FEATURES SUMMARY

 

 

• Annual fee: Low annual fee
• Purchase rate: Low p.a. purchase rate
• Cash Advance rate: Low p.a. cash advance rate
• Balance Transfer rate: Low p.a. balance transfer rate
• Interest-free days: Up to 55

• Extras:
  • MasterCard Paypass
  • MasterCard Applause
  • Your choice of card colour
  • One free additional cardholder

The Woolworths Everyday Money MasterCard credit card is the newest of all the credit cards we have reviewed and quite impressively takes out the title of #3 in the Editor’s Choice category for Low Annual Fee credit cards.

The main feature on this credit card is the rewards program. Points are earned at a rate of 3 points per dollar spent on Woolworths Select products at Woolworths and Safeway supermarkets (this doesn’t include online purchases).

All other products purchased at Woolworths and Safeway and partner outlets (which includes Caltex Woolworths/Safeway, Big W, epump, Dan Murphys, Woolworths/Safeway Liquor, Thomas Dux, participating Tandy and Dick Smith stores, and last but not least, BWS) earn 2 points per dollar spent.

All other purchases made on your Woolworths Everyday Money credit card earn one point per dollar spent.

Rewards come in the form of shopping cards and start at $20 (which requires 3,448 points). Shopping cards are sent to Everyday Money credit card holders 3 times per year (in March, July and November, or just in November if you have chosen to receive your rewards once a year).

These shopping cards increase in values of $5 (which equates to 862 points), so whatever your points balance is at the time, the nearest corresponding card value (below your rewards points total) will be sent out and any remaining points will be carried over to the next card that is issued to you. All this contributes to the Woolworths Everyday Money Credit Card taking out the top spot for the Editor’s Choice – Rewards Credit Cards category and the #2 spot in the Low Annual Fee category.

You can make balance transfers onto this credit card, at an interest rate p.a. for the first 6 months. After this time the interest rate rises p.a. The downside to this feature is that this Woolworths credit card is issued by HSBC so you won’t be able to transfer a balance from an HSBC credit card.

A great feature of this credit card is that you can use the epump facility at participating petrol stations. Instead of lining up at the counter to pay for your fuel, you pay at the pump instead which means you can get in and out of the petrol station much faster!

There isn’t a frequent flyer program on the Everyday Money credit card, but if you do get this credit card then it’s more than likely you will have a Woolworths/Safeway Everyday Rewards card as well, which you can use to earn frequent flyer points when you make purchases of $30 or more.

A handy hint to know is that your Everyday Rewards credit card acts as a more convenient way to store your fuel discounts. So when you link your Everyday Rewards card to your Everyday Money credit card then you use your credit card at the epumps, the vouchers stored on your rewards card will automatically apply to your purchase.

No more hunting for supermarket receipts!

To ensure your security when making purchases this credit card includes a wee microchip that is embedded within the credit card. This enhances your security by increasing your tracking capabilities and as a result, your protection against credit card fraud.

You’ll also get to take advantage of the MasterCard Paypass facility. For those who aren’t in the know, for any purchase of $35 or less you can just ‘tap and go’ at the checkout instead of having to sign or put in a PIN.

With the interest rates that are attached to this credit card, it’s safe to say that this card would only be recommended over another cheaper card if you used Woolworths and its partner businesses very regularly. If this is the case then there can be some great savings to be made and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Bonus $50 shopping card if you apply by April 30th 2010, and make 3 purchases on your new card by 31 May 2010.

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The St George No Annual Fee credit card is yet another card that totally misses the point in terms of what people want and need in a credit card.

Ok, we don’t live in a perfect world so we’re never going to get a cheap as chips annual fee AND a really good interest rate. But we thought more banks would be willing to take a risk in this area. This card has no annual fee, so in turn offers an interest rate p.a. for cash advances and purchases with no interest free days.

This could seem like a good deal compared to credit cards that have a mid range annual fee of say, $60 or more, but in most cases you’ll end up paying more because of the higher interest rate than you would if you just got a credit card with an annual fee.

In all fairness, it is a bonus that the cash advance rate is lower than most, but with no other features like purchase security or travel insurance to boost the value of the card then it seems a bit unjust paying this rate for both cash advances and purchase.

There is also no option for balance transfers onto this card, so if you are looking to merge any existing credit card debt then this is not the credit card for you. As with all St George credit cards, the No Annual Fee card includes free membership to the St George Instant Benefits program. This gives you access to instant discounts when shopping, amongst other special offers.

When it comes down to it there’s not much else we can say about this card except that we would not recommend it. Blunt, but fair.

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GE Money’s GO MasterCard is a little different to most other credit cards out there as it’s aimed primarily at financing purchases for around the home. This includes such purchases as furniture, electronics, and white goods at GE Money’s retail partners, Domayne, Harvey Norman and Joyce Mayne.

You can apply for this card online on the GE Money website or at any of GE Money’s participating retailers (listed above). Interest is charged at  p.a. on purchases and a through-the-roof rate of p.a. for cash advances, which can be avoided with up to 62 days interest free on purchases (as long as you pay your monthly balance in full).

For purchases made with the GE Money GO MasterCard at the participating retailers (as listed above), there are two special deferred payment options. The first of these is the ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ option. Let’s say you buy a plasma TV from Harvey Norman with 24 months interest free. You’ll get take it home that day and won’t have to make any payments until your interest free period of 24 months is over.

If you can save money during that time to pay off your TV in full before it 24 months is up then this is a smart option for you as you won’t end up paying any interest whatsoever, and you will have had your television the entire time that you were ‘saving’ for it. If this isn’t the case then it probably best to avoid it otherwise you’ll get stung by a very high interest rate as soon as the interest free period is over.

The other payment option available is the ‘Interest Free’ option. This alternative differs from the ‘Buy Now, Pay Later option as you have to make a minimum payment each month throughout your interest free period. This will be whichever is highest of  your monthly bill. As this is the ‘minimum’ amount required you will need to make larger payments in order to avoid paying interest charges at the end of your interest free period.

Despite there being no annual fee, there are a few other fees that should be taken into account. First is the one off set up fee and the other is the  monthly service fee. The monthly fee is only charged if your monthly bill includes cash advances (so does not apply to purchases alone).

There are also GO Rewards available, with 1.25 reward points earned for every dollar spent with your GO MasterCard at Domayne, Harvey Norman, or Joyce Mayne, and 1 point for every dollar spend at any other retailer. While this is an ok earn rate the redemption rate is pretty lame, with something as simple as a hammock (while it is pretty cool) requires 6,870 points in order to get it! That’s a spend of nearly $5,500! For a hammock!

This card is great if you need finance for your household items as it has a huge interest free period and no annual fee, however you will need to be very disciplined with your payments and other expenses. If you can manage it, get another cheaper credit card for other purchases and cash advances so then you can get 100% interest free on major household items while still getting a cheap rate on another card for other purchases.

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The GE Money Clear Advantage MasterCard is a very basic credit card supplied by GE Money through Wizard Home Loans.

It has no annual fee which is great, however the interest rate compensates for this a bit  for both purchases and cash advances. While this is pretty high for purchases its one of the lowest we’ve seen for cash advances. It also comes with up to 55 days interest free and a balance transfer rate for the first 6 months.

As banks have their own ATM’S to make withdrawals from it might seem like a bit of a disadvantage getting the GE Money Clear Advantage credit card because of the withdrawal fees you’d get using other banks’ ATM’s. But there’s no need to worry.

GE Money and Wizard have teamed up with Westpac to allow people with this credit card unlimited access to Westpac ATM’s free of charge. So if you go with this card you can use Westpac ATM’s for all your withdrawals without the hassle of ATM fees.

GE Money has had a fair crack at providing a good low annual fee credit card so hats off to them. But when it comes down to it, there are better options out there. Sure there’s no annual fee, but other cards that offer better interest rates will cost you less in the long run despite (in some cases) having to pay a small annual fee.

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As the title suggests, the key feature of Commonwealth’s Low Fee credit card is its annual fee.

This can be reduced even more so that you pay nothing at all. How? By spending $1000 or more per year on your credit card, which when you think about it is not much at all.

The thing about offering a low fee credit card is that the majority of people who are looking for that feature are most likely going to be looking for low interest rates as well. So when the low fee card is compared to the Commonwealth’s other specialized card (the low rate credit card) it comes off second best due to its high interest rate on purchases ( p.a.*) and cash advances ( pa.*).

If they could somehow combine the two they would have a much more competitive credit card and probably a few more customers to say the least.

It’s a very basic credit card with the only other features being the (up to) 55 days interest free on purchases* and the low balance transfer rate. Commonwealth offers balance transfers for the first 9 months*, after which it will increase to the cash advance rate of p.a. That’s a jump of over 15% so you’d want to make sure you paid off any balance transfers before the 9 months is up.

To sum things up, the Commonwealth Low Fee credit card is evidence of yet another bank over-compensating for one feature at the expense of another. If you’re strict with your money and as a result are good at paying your bill in full each month then this card could be a good choice. But if that’s not the case then there are other cards that cater for people that are looking for both low fees and interest rates.

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For comparison purposes the RSPCA Rescue credit card was called a rewards credit card, however the Bendigo RSPCA Rescue Rewards credit card is the real deal. It is very similar to the RSPCA Rescue card, but with a number of notable differences.

The most noticeable is of course the rewards program. With one point for every dollar spent it at first seems like a good program, however you need to spend over $35,000 just to get a $100 voucher. So, if you don’t want to spend that much money just to get a reward, you can just turn whatever points you have into donations to the RSPCA.

This donation on top of your monthly donation made by Bendigo Bank adds up to a generous amount over a year, which you may not have otherwise made.

Another few differences are the jump in interest free days from up to 40, to up to 55, and the interest rate hike. Like the RSPCA Rescue credit card the annual fee is low and there is an introductory interest rate. However after this period the interest rate is fairly high across the board.

By and large, the RSPCA Rescue Rewards credit card is not a spectacular option for any of the categories that it fits into, and is by far outshone by the RSPCA Rescue credit card in all areas. Other than the increase in interest free days (which is relatively common anyway), there would be no other reason to recommend it over another credit card.

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FEATURES SUMMARY

 

 

• Annual fee: Low annual fee
• Purchase rate: Low p.a. purchase rate
• Cash Advance rate: Low cash advance rate
• Balance Transfer rate: Low balance transfer rate
• Interest-free days: Up to 44 days

• Extras:
  • Design your own card
  • Phone/Internet banking
  • 3 additional card holders free

The ANZ First Visa is a great card to get if you are new to the world of credit cards. It’s a straight-forward source of credit without all the bells and whistles of other credit cards, which means a low annual fee.

It includes up to 44 days interest free on purchases*, however you’ve got to make sure you pay the full balance of your statement by the due date or you’ll end up having to pay the interest as well. Balance transfers are low on this card.  This interest rate, in conjunction with it’s other features gives this card the title of #2 in the Editor’s Choice – Balance Transfer category.

An added bonus to using this credit card is that it comes with features such as extended warranty on credit card purchases and 90 day purchase security. These are features that are usually reserved for premium credit cards (e.g. Gold and platinum). Warranties on this card protect you for up to 12 months longer than the purchase’s manufacturer warranty*.

The purchase cover differs from the extended warranty as it covers most purchases of personal items made on your credit card against theft, loss or accidental damage for approximately three months from the purchase date.

The only real downside to this card is that its interest rates are relatively high which can sting you if you don’t pay your monthly bill on time, however as we all know, this can be avoided.

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The Standard credit card from NAB is a card with some good features, but also a few others that are lagging behind and need to catch up. So let’s start with those…

Balance transfers are not available, which could be a fundamental fault to this card, as interest is quite high for both purchases and cash advances. It is made a little more acceptable when you consider the low annual fee and the addition of up to 44 interest free days, purchase protection and the FlyBuys rewards.

With purchase protection on the NAB Standard card, you’ll be covered for up to 90 days against loss, theft or damage to personal items purchased. You can also link your credit card to your FlyBuys account so you can earn FlyBuys points every time you use your credit card to make a purchase.

But wait – it doesn’t end there.

When you use your NAB Standard credit card to make purchases at FlyBuys participating retailers and businesses you’ll earn even more points. This is a free rewards system so you won’t be charged any extra by either NAB or FlyBuys. If you are travelling and need a helping hand then you can feel safe with the help of 24/7 emergency travel assistance.

As the name suggests there is not a lot else to this card, which means at the interest rate charged there aren’t many reasons to suggest this card over another. Maybe if they added another feature to balance out the interest rate, like more interest free days and the ability to transfer balances from other cards it might be a different story.

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If you’ve ever lost your credit or eftpos card you’ll know how much of a hassle it is not having it. You have to go into the bank to get your money out, and a replacement usually takes a couple of weeks to arrive.

NAB knows this and has come up with the NAB Visa Mini. It’s a cute little mini credit card that you can use like a regular sized credit card in just about every way. So when you apply for a NAB Visa Mini credit card you’ll be issued with both the mini and the regular sized credit cards, with the mini coming in your choice of five colours.

While the standard-sized card can be used at ATM’s, swipe and non-swipe machines, the mini can only be used in swipe machines and not ATM’s, so if you do lose your standard-sized card you can still make purchases, but will have to go to the bank to get cash advances.

Interest is charged p.a. purchases, p.a. for cash advances  and also balance transfers after the six month introductory period. The annual fee is nice and low and it includes up to 55 days interest free (providing you pay your balance in full each month).

The NAB Visa Mini also has purchase protection for up to 90 days, and cash back allowances. You can get up to $10 per month refunded into your account, which is calculated at 0.5% of net purchases made during a statement period.

This cash back credit card from NAB obviously has it’s pro’s and it’s cons, but we can tell you this much for free…it looks cool! But in all seriousness, it is a pretty good credit card. Although p.a. is not great for purchases, it redeems itself with the cash advance interest rate p.a. as well. The cash back option also brings it up a notch as it means if you are making enough purchases you can earn enough cash back to cover the cost of your annual fee.

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Less is more. We’ve all heard it, but is it true?

Well in this case…no. Westpac has really dropped the ball with this no annual fee credit card.

This is a card with an extremely minimal amount of features. It has the $0 annual fee drawing you in, but then only a free additional card holder and p.a. on balance transfers for the first 6 months to keep you hanging around. Both of these features are below average features that do not justify the price you pay in interest.

It could be (just) an ok credit card, but only if you are VERY strict with your spending and repayment habits ALL of the time because you’ll get hit with p.a. on purchases and p.a. for cash advances.

Sure, we know that banks need to make a profit somewhere, but with no interest free days to save you from the high interest rates, the numbers just don’t seem to match up.

Other cards such as the Bendigo RSPCA Rescue cards cover all areas rather than just forsaking everything other feature for a $0 annual fee and would be much more worthwhile in the long run. So would we recommend this card?

Put bluntly, no, we would not.

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