Three Ways to Beat Credit Card Fees

Friday, April 11th, 2014
Updated: April 11th, 2014
The content is accurate at the time of publication and is subject to change.

If you’ve ever been hit with a credit card fee, you know the frustration that can result. Often, you know you could have avoided the fee. Maybe you lost track of time and paid late. Maybe you didn’t realize that using your credit card in a foreign country was going to incur an extra fee. Or maybe you just didn’t see that annual fee coming because it was waived the first year.

Here are three ways to beat credit card fees:

  1. Always pay on time. This is the biggest one, so I’ll repeat it. Always, always pay on time. The late payment fee for a credit card is typically anywhere from $25 to $35—a fee that can easily be avoided by simply paying before the due date. One way to make sure you never miss a due date is to set up automatic payments right from your checking account or prepaid debit card account. There is normally no fee to do this, and it ensures that the payment will always be made on time. If you are experiencing a hardship of some sort, reach out to your credit card company and tell them what’s going on. They can often work with you to move the payment due date or work out an alternative payment plan until you get back on your feet.
  2. Read the terms and conditions when applying for a credit card. If a card has an annual fee, that is something that will be stated on the application. It may be waived the first year, and often is, but when the first year is up, do not be caught off guard. Similarly, if you travel out of the country frequently and want to use your credit card while abroad, make sure you get one with no foreign transaction fee. These are not difficult to find, but you must read the terms and conditions of the card before you apply. Another fee to be wary of is the ATM withdrawal fee. There is almost always a fairly hefty fee for withdrawing cash from an ATM using your credit card, but if this is something you feel you might do, then choose one that charges the smallest fee. Even better, get a prepaid debit card that offers free ATM withdrawals, and use that when you need cash, instead of a regular consumer card.
  3. Apply for a no-fee card. There are now cards that not only don’t charge an annual fee, they don’t charge a fee for a late payment, an over-the-limit charge, or other penalty fees. One of the latest trends in credit cards is to have as few fees as possible, so take advantage. Cards with annual fees tend to be high-value rewards cards like frequent flyer cards, but cash back cards and other types of credit cards usually don’t have an annual fee.
All rates and fees, and other terms and conditions of the products mentioned in this article/post are actual as of the last update date but are subject to change. See the current products' Terms & Conditions on the issuing banks' websites.

Latest Credit Card Fees Guides

How To Get a Credit Card Limit Increase? January 27th, 2023

What is a credit limit? A credit limit is the total amount you are allowed to charge to your credit card. This includes not only approved credit card purchases, but also the entire balance owed, as well as balance transfers, interest charges, and fees such as annual fees and late fees. With most credit cards, […]

Continue »
What Fees Your Credit Card Conceals May 28th, 2020

Credit cards may be fraught with a dozen of different fees. Certainly, you may know what annual fee is, but if you are not used to thoroughly read card agreements, you probably have never paid attention to some other kinds of fees. Still, it is very important to be well-informed about all the fees that […]

Continue »
Guide to Credit Card Minimum Payments March 9th, 2020

After you make purchases with your credit card, there always comes a time when you have to foot the bill. A monthly credit card statement usually contains a lot of numbers that taken together make up your payments. Of course, you’d better understand and monitor them all, but there is one number that just calls for attention – the minimum credit card payment.

Continue »
What Is an Annual Fee and How to Avoid It? February 12th, 2020

The annual fee is a fee that you pay once a year just for using a credit card. Not all credit cards have an annual fee. As a rule, this fee is charged on travel credit cards, premium credit cards, and credit cards for bad or limited credit history.

Continue »
Can You Avoid a Credit Card Late Payment Fee? January 15th, 2020

A late payment fee is a fee charged by the credit issuer when cardholders fail to pay on time. It applies to both situations: when you didn’t manage to pay before the due date at all and when you did pay but less than the required minimum.

Continue »
Best Credit Offer
Best Credit Cards from Credit-Land.com
Check off the cards you want to compare. Then click the Compare link to go to the comparison table.
Consumer Rating: 5 / 5
Horizon Card Services Group One Freedom Card
Copyright © 2001-2024 BestCreditOffers.com All Rights Reserved.

*See the credit card's terms and conditions on the online application page. Note that this website may be compensated by credit card issuers when the visitor applies for a card through the links on this website. We do our best to maintain all information accurate and up to date. However, we do not warrant the credit card information won't change. Click the "Apply Online" button and review the current info on the secure credit card terms page.

Information in these articles is brought to you by BestCreditOffers.com. Banks, issuers, and credit card companies mentioned in the articles do not endorse or guarantee, and are not responsible for, the contents of the articles.

The BestCreditOffers.com webpage is a free service and an information resource for credit cards and financial products and services available to eligible United States consumers. BestCreditOffers.com does not offer any warranties and is not a direct service. There are no guarantees for approval or offers when applying for a credit card. Please refer to the application if you would like more information on each credit card. When you click "Apply" for a particular credit card, please take the time to review the terms and conditions of the product/service at the issuer's website. All logos on the BestCreditOffers.com website are property of their respective owners.

Disclaimer: This editorial content is not provided or commissioned by the credit card issuer. Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of the credit card issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuer. Reasonable efforts are made to present accurate info, however all info is presented without warranty. Consult a card's issuing bank for terms & conditions.

BestCreditOffers.com makes every effort to keep information up to date and accurate. However, the information regularly changes and is presented without warranty. Therefore, we strongly recommend all our readers to visit the credit card application page by clicking "Apply Online!" button to review the detailed credit card's terms and conditions. Note that BestCreditOffers.com may be compensated by the credit card issuers when the readers apply for a credit card through this site.

BestCreditOffers.com is an independent, advertising-supported website which receives compensation from the credit card issuers and companies whose offers appear on the site. Compensation may impact how and where products appear on our site, including, for example, the order in which they may appear on the site pages. BestCreditOffers.com does not review or list all available financial or credit offers.

You've successfully subscribed!

Please specify the following:All these fields are optional

Thank you for providing this information! We will make sure our letters are useful for You.

User Generated Content Disclaimer: These responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.