St.George No Annual Fee Credit Card

Pauline Hatch

Pauline is a personal finance expert at CreditCard.com.au, with 8 years in money, budgeting and property reporting under her belt. Ask Pauline a Question about this card.

The St George No Annual Fee Credit Card

Who says credit cards have to be expensive? If you know how to deal with credit correctly – and what to look for when choosing a card – credit cards can cost you zip. As long as you avoid fees and pay off your balance before it starts accruing interest, there’s no reason why you can’t enjoy access to credit for free.

If you’re interested in saving money on your credit card, the first thing to think about is how much you’re paying in annual fees. By choosing a credit card with no annual fee, you could save hundreds of dollars a year, while still enjoying the many benefits of having a credit card.

Sound good? Then check out the St George No Annual Fee Credit Card. This little money-saver charges no annual fee for the life of the card – and still offers some pretty neat features. On top of that, it has a good introductory offer. New customers can enjoy 0% p.a. on purchases for 12 months.

What we love…

Let’s start with the introductory offer. What can you do in over a year? Quite a lot, if you put your mind to it. The 0% purchase offer could give you more flexibility to spend as you like. You could use the 12-month interest-free offer on a big-ticket purchase or for everyday spending as long as you pay it all off within the introductory period and stay within your credit limit.

With its offer, the St George No Annual Fee Credit Card shapes up nicely within the no annual fee card market. Yes, there are cards that offer a longer interest-free period on purchases, such as the ANZ Platinum Credit Card. But if you're looking for a card that charges a $0 annual fee ever, with a 0% purchase rate offer, this might be the ideal card for you.

You can also enjoy a nice low minimum credit limit of $500, helping to keep excessive spending in check, if needed.

What’s not so great…

When comparing credit card offers, it’s important to read the small print. When it comes to purchase rate offers, you need to find out the card’s revert rate. This is the rate of interest any unpaid purchase balance will attract when the introductory period ends.

The offer on the St George No Annual Fee Credit Card revert to the card’s purchase rate, currently at a variable 20.74% p.a. That means if you don’t pay it off within the intro period, it will start accruing interest at that much higher rate.

It goes without saying that any purchases made will also attract that same higher rate of interest. So, if you don’t pay off the balance each month, you could end up paying out heaps in interest.

Why should you choose this card?

There are two types of cardholders no annual fee cards generally attract. First, there are the money-savers. They want to keep costs down to a minimum by not paying annual fees on their credit card. Second, there are those who keep a credit card for emergencies. Using their debit card for day-to-day plastic payments, they keep their no annual fee card just in case they ever need access to credit.

If you fit into either of these categories – or you want to take advantage of a great purchase offer – the St George No Annual Fee Credit Card could be for you. While it may not be jam-packed with features, it does offer three additional cardholders at no extra cost, Visa extras and security, and up to 55 days interest free on purchases.

Overall Rating

Offering the perfect way to save money on annual fees, this card has some decent extras.