Overhaulin'

Is credit card interest the same as regular loan interest. Credit car 7.9 vs loan at 8.5 ?

I can take an advance on my credit card at 7.9% or get a personal loan at 8.5 %. Does the credit card interest rate work the same as the loan interest rate.

Public Comments

1. It depends upon how it's calculated and the terms.
2. It is basically the same (make sure to look at the APR [which every loan has to tell you] to make sure you are comparing apples to apples). The biggest negative of the credit card is that they can (and will) hike the interest rate pretty much at will, so that 7.9% could easily be raised to 22% or 32% after some "introductory period." Whereas the car loan is at a fixed APR for the life of the loan. It is generally a bad idea to "refinance" a loan with a credit card.