30 very long interest-free credit cards

There are now more than 30 credit cards with exceptionally long 0% deals for either purchases or balance transfers.

The number of interest-free credit card deals lasting one to two years has been steadily climbing, so that we now have dozens to choose from.

I'm going to show you the top 30. No one needs that many credit cards, but the longest deal isn't always the one for you. That'll become clear as we go along.

How the cards work

Interest-free cards are split into two broad categories.

Balance transfer credit cards allow you to transfer money from other, more expensive cards in order to save money. £1,000 on an average credit card could cost £200 interest in one year alone. Balance transfer cards cut this to just £10-£30 per £1,000. That's because they replace high interest rates with modest one-off fees. The occasional balance transfer card will also let you transfer your bank overdraft onto the card.

New purchases credit cards let you borrow to buy at 0% interest and no fee. They're completely free.

Most cards offer both transfers and purchases, but usually one of the deals lasts just a few months, so it doesn't really count. However, some cards I'll write about today offer long deals for both.

Without further ado, here are the cards. The best ones are in bold.

Balance transfer cards

Credit card	Length of 0% deal (months)	BT fee	Fee (£ per £1,000 transferred)
HSBC Credit Card (existing customers only)	23	3.3%	£33
Barclaycard 22Mth Credit Card	22	2.9%*	£29
Halifax Credit Card	22	3.5%	£35
Barclaycard 21Mth Credit Card	21	2.6%*	£26
Virgin Money Credit Card	20	3%	£30
Halifax 20Mth Credit Card	20	3%	£30
first direct Credit Card	20	2.9%	£29
NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland Platinum Credit Cards	20	2.9%	£29
Bank of Scotland Plus Credit Card	18	3%	£30
Nationwide Building Society Credit Card	17	3%	£30
Creation Balance Transfer Credit Card	17	2.9%	£29
Halifax 17Mth Credit Ccard	17	3%	£30
Santander Credit Card	17	3%	£30
Barclaycard Low Fee Credit Card	16	1.6%	£16
Virgin All Round Credit Card	16	2%	£20
Fluid Credit Card	16	2.9%	£29
Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank Gold Credit Cards	16	3%	£30
Sainsbury's Nectar Credit Card	15	3%	£30
Lloyds TSB Platinum Credit Card	15	3%	£30

I have rounded up the nasty 99s.

*After receiving a partial fee rebate.

The HSBC Credit Card has the longest deal at 23 months, but is restricted to existing customers, which is why the Barclaycard 22Mth Credit Card is the longest deal most borrowers can get.

For one month less with the Barclaycard 21Mth Credit Card you pay a lower fee. Using a mathematical formula to measure the length of deal against the fee I find this card is better value for money than the other two, provided you pay off the whole debt in 21 months.

However, usually you're even better off if you get the longest deal you can, repay the minimum monthly amount, and save the difference in a top savings account. Then, in the last month, you use those savings to pay off the debt, or as much of it as you can.

If that's too much faffing and you're able to pay off the debt inside 16 months, you'd be better off getting the Barclaycard Low Fee Credit Card. Mathematically this is the best value card in the table due to the 1.6% fee. (I write some more about the maths behind that in The new top credit card isn't the one you expect.)

The Nationwide Credit Card is also a top card because you can earn commission-free purchases. See here for more details. Finally, the Virgin and Fluid credit cards deserve a mention because they allow you to transfer your overdraft to their 0% credit cards for a fee of 4%.

You cannot usually transfer a balance from another card within the same banking group. Check out which group your cards are in by reading A deck of different credit cards.

New purchases cards

Credit card	Length of 0% deal (months)
M&S Credit Card	15
Tesco Clubcard Credit Card	15
Creation Purchase Credit Card	13

If you already have debt, be careful not to borrow more without a very good reason. The more you borrow, the more insecure you'll be from future shocks and the more you'll pay in interest or in fees. You might also not always be able to switch to another 0% deal.

These are long deals for new purchases cards, but check out the next ones, because some could offer you even longer...

Combined deals

Credit card	Length of 0% deals (months)	BT fee	Fee (£ per £1,000 transferred)
Nationwide Building Society Select Credit Card (existing customers only)	17 on BTs 18 on purchases	3%	£30
Halifax All in One Credit Card	15 on both	3%	£30
Barclaycard 14/14 Credit Card	14 on both	2.9%	£29
Virgin Money 13/13 Credit Card	13 on both	2.9%	£29
Royal Bank of Scotland and NatWest YourPoints World Credit Cards	13 on both	2.9%	£29
Bank of Scotland All in One Advantage Credit Card (existing customers only)	13 on both	3%	£30
Sainsbury's Shopper Credit Card	12 on both	3%	£30

And that's your 30 cards. To save doubling up, I have excluded these combined cards from the first two tables.

The Nationwide Select Card for existing customers has substantial additional benefits. It pays 0.5% cashback on all purchases and you get unlimited commission-free purchases abroad. Non-Nationwide customers would be better off with the Halifax All in One Credit Card.

The reason these 30 deals are so cheap is partly because the lenders hope you'll fall for some of their costly traps. If you always pay at least the minimum and read your entire statements closely for changes as soon as you receive them, you should avoid the worst traps. If you're using your card for both transfers and purchases, you should also watch out for The credit card trick that won't die.

More: take out one of these credit cards through lovemoney.com | New Capital One balance transfer card helps you rebuild your credit rating | Halifax launches new fee-free balance transfer credit card