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CREDITSHOUT RATING:

Excellent

The card offers a range of other benefits as well, including no annual fee and, like the Citi Simplicity card, and no penalty APR.

Let’s take a more in depth look at why Discover it is our new favorite card for 2013. There is much more to this card than just a good rewards program.

Note: If you are a college student, check out our review of the Discover it card for students.

With Discover it you can earn a 5% Cashback Bonus on popular spending categories that rotate throughout the year. This includes gas, groceries, and department store purchases. You also earn 1% on all other purchases after your initial $3,000 in spending each year.

Note: You’ll earn 0.25% cash back on your first $3,000 in annual spending and on all warehouse purchases at discount stores and clubs like Costco. You’ll earn a full 1% on purchases over the initial $3,000.

Discover it is most comparable to the new Citi Simplicity, which was also designed to offer consumers a straightforward and simple credit card. Like the Citi Simplicity, the Discover it card has no annual fee, no late fee for the first late payment, no over-the-limit fee and no penalty APR when you pay late. They both also feature higher-than-average APRs.

The major difference between the two, however, is the rewards program offered through the Discover it card. The it card also offers U.S.-based customer service and the ability to pay your bill by midnight of your due date.

The Chase Freedom credit card is also similar to the Discover it, as it offers 5% cash back categories as well as cash back on all other purchases. The Chase Freedom also offers no annual fee, although this is where the similarities end. There is no fee waiver for your first missed payment with the Chase Freedom, and you will be hit with a penalty APR. The Chase Freedom card also charges a foreign transaction fee and overlimit fee and there is no flexibility when you pay your bill.

Finally, the Discover it card also comes out ahead when compared to the popular Discover More credit card. Both cards offer the same rewards program, $0 annual fee and APR, although only the Discover it card is free of a penalty APR and the flexibility to choose your own due date and pay by midnight by phone or online.

Note: You’ll probably need fairly good credit to qualify for the Discover it card. The rewards program is also a bit confusing and requires careful attention to your spending to make sure you get the maximum rewards possible. By reading the fine print, you’ll see that warehouse spending (like Costco or Sam’s Club) won’t count toward your first $3,000 in annual spending. Spending in quarterly categories also won’t count.

Here are CreditShout we have reviewed hundreds of credit cards over the years. The Discover it card truly is a game changer, offering consumers an easy-to-understand and straightforward credit card free of unnecessary charges and penalties. Unlike other similar cards on the market, such as the Citi Simplicity, the Discover it card also includes a great rewards program that allows you to earn up to 5% cash back.

The Verdict: With excellent customer service, no penalty fees or APR and the ability to pay your bill by midnight, Discover it® is a great choice for transferring a balance, earning rewards on your purchases or just as an emergency card to have on hand.

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Discover it®

• Credit Required
  Excellent Credit
• Rewards Program
  5% cash back in categories that change throughout the year like gas, restaurant, movies, and more up to $1,500 in purchases with free and easy sign-up. And 1% cash back on all other purchases.*
• Signup Bonus
  0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 14 Months*
  Then the variable purchase APR applies, currently 10.99% - 22.99%*.
• 
  

CreditShout Rating:

( Excellent )

However after you dig into the fine print, these offers quickly become much less attractive.

Here is what current cardholders, and those who are thinking about applying need to know about the Gap credit cards for 2013:

Note: It’s important to understand that there are two different versions of the Gap credit card. First there is the Gap Visa credit credit card, which can be used anywhere that Visa is accepted. Alternatively, the GapCard is offered to those who don’t qualify for the Visa version and can only be used for in-store and online purchases at Gap and other affiliated stores. It’s easy to tell which version you have, just look for the Visa logo.

The Gap credit card is issued by GE Money Bank, which also handles a host of other store credit cards from retail partners like Home Shopping Network, Amazon, American Eagle, IKEA and Wal-mart. If you shop in chain or big box stores, chances are you have been offered (or even applied for) a card from GE Money Bank.

As a general rule of thumb, it’s usually best to avoid store branded credit cards altogether. If you want to earn rewards, you are much better off applying for a general cash back card like this one:

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Discover it®

• Credit Required
  Excellent Credit
• Rewards Program
  5% cash back in categories that change throughout the year like gas, restaurant, movies, and more up to $1,500 in purchases with free and easy sign-up. And 1% cash back on all other purchases.*
• Signup Bonus
  0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 14 Months*
  Then the variable purchase APR applies, currently 10.99% - 22.99%*.
• 
  

CreditShout Rating:

( Excellent )

As with most store credit cards and store-affiliated Visa cards, the interest rate is high (for both versions of the card) and the rewards are exclusive to Gap and its sister chains of stores, including Banana Republic and Old Navy.

Both versions of the Gap credit card offer 5 points per dollar on purchases at Gap and affiliated stores. and 1 point per dollar spent everywhere else. Whether you get a GapCard or the Visa card, you’ll want to pay it off every month — this is NOT a card to finance something with.

The GapCard is a store credit card which you can use for purchases at Gap, Gap Outlet, Banana Republic, Banana Republic Factory Stores, Old Navy, and their affiliated websites, including piperlime.com and athleta.com.

If you keep your account in good standing and spend more than $800 in 12 months, you will be upgraded to a Silver Card, which provides additional benefits.

The GapCard carries a hefty 24.99 % interest rate. If you are just starting to build your credit, you will probably qualify for the GapCard (rather than the Visa). If you’re a frequent Gap shopper, we’d recommend it over a secured credit card, simply because of the rewards and lack of an annual fee or security deposit. The card also offers a few benefits, which are nice perks for Gap fans.

The card offers online account management and bill pay options, a free second card tied to your account.

The Gap Visa Card is a Visa card issued by GE Money bank, with similar benefits and rewards to the GapCard, including an available upgrade to a Silver card. The Gap Visa card is accepted anywhere that takes Visa credit cards. However like other store cards including the Target credit card, this card suffers from a ridiculously high interest rate.

The rewards structure is simple. Earn 5 points for every dollar you spend at Gap and affiliated stores and websites. On the Gap Visa Card, you’ll also earn 1 point for every dollar you spend elsewhere. When you earn 1,500 points, you’ll earn $10 off at Gap.

You’ll get 15% off your first purchase with your GapCard or Gap Visa, and you can earn 1,500 bonus points by signing up for email and voice message updates.

For store-affiliated credit cards, the additional benefits offered by the GapCard and Gap Visa aren’t bad. However they still aren’t enough to outweigh the high APR’s associated with these offers.

• Free online shipping for orders over $100 (at affiliated e-tailers)
• Advance notice of sales, plus special promotions and exclusive store event invitations
• Special birthday savings
• 10% off Tuesdays at the Gap family of stores
• 24/7 online account management

If you qualify to upgrade to a Silver card, (at no additional cost) you’ll receive additional benefits such as:

• Free standard shipping on all online purchases from Gap and its sister stores
• 15% off on a day of your choice
• Free basic alterations on Banana Republic purchases
• Access to the exclusive toll-free Silver priority line for customer service
• Special sales and shopping events, with opportunities to earn extra rewards points, discounts and more.

You’ll pay 3% for cash advances or balance transfers — but with an 23.99 % interest rate (at best), we don’t think anyone will use this card for those purposes. If you have a higher interest card, there are better options available.

If you make a late payment after you’ve already been subject to the penalty rate, you’ll be charged $35 as seen in the fine print highlighted above.

This review was updated for 2013

There are essentially three problems with the new Target credit card program…

Now it makes more sense to use the Target REDcard debit card which offers the same benefits, without the crazy high fees (however be warned, even the debit card seems to have issues). In addition we recommend using one of the following cash back credit cards, which have much lower rates and allow you to earn rewards on all of your shopping, not just at Target.

Calling the rewards program “subpar” may be a bit harsh. However the reality is that this card doesn’t even have anything to offer in terms of rewards over it’s debit card brother. Earning 5% cash back on purchases is great, however using a credit card with a such high interest rate is like playing with fire. It’s way to easy to get burned with this offer – especially if you are not constantly on top of your finances.

When it comes to fees, unfortunately the Target credit card is not so great – in fact, the current interest rate is borderline outrageous. The standard APR is now 22.90%, almost TWICE what it was just a few years ago. This is the current APR that everyone is given regardless of your credit. There is no way to get around it and that is a complete deal breaker.

The other minor details are fairly standard for a store card. The average daily balance is used to calculate the balance for purchases and fees. The grace period for the Target credit card is 25 days, after which time a late fee may be charged.

There are a few other fees to watch out for with the Target credit card. You can be charged a fee of up to $35 for late payments, and a return payment fee of up to $25.

At the end of the day, we simply cannot recommend the Target credit card. If you need to finance a large purchase you should find a card with a lower interest rate. If you are interested in earning rewards at Target then it is probably best to sign up for the rewards debit card, or apply for a better cash back credit card that is accepted everywhere, like this one:

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Discover it®

• Credit Required
  Excellent Credit
• Rewards Program
  5% cash back in categories that change throughout the year like gas, restaurant, movies, and more up to $1,500 in purchases with free and easy sign-up. And 1% cash back on all other purchases.*
• Signup Bonus
  0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 14 Months*
  Then the variable purchase APR applies, currently 10.99% - 22.99%*.
• 
  

CreditShout Rating:

( Excellent )

However, a high APR and many customer complaints tied to the card makes us leery. Additionally, the card only offers 1% cash back on purchases with no obvious options for bonus points– much lower than our top-ranked rewards credit cards for 2013.

For 2013 – 2014 the equivalent of 2,500 points with Discover or American Express will get you a $25 gift card or $25 cash, while the redemption value is lower on the Sears MasterCard, with 2,500 rewards buying a $20 gift card, on average.

Sears originally introduced the Discover credit card, and for many years, Discover Bank issued Sears store credit cards and Sears Discover major credit cards. However, within the past decade, Sears has switched to the CitiBank MasterCard as its credit card issuer, and has revamped the rewards program, as well. Unfortunately, better rewards and the Citi affiliation also brought customer service complaints.

A quick Google search brings up HUNDREDS of people complaining on various forums that Citi closed their accounts for no reason — some were Sears customers for 40 years or more!

Other customers complained that Citi lowered their credit limit without warning (of course, this was before the Credit Card Act of 2010), or raised their interest rate to a ridiculous default of 29.99% — for a late payment of just two days.

These actions reflect poorly on both Sears and Citi and make this card not worth the risk, regardless of the rewards or Sears discounts. If you want to earn rewards for shopping at Sears, just get a Sears Shop Your Way Rewards card and earn money off your purchase every time you shop — without paying any interest charges or worrying about your credit rating.

You can only apply in-store for the Sears MasterCard, and you’ll earn 15% off your first purchase if you apply and are accepted on the spot. This is a regular MasterCard, accepted all over the world where MasterCard is accepted, and there is no annual fee for the card.

The Rewards program affiliated with the Sears MasterCard is the Sears Choice Rewards program, accessed through the Sears Choice Rewards portal. You can earn 1% in rewards points for every dollar you spend. You have a choice of a variety of rewards.

The offerings are mostly products carried at Sears, and the program does not have the depth or choices of major rewards credit cards.

Additionally, if you redeem for travel rewards, you may be subject to a service charge of $15. There is no limit to the amount of points you can accumulate, but rewards expire after 3 years

The annual APR is not published on the website and is tough to track down — we’ve read reports of everything from 17.99% plus prime, all the way up to a default rate of 29.99%. Regardless of the exact numbers, this is not a card you want to carry a balance on.

After some due diligence, we managed to track down the current APR which is 25.24%! Avoid carrying a balance at all costs!

Some of the benefits on the Sears MasterCard are actually quite good, especially for a card with no annual fee. One of the benefits is free access to Sears’ CreditScore.com program, which tracks your TransUnion TransRisk credit score monthly. In our research, this score is very close to your FICO score from TransUnion, but may differ vastly from your Equifax FICO credit score.

Other benefits include:

• Bonus point events
• MasterCard benefits like Purchase Assurance and Extended Warranty Coverage
• $0 liability on unauthorized purchases
• Returns without a receipt at Sears and affiliates
• Citi Identity Theft Solutions program

Even though there are some solid benefits with the Sears MasterCard, at the end of the day there are just too many other negative factors weighing it down. Instead of carrying the Sears Mastercard, here is what we currently recommend:

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Discover it®

• Credit Required
  Excellent Credit
• Rewards Program
  5% cash back in categories that change throughout the year like gas, restaurant, movies, and more up to $1,500 in purchases with free and easy sign-up. And 1% cash back on all other purchases.*
• Signup Bonus
  0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 14 Months*
  Then the variable purchase APR applies, currently 10.99% - 22.99%*.
• 
  

CreditShout Rating:

( Excellent )

This review has been updated for 2013.

However, it is important to balance the convenience of a store specific credit card against higher than normal interest rates and consumer complaints about customer service. Taking some of these factors into account, we cannot recommend the Meijer Credit Card.

Let’s take a look at the “benefits” associated with the Meijer Credit Card for 2013

Important Note: Meijer also offers a Platinum MasterCard, which offers a variable annual percentage rate depending on the cardholder’s credit history. It also issues “Meijer Bucks” based on points earned for accumulated purchases. Earn 2,000 in points and receive $10 in Meijer Bucks that can be used toward most purchases at the store.

The grace period is 25 days if there is no previous balance or if full payment is made. Otherwise there is no grace period.

Payment is due by 5 p.m. on the day payment due date. Finance charges will be added on the transaction date or on the first day of the billing period in which the purchase is posted to the account, whichever is later. The minimum finance charge is $1.50. The annual percentage rate is equal to the prime rate plus 15.20 percent. At this writing, the annual percentage rate for purchases is 23.45 percent.

Late payment fees range from $15 for balances less than $100; $29 for balances from $100 to $999.99 and $35 for balances of $1,000 or more.

Beware: Many consumer complaint sites report poor customer service with the Meijer Credit Card . Promotional offers promised but never received, difficulty in resolving issues etc. Although Meijer’s Community Rewards programs allowed Meijer customers to designate more than one charity, the program now allows only one per cardholder. This can be problematic for those who wish to donate to more than one agency (i.e., their child’s school and their church.)

Although there is no annual fee for this card, the high APR’s associated with it make this offer troubling, to say the least.

Store credit cards in general have higher interest rates than general rewards credit cards. T
This is why it’s a good idea to avoid most store credit cards (including the Meijer Card) and opt for a general cash back credit card instead, that will allow you to earn rewards on all of your purchases, regardless of the store.

Balance transfers are not available. However they are available on the Meijer Platinum MasterCard, which has a balance transfer fee of 3 percent of the balance or $5, which ever is greater, but no more than $75. If you are looking to do a balance transfer, you will be much better served with a card like Discover it.

Alright, I embellished that a bit, but you get the drift. How many times have you been asked to sign up for a store credit card? The cashier is probably required to ask all customers to sign up for a card and may even get a small commission for signing you up. Still, you may occasionally wonder whether or not the offered card is actually worth it.

The situation is no different at Marshalls, as customers may be asked to sign up for a credit card. You may want to just frown and decline the offer, but it could be a good deal.

The rewards programs for store credit cards are constantly changing and many are updated each year. What may have been a good card to sign up for last year, can quickly turn into something that is best to avoid. So how does the Marshall’s credit card hold up for 2013? Let’s find out.

Note: To avoid having to re-evaluate your store credit card program each year, check out our list of the best cash back credit cards that allow you to earn rewards on every purchase you make.

For 2013, there are two credit cards that are tailored for Marshalls customers. These are the TJX Rewards card and the TJX Rewards Platinum MasterCard. Marshalls is under the TJX umbrella, as are T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods. Thus, the mentioned cards will work at any of these retailers.

Below is a brief overview of each card and the associated rewards program.

TJX Rewards Credit Card

This card offers 10 percent off your first purchase with the card. So, if you go into Marshalls and buy $1,000 worth of socks, you’ll get $100 back. If you are buying that many socks, you may want to begin wearing shoes outside.

You’ll earn 5 points per dollar spent at Marshalls, T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods. Purchases elsewhere will not earn any rewards.

With this card, you’ll receive $10 in rewards certificates for each 1,000 points that you earn. To reach this many points, you must spend $200 at the mentioned stores. This effectively amounts to a reward of 5 percent, assuming that you are satisfied with being limited to TJX locations.

Note that this card offers 0 percent fraud liability. This means that if you lose this card on the bus and some guy decides to buy $10,000 worth of clothes with it, you should be clear of paying this back.

There is no annual fee with this card. However as seen in the screenshot above, the APR for this card is VERY high. Don’t carry a balance with this card. You’ve been warned!

TJX Rewards Platinum MasterCard

This card offers all of the same features as the standard version. Additionally, it offers the following:

• 1 point per dollar spent at all other locations
• Worldwide acceptance
• Usage of MasterCard ATMs
• Purchase protection
• Extended warranty
• Travel assistance
• Travel accident insurance

There is also no annual fee with this card.

I usually recommend declining store card offers. Store credit cards tend to have very high interest rates and lackluster rewards.

However, it may actually be worthwhile to sign up for either TJX card. Obviously, the Platinum card is a better offer, but either card will save you 10 percent on your first offer. Also, each has an effective offer of 5 percent cash back, provided that this “Cash” is only good at TJX locations. All of this comes at no annual fee, as well.

Still, be careful. Both cards come with a very high APR, as is typical of store credit cards. So, I only recommend signing up for either card if you are certain that you will pay your balance off on time each month.

The verdict? Go for it, but be very careful not to overspend.

Here is our complete guide with everything you need to know about balance transfers, updated for 2013!

There are quite a few benefits to doing a balance transfer, including:

1. Consolidating your debt. If you have many credit cards with a balance right now, a balance transfer allows you to combine all of the debt onto a single credit card with a lower minimum payment and, most likely, a lower interest rate. This can help you pay off your balance much faster, even if you continue to make minimum payments.

2. Improve your credit score. Carrying a balance on many cards is worse on your credit than having a single card with a balance. If you combine all of your debt onto a single credit card you’ll be left with a number of cards with no balance at all.

3. 0% intro apr. Many credit cards offer a great deal on balance transfers, giving you a 0% interest rate for somewhere between 6 and 12 months on your transferred balance. This gives you the chance to pay down your balance or even pay it off completely before the promotional period ends.

4. Lower minimum payment. If you’re carrying a high balance on many cards, you’re probably struggling just to make the various minimum payments. Combining these balances on a single card with a balance transfer will give you a single, lower payment to worry about.

5. Save more money overall. Balance transfers can save you thousands of dollars, as most have a 0% introductory period.

We currently recommend the new Discover it Card for balance transfers. Discover it makes it easy to set up a balance transfer after you apply. Simply hit the “Request Balance transfer” button (pictured below) on the main Discover site.

A balance transfer isn’t always the right choice, and sometimes it isn’t even possible. You usually need good credit to qualify for a balance transfer credit card in the first place. This can be an excellent choice if you have multiple credit cards with a balance that carry high interest rates and want to consolidate these debts on a single card with better terms.

If you’re having trouble making multiple minimum payments, transferring your balance can alleviate this problem a great deal. A balance transfer is also a good option if you have a high balance on a single credit card with a high interest rate that’s going to take 5, 10 or 20 years to pay off with minimum payments. By transferring this balance you can probably pay off your debt in less than 2 years and save thousands of dollars in the long run. Transferring your balance is most likely not a good idea if you’re going to continue to increase your debt on your new card, or you’re simply trying to delay paying the debt as long as possible.

To help demonstrate the advantages of a balance transfer, here’s an example. John has two credit cards with balances: Card A has a balance of $2,500 at 26.99% and Card B has a $1,000 balance at 24.99%. The minimum monthly payments for these two cards is $111. John finds a credit card that offers balance transfers with a 2% fee and a 0% introductory APR for 12 months, with a 17.99% APR thereafter.

After transferring his combined balance of $3,500 to his new card and paying the $70 transfer fee, John now enjoys a $35 minimum payment.If John continues to pay the $111 he was paying previously, his balance will be paid in full in 36 months. He will pay a total of $414 in interest and fees.

Without transferring his balance he would take 222 months to pay off Card A with $4,920 in interest payments and 127 months to pay off Card B with $1,402 spent in interest.

There are two terms you must understand before considering a balance transfer.

The first is the balance transfer introductory APR. Most credit cards will offer promotional terms on balance transfers with a 0% APR for 6 to 12 months. This means you will be charged no interest on your transferred balance for the promotional period, although a regular APR will take effect as soon as the promo period ends. It’s important to either pay your balance in full before this introductory APR expires or choose a card with a regular APR that’s lower than your existing credit cards.

The second term to know is a balance transfer fee. While some credit cards allow you to transfer your balance with absolutely no fees, most charge a minimum fee and a percentage of your transferred balance. This minimum fee is usually between 1% and 4%, so a transfer of $4,000 to your new credit card will be assessed a fee between $40 and $160.

When you start shopping for a balance transfer credit card, make sure you read the fine print. Understand whether the balance transfer fee has a cap, and aim for a card that caps the fee at $50 or $75. Check whether the 0% introductory offer applies only to balance transfers or purchases as well. Don’t take the first card you find with a 0% balance transfer promotion because the card’s other features are important as well.

The Discover it Card is currently offering a 0% intro APR for 14 months on balance transfers.

Important Factors: Is there an annual fee for the card? Does it offer rewards? Is the regular interest rate too high? (Usually it’s not a good idea to make new purchases with a BT card, but more on that below) Compare the various fees, APRs and the payment policies on every card you’re considering to get the best deal and pay off your debt as soon as possible.

Use a balance transfer calculator to see how much you’ll save when you transfer your balance. Bankrate offers an excellent calculator that allows you to input all of your current credit cards with balances, interest rates and annual fees, as well as the new card’s balance transfer fee, annual fee, interest rate and promotional period. The calculator will tell you how much interest you’ll pay in total whether you make the new minimum payment or your old minimum payments.

VERY IMPORTANT: As soon as your transfer your balance, make a note on your calendar on the date your promotional period ends so you can plan to transfer the balance again or pay the balance off completely.

Also, Don’t make purchases with your new card! Most credit cards will apply payments to balances with the highest interest rate. If you transfer a balance with a 0% introductory APR and then make a $400 purchase with a 21.99% interest rate, all payments will be applied to the balance transfer until it’s paid off and that $400 will continue to accrue interest.

Pay more than the minimum. Take advantage of the promotional period to pay down your debt as much as possible and resist the urge to pay the minimum, which is likely much lower than you’ve been paying. Once the standard rate takes effect, those minimum payments can leave you with debt for years. Remember balance transfers aren’t a long term solution and won’t help you avoid paying off your balance. Instead, consider it a short-term way to lower your debt and save money.

For 2013, Apple offers two types of credit cards: the Barclaycard for financing purchases and the iTunes Rewards version that earns rather poor rewards. The Barclays Apple Credit Card is easy to qualify for and offers enticing financing options, such as 12 months no interest on an Apple purchase over $999 if paid in full within 12 months.

If you’re thinking about financing an expensive Apple product with this card, WATCH OUT for the fine print. This card is overall a bad choice to finance a large purchase and may end up costing you more than you think – let’s take a look at why this is.

If you finance an Apple laptop with the Barclaycard, you’re probably interested in taking advance of their no-interest financing.

For purchases under $999 you’ll receive 6 months of no interest if the balance is paid in full within 6 months, while a purchase over $999 qualifies for 12 months of no interest if paid in full within 12 months.

If that sounds like a great deal, consider what happens if you’re even a day late to pay off your balance in full before the promotion period ends. The interest is only deferred and will be added retroactively to your balance while new interest will continue to accrue.

As an example, say you buy a $2,000 laptop with your new Barclays card and receive no-interest for 12 months. When the 12 months is up you still have a balance of $200 remaining. Think you’ll only be paying interest on $200 from here on? Think again.

Interest will be automatically added to your account for the original $2,000 purchase for the past 12 months at a whopping 22.99%!

Your balance is now $660 and interest will continue to accrue until your balance is paid in full.

Important Note: There is also a time limit to qualify for the 6-month or 12-month deferred interest promotion. This promotion will only apply to the first qualifying initial purchase made with your card during the first 30 days of opening the account.

If you hold off any wait until the 32nd day to buy a laptop or other large purchase, you will not get the deferred interest promotion at all.

As they say, the devil is in the details. If you make a purchase online that must be shipped to you, it’s possible you won’t receive the full 12 month no-interest promotion if the purchase total is over $999.

According to the fine print: “If a partial order that is shipped and billed to your account is an amount that is less than $999 then your account will not initially be given the 12 month promotional deferred interest offer and instead your initial statements will reflect the promotional offer described above for a transaction that is less than $999.”

Assume you purchase a $1500 Macbook Pro and a $300 iPad. If the iPad ships first, it will receive a 6-month deferred-interest promotion while the Macbook Pro gets the 12-month promotion. The fine print does say that Barclaycard will monitor the account and aggregate the total and, if it’s determined that the amount if over $999, you will receive the 12-month deferred offer. It states that this adjustment will occur by the 2nd or 3rd billing statement, although it’s easy to imagine this can be overlooked.

You could end up thinking you have 12 months to pay your total balance and find a nasty surprise during the 7th month when you’re charged the deferred interest!

According to Barclaycard, they’ve received so many calls from customers they are willing to bundle your purchase together so it all receives the 12-month financing, although you must take the time to call them on your own.

While this isn’t exactly fine print, it should be pointed out that the Barclays Apple card has an extremely high APR of 22.99%, which makes it an awful choice to carry a balance and finance a purchase. The penalty APR is also the highest you’ll see at up to 30.24%.

When will the penalty APR apply? This APR will automatically be applied to your account if you miss a single payment, have a payment returned or go over your credit limit at all. If you make 6 consecutive on-time payments, the penalty APR will no longer apply to your existing balance but it can apply to new balances indefinitely.

If you do decide to finance a purchase with the Barclays Apple card, make sure your balance is paid in full before the promotional period ends. When you make the purchase, mark the absolute pay-off date on your calendar and then go back two months and make a note to yourself that your promotional terms end soon. This will help you keep that deadline so you don’t wind up with hundreds of dollars in interest charges.

First, let’s look at the differences between the two cards. The new Discover IT card offers some new benefits, including the ability to pay your bill by midnight of the due date.

The Discover More and IT card are very similar and actually the same card, aside from a few perks & fee differences. Eventually, the IT card will replace the More card for good.

The few differences include the ability to pay your bill on your due date by midnight, not 5:00 PM, no penalty APR and your first late payment fee is waived. The IT card cannot be customized like the More card, so you’re stuck with the exclusive design.

• Pay your bill by midnight. With the Discover IT card, you’ll now have the ability to pay your bills on your due date by midnight, not 5:00 PM.
• Get an introductory APR. Many people report converting their More card to the IT card and receiving 12 months 0% APR — upon request.
• No penalty APR. There is no penalty APR with the IT card if you miss a payment.
• First late payment fee waived. Your first late payment fee will be waived once you convert to the IT card.
• No change to rewards. Your rewards program will not change at all and you will keep your cash back earned.
• No APR increase. Your APR will not change will the conversion and, as mentioned above, you might be able to get an introductory 0% APR.

Warning: The IT card will eventually replace the Discover More card. Once your card is changed, you will never be able to change back to the Discover More card. You will, however, be able to change the IT card to another Discover card in the future if you wish.

Converting from the More to the IT card is very simple. You can either call customer service or complete the process completely through their online chat support. While you wait for your new card, you can continue to use your Discover More and keep earning rewards. Your account must be in good standing to convert but your cash back will transfer to your new card.

Consider the IT card an upgrade to the Discover More. While the changes made aren’t that substantial, it’s still worth the conversion because the IT card means no penalty APR — ever.

You’ll enjoy all of the same benefits and rewards of the More, with a few added perks, like the ability to pay your bill by midnight. It’s a bit of a disappointment that this new card doesn’t make any major changes but it’s really intended to replace the More card eventually, so you’ve got nothing to lose by converting your More card.

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Discover it®

• Credit Required
  Excellent Credit
• Rewards Program
  5% cash back in categories that change throughout the year like gas, restaurant, movies, and more up to $1,500 in purchases with free and easy sign-up. And 1% cash back on all other purchases.*
• Signup Bonus
  0% Intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for 14 Months*
  Then the variable purchase APR applies, currently 10.99% - 22.99%*.
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CreditShout Rating:

( Excellent )

Great question! Also great timing because we have been working on a review for a service that just might help you. PageOnce is an innovative service that helps you keep track of everything from your cell phone minutes to your credit card accounts and bank balances, all from one place.

Along with their online version, you can also download an app for your Android or iPhone and manage all of your accounts at once, even paying bills directly through their service if you want. We found that Pageonce is currently the only account manager that lets you make transactions and payments directly with support for nearly any provider.

Using PageOnce to manage your credit card accounts lets you see the big picture by putting everything into one place, neatly organized. At a glance, you can view your current balance, your available credit on each card, the minimum due for the month, when a new bill is available to view, all of your due dates and the APRs for each credit card.

So, how does this help? By viewing all of your account details at once, you’re better informed to make financial decisions and you’ll stay on top of your due dates without pinning statements to your fridge.

You can also pinpoint exactly which credit cards are costing you the most money in interest charges to make a plan to get rid of debt.

This service can also be used to monitor your credit card activity against fraudulent activity or improper reporting, or just help you avoid late fees and interest with notifications. PageOnce will send these notifications to keep you on top of the situation:

We find the PageOnce service to be an easy and free way to stay on top of your credit cards, whether you’re worried about paying everything on time or watching out for fraudulent use of your credit cards.

While they charge a fee if you pay your bills through their service, it may be worth it if you’re worried about late payments and you have trouble remembering on your own. PageOnce is definitely worth a try to see if it works for you, although we hope the few issues they have will be addressed.