Best Low Interest Bank Credit Cards in India

Credit cards quite often called plastic money has become a convenient tool as one need not carry heavy cash around, can obtain instant cash when sudden need arises, facilitates online shopping etc. Today, due to its overwhelming popularity, most of the business establishments accept credit cards in lieu of cash. In fact, most shopping malls, petrol pumps, restaurants, supermarkets etc. offer special discounts to credit card holders.

With a credit card, users can shop for commodities, consumer goods, fuel, automobiles, and practically everything under the sun. One can also avail cash on credit for an interest rate from his credit card via the bank’s ATM. Further, if used properly and the payments are made on promptly, one can even get an interest free credit for certain fixed periods.

The other advantage is credit cards give a grace period for payment, which means that even if one does not have cash in his bank account, he can make purchases and pay for them later.

Almost all banks in India - ABN Amro, Bank of Baroda, ICICI, Axis, SBI, Canara Bank, HDFC, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Kotak Mahindra, UTI Bank Credit etc - offer credit card facility not only to its clients but also to those who do not have an account with them.

The one question most people are obsessed with is - which credit card to choose from a plethora of cards available. As a matter of fact, each bank offers on an average of ten different cards with varying features. The one simple straight answer is to choose the card that levies the lowest interest.

But in India, one can choose credit card facility from any bank as almost all of them charge a uniform annual percentage rate (APR) of 2 to 3 percent. The annual percentage rate, or APR, is the percentage applied to balances that you carry beyond the grace period.

Most Credit Cards have different APR for purchases, balance transfers, and cash advances. Study the APR for each card of each bank and select the one that you will most use the card for.

For instance, if you plan to pay your balance in full each month, then a charge card might be the best option. If you will be using your card for balance transfers, then you should look for a card with a low interest rate on balance transfers. If you plan to carry a balance from one month to the next, then a credit card with a low interest rate is ideal.

Before you choose a low interest credit card, get the answers to a few key questions. The answers to most of these questions can be found in the disclosure included with the credit card application itself. Most of the time, a good personal credit history as well as a zero default payment are the key factors for low interest credit cards.

Study the credit limit each card allows as the credit limit influences your purchasing power. If you are new to credit cards, it is prudent to start out with a low credit limit till you become familiar with responsible handling credit cards and know how to curb temptation to overbuy. In fact this aspect is more important than merely choosing a low interest credit card.

Generally speaking, the affiliations for credit cards are with two international bodies, VISA and Master Card. MasterCard and VISA are both international payment systems who franchise member banks to issue cards with their brand name and provide settlement service for card payments to their franchisees globally.