What Is a Balance Transfer Fee?

A balance transfer fee is a charge assessed by a credit card company for moving a debt from a credit card or loan to a different credit card. The typical balance transfer fee is either 3% or 5% of the amount transferred, with a minimum fee of at least $5 or $10.

Doing a balance transfer can be a great way to get a lower interest rate and pay down debt faster, but balance transfer fees can add up. For example, a balance transfer fee of 3% would cost the average household around $270, if they were to transfer their roughly $9,000 in credit card debt.

Transfer fees are important for anyone with debt to consider. That includes the millions of Americans with credit card debt, plus people with high-cost auto loans, personal loans, private student loans, etc. You can use a balance transfer credit card to repay most types of consumer debt, after all.

How Balance Transfer Fees Work

• Issuers typically assess a balance transfer fee immediately when you transfer a balance, and the fee becomes part of that balance. For example, if you transfer $10,000 in credit card debt to a credit card with a 3% balance transfer fee, you’ll owe $10,300 to your new card’s issuer.
• Balance transfer fees ensure that the issuers of balance transfer credit cards make money even if you repay your full balance before a 0% intro APR gives way to a high regular interest rate. If you don’t get out of debt by that time, the high regular rate will gradually erode your savings.

Average Balance Transfer Fee

The average balance transfer fee among new credit card offers is 3.34%. Fee amounts range from 3% to 5% of the amount transferred, but most cards charge 3%. Below, you can learn more about how transfer fees have changed over the years.

Source: WalletHub’s Credit Card Landscape Report

Balance transfer cards with a 0% intro APR and no balance transfer fee are rare, but they do exist. Even if you have to pay a balance transfer fee, you can still save a lot of money. But all else being equal, you’d obviously prefer a card with no transfer fee. That’s why it pays to shop around.

Keep in mind that balance transfer fees aren’t always disclosed clearly on credit card applications, so make sure you understand the terms before submitting yours.

How to Avoid Balance Transfer Fees

There are a few different strategies you can use to avoid balance transfer fees, or at least mitigate the cost of them.

1. Get a card without a balance transfer fee.

Some credit cards do not charge balance transfer fees. However, if you get a card without a balance transfer fee, you’ll also need to make sure it has a 0% introductory APR – otherwise, you’ll just be trading the lack of a fee for expensive interest.

The good news is that there are cards with both features, but the bad news is that they only tend to offer up to a year of 0% interest. Balance transfer cards that charge fees offer interest-free periods as long as 24 months, in some cases.

2. Negotiate with your card’s issuer.

Call your credit card issuer and ask if they’ll waive the balance transfer fee. Although this only works a small percentage of the time, some people have reported being successful.

3. Get a debt consolidation loan instead.

You can take out a debt consolidation loan with a low interest rate and use it to pay off your balances instead of using a balance transfer credit card. Personal loans often come with origination fees, but there are options that don’t charge them.

4. Use a rewards card for your purchases.

Using a separate rewards card for your everyday purchases and paying them off in full each month will ensure that you don’t owe interest on them and you save money at the same time. Eventually, the rewards you earn on that card can recoup what you’ve lost in fees on your balance transfer card.

More Tips for Dealing With Balance Transfer Fees

• Check Your Credit Score – The best balance transfer credit cards are reserved for people with good credit or better. So you’d be wise to check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub early in the process. If you discover that you don’t have good credit or better, you’ll have the opportunity to improve your credit score before applying.
• Use a Balance Transfer Calculator – WalletHub’s free balance transfer calculator can help you crunch the numbers to see which card is best and whether you’re better off paying a fee in exchange for a longer 0% term.
• Read the Fine Print – Make sure you understand every detail before submitting an application. How long does your introductory APR last? Is there a balance transfer fee? Is it waived or reduced if you transfer your balance within the first couple months after opening an account? These kinds of questions will make an enormous difference in how much money a transfer actually saves you in the long run.

Finally, it’s worth noting that the best way to deal with balance transfer fees is to never put yourself in the position of having to pay them. So after successfully transferring and repaying your balance, take the necessary steps to stay out of credit card debt. That means adjusting your spending habits to remove certain luxuries and building an emergency fund you can draw from during hard times.

2025’s Best Credit Cards With No Balance Transfer Fee

Opinions and ratings are our own. This review is not provided, commissioned or endorsed by any issuer. WalletHub independently collected information for some of the cards on this page.

Even many of the best balance transfer credit cards charge transfer fees. And the combination of a 0% intro rate with no balance transfer fee is quite rare. You can learn more from WalletHub’s full review of the year’s best balance transfer credit cards.

You can also get a better understanding of how the transfer process works from our balance transfer guide. There are a lot more elements to a balance transfer than just fees, after all.

Are Balance Transfer Fees Worth It?

Balance transfer fees are worth it if the amount of money you save on interest with the balance transfer card outweighs the cost of the fee. Usually, that will be the case as long as your card has a 0% introductory APR on balance transfers and you can pay off your full balance before that promotional period ends.

Balance transfer fees definitely aren’t worth it if you don’t have a 0% (or at least extremely low) introductory APR. Even on a card with a good intro APR, they’re likely not worth it if you still have a large portion of your debt left after the promotional period, as you’ll start accruing expensive interest. The average regular APR for cards that have a 0% intro APR on balance transfers is 21.66%, according to our research.

You can use our balance transfer calculator to price out the options available to you. You can also learn more from our breakdown of the pros and cons of balance transfers.