the biz -Citibank - offers this low-APR, no annual fee credit card for excellent credit consumers. This card not only offers one of the longest 0 percent APR introductory periods applied to purchases and balance transfers at 18 months, but the ongoing APR once that intro period expires starts at a 11.99 percent variable. Like all of the cards listed here, the variable APR an individual is approved of varies based on creditworthiness. However, this is an excellent card to carry for consumers most interested in keeping interest rates low.
