Credit cards

With so many offers to choose from, selecting the best credit card for you can leave you spoilt for choice. Check out the options before you decide

How much can I borrow and who provides them? What different types of credit cards are there? What's the interest rate? How long can I repay it over? What extra benefits can I get? What happens if I struggle repaying my credit card? What is payment protection?

How much can I borrow and who provides them?
There are loads of different places offering credit cards including: Banks or building societies Some larger shop chains Supermarkets New financial companies

You can apply for a credit card over the phone, by posting in an application, or by applying on the internet. There are lots of comparison sites online too - making it easy to compare credit cards from different providers.

With credit cards, the lender will do a credit score on you before they say 'yes' to giving you a credit card - this also affects what they set your credit limit at. Credit scoring looks at lots of information, like your record of borrowing and paying back money, to help lenders decide if they want to lend you money. Look at the credit scoring section to find out more.

What different types of credit cards are there?
As well as standard credit cards, there are special cards like gold, platinum and affinity cards. Gold/platinum credit cards - To qualify you'll often need to earn a certain amount, as they normally come with a higher credit limit than a standard card. You may get extra benefits with these cards - like free travel insurance, better discounts off eating out or books, or commission-free travellers cheques. Sometimes you have to pay an annual fee for these cards

Affinity credit cards - These cards support organisations like charities. Each time you spend money with an affinity credit card, the card provider pays an amount to the charity on your card