International Credit Cards

There can be fees for international credit card use. But they’re avoidable if you make the right moves, starting with picking the right credit card. Foreign transaction fees are the main concern. Nine in 10 credit cards charge them. But since WalletHub tracks 1,000+ credit cards, we’ve got plenty of no foreign fee cards for you to consider.

Furthermore, you need to watch out for:

• Dynamic Currency Conversion – This isn’t really a fee, but it could cost you money. In short, you should turn down any merchant’s offer to convert prices into U.S. dollars. They may be doing it just as an excuse to charge a high exchange rate.

• International ATM Fees – These will only come into play if you try to perform a cash advance internationally. And there’s no reason to do so if you bring an international debit card on your trip.

A foreign transaction fee is the surcharge applied to a credit card purchase that is processed outside of the United States. You may encounter foreign transaction fees when traveling abroad or when buying something from an international merchant (even if you’re in the U.S.).

The average credit card charges a foreign transaction fee equal to 1.76% of every international purchase. But there are a growing number of no foreign transaction fee credit cards available, fortunately.

Foreign transaction fees are the most common type of international credit card fee.

Anyone who regularly buys things from internationally-based merchants or suppliers should have an international credit card. You’ll obviously need a card the seller(s) will accept. And you don’t want the cost of every purchase to be inflated by foreign-transaction fees. The average credit card charges about 2%. Plus, the right international credit card will save you a lot on currency conversion, compared the services offered by banks and airport kiosks.

If you’re a small business owner, your choice between a business credit card and a general-consumer card comes down to whether you plan to pay your bill in full every month. If you do, a business rewards credit card is your best bet. If not, you should focus on 0% APR consumer cards. Business credit cards are bad for financing because they lack key user protections, which allows issuers to raise rates on existing balances at any time.

Regardless of which route you decide to take, make sure you get a Visa or Mastercard with no foreign fee.

It’s a good idea to get an international debit card before traveling abroad. You won’t be able to use plastic for every purchase. So you’re going to need some cash. And while you could convert hard currency at a bank or airport kiosk, both options are far more expensive than using a Visa or Mastercard debit card to withdraw cash as needed.

You just need to find one with no foreign transaction fee and a low international ATM fee. In general, an ATM fee below 1% is a pretty good deal.

“International prepaid credit card” is just a misleading term. No line of credit is extended with a prepaid card and therefore the word “credit” is used in error. In fact, a prepaid card at its core is a Visa/Mastercard debit card that is not linked to a checking account. While you still might see prepaid cards advertised as “prepaid credit cards,” that is simply a marketing ploy designed to increase the appeal prepaid cards have to prospective applicants.