The Barclaycard Gold Visa Card

John Fitzsimons reviews the pros and cons of the Barclaycard Gold Visa card.

The Barclaycard Gold credit card is a decent card option if you have very little credit history, or only an average credit rating.

Decent for balance transfers

First of all it’s worth considering if you have a decent stack of debt already built up on an existing card, as it offers 0% interest on balance transfers for 12 months, with a transfer charge of 2.5%.

This isn’t anywhere near as good as the market leaders – the Virgin credit card for example offers 16 months interest-free on balance transfers. However, if you don’t have much of a credit history, or a less than perfect credit rating you are unlikely to be accepted for the Virgin card. In contrast, the Barclaycard Gold credit card is specifically for borrowers like you.

A good first credit card

For this reason, the Barclaycard Gold credit card is also a good option if you are looking for your first credit card. However, there is no 0% period on purchases so you’ll have to pay your bill off in full each month to avoid interest. You also should avoid using the Barclaycard Gold credit card for both purchases and balance transfers, as you’ll fall foul of negative order of payment. This is when your cheapest debts are paid off first, leaving you to rack up interest on the most expensive debt.

Apply for the Barclaycard Gold credit card via lovemoney.com