The supermarket's banking arm has knocked rival Tesco off the top of one best buy table.
Sainsbury’s Bank has launched two new 0% balance transfer credit cards, and one of them has the lowest balance transfer fee of any card out there right now, making it the cheapest way to pay off your card debts.
Let’s take a more detailed look at what they have to offer.
New cheapest credit card
The new cheapest balance transfer card is the Sainsbury’s Bank Nectar Low BT Fee card. It offers a year with no interest to pay on credit card debts for a fee of just 0.5%. So if, for example, you have £2,000 debt to transfer, you'll pay just a tenner for the privilege.
This means it trumps supermarket rival Tesco's Clubcard , which has a fee of 0.65%.
As the table below shows, there are longer 0% periods out there but you’ll pay a higher fee for your transfer.
|
Credit card |
0% period on balance transfers |
Balance transfer fee |
Cost of transferring £2,000 balance |
Representative APR |
|
12 months |
0.5% |
£10 |
18.9% |
|
|
12 months |
0.65% |
£13 |
18.9% |
|
|
15 months |
0.7% |
£14 |
17.9% |
|
|
15 months |
0.7% |
£14 |
17.9% |
|
|
17 months |
0.9% |
£18 |
18.9% |
|
|
24 months |
1.5% |
£30 |
18.9% |
|
|
24 months |
1.5% |
£30 |
17.9% |
|
|
24 months |
1.5% |
£30 |
17.9% |
[SPOTLIGHT]The Nectar Low BT Fee card also has a 12-month 0% period on purchases, but if you’re using it to get on top of your credit card debts then you’re probably best steering clear of that side of it.
When the 0% period ends, the Sainsbury's card has a representative APR (the annual combination of interest and fees) of 18.9%.
Compare the 0% balance transfer cards with the lowest fees
Longer 0% period
Meanwhile, the Sainsbury’s Bank Nectar balance transfer card offers 29 months with no interest to pay on card. It has a balance transfer fee of 2.89%.
It’s a reasonably competitive card, albeit you can get up to three months longer with no interest to pay right now, as the table below shows.
|
Credit card |
0% period on balance transfers |
Balance transfer fee |
Cost of transferring £2,000 balance |
Representative APR |
|
32 months |
2.99% |
£59.80 |
18.9% |
|
|
31 months |
2.89% |
£57.80 |
18.9% |
|
|
31 months |
2.89% |
£57.80 |
18.9% |
|
|
31 months |
3% |
£60 |
18.9% |
|
|
30 months |
2.9% |
£58 |
18.9% |
|
|
HSBC Credit Card* |
30 months |
3.3% |
£66 |
18.9% |
|
29 months |
2.89% |
£57.80 |
18.9% |
|
|
Arsenal/Aston Villa/Chelsea/Liverpool/Manchester United/Tottenham Hotspur credit cards |
29 months |
2.89% |
£57.80 |
18.9% |
|
29 months |
2.9% |
£58 |
18.9% |
|
|
29 months |
2.99% |
£59.80 |
18.9% |
|
|
29 months |
3% |
£60 |
18.9% |
*HSBC current account customers only
Compare the balance transfer cards with the longest 0% periods
Rewarding cards
As with the other Nectar credit cards out there, the Nectar Low BT fee and Nectar Balance Transfer cards offer Nectar points on any spending. There's double points on offer on Sainsbury's shopping and Sainsbury's fuel spending. You'll earn one Nectar point for every £5 you spend everywhere else.
Play your cards right
As ever with the best 0% balance transfer cards, these are only open to people with good credit ratings.
We also have to urge caution. Make sure you make the minimum payment each month, or you'll lose your 0% deal and get a black mark on your credit report.
And try to pay off your debts by the time the 0% period comes to an end. There's no guarantee you'll get another balance transfer card and you may end up being charged interest.
Compare the 0% balance transfer cards with the lowest fees