Transferring your balance from one or more credit cards is a great way to save money on interest fees. You can consolidate several cards onto just one card. The best credit cards for balance transfers will offer you an introductory period where you will pay no interest whatsoever during that period.

In the UK, currently the best credit card offering the longest period of interest free credit is the Virgin Credit Card. It offers a period of 16 months at 0% interest, so you won’t pay any interest at all during those 16 months. When the period ends your interest rate is currently 16.60% which is fairly typical when compared to other cards.

The MBNA credit card comes in a close second place. It offers 0% interest on balance transfers for 12 months. Then it returns to 15.90% APR which is slightly better than the Virgin credit card.

There are of course fees involved in transferring your balances. These are normally around 3% of the balance. This is charged immediately when you sign up to your new card. You must also have good credit to be eligible for most balance transfers. Credit card companies are very careful with their money and won’t risk giving cards out to people who want be able to pay back the money.

Another option for transferring your balance is to find a card that offers a low APR rate instead of 0% interest for a set period of time. What this means is you can still transfer all your existing cards and you’ll pay a low APR. The Barclaycard Simplicity credit card offers this and the typical (variable) rate is just 6.8% currently. So that is more than 50% saving when compared to the other cards. The fee is also less at just 2.5% of the balances.

So choosing the best credit card for balance transfers does have some options for you. You can choose to pay no interest for 12-16 months, and then pay around 16% or you can sign up for a low APR card of just 6.8% so you’ll pay less interest in the long term. If you’re not sure which card is for you, just ask a financial advisor or your local bank or building society and they will explain the options for you.