Can you pay off a loan with a balance transfer card?

Transferring a loan balance to a credit card might be a good way to save on interest — but ultimately, you might not want to do that.

Balance transfer credit cards enable cardholders to move existing credit card debt onto a new card, usually with a 0 percent promotional interest rate that lasts anywhere from six to 21 months. The obvious benefit is saving a lot of money on interest, since the average credit card APR is currently more than 19 percent. Consolidation is another perk of doing a balance transfer — it’s easier to make one monthly payment than several different ones.

You might be interested in extending these benefits to other loans — personal, car, student or home equity — and you can often transfer those kinds of debts onto a balance transfer credit card (although policies differ from bank to bank). It’s usually best, however, to only use a balance transfer card to lower your existing credit card debt burden.

Is it possible to pay off a loan with a balance transfer card?

Yes, it’s possible to transfer a loan to a credit card as a balance transfer. Doing so can potentially save you a significant amount of money in interest and help you become debt-free faster.

Not all credit card companies allow this type of transfer, so you’ll have to check first. And if your credit card company does allow it, there will be balance transfer fees, a high APR after the introductory offer expires and additional stipulations and limitations to consider.

What to consider before transferring a loan to a credit card

Before you make this move, there are some important things you need to consider:

Your interest rate will be much higher after the 0 percent term expires

At some point, the party is going to end. And once your 0 percent offer expires, there’s a good chance your interest rate will skyrocket to something like 20 percent or even 25 percent.

That kind of interest rate is common for a credit card, but it’s probably much higher than the one you’re paying on a car, student or home equity loan. You typically have a lot more time to pay those debts, too. And those debts are more likely to offer other benefits (for example, student and home equity loans can be tax-deductible, and student loans might offer forgiveness and forbearance options). So, it’s important to think about the entire picture, not just the 0 percent window.

Never view a balance transfer card as an excuse to overspend — the best way to use this type of card is to avoid making any new purchases after you make your transfer(s). Once you’ve completed your initial transfer(s), divide how much you owe by the number of months in your 0 percent promotion and pay that amount (or more) each month to ensure you’ll be debt-free by the time interest kicks in.

Balance transfer fees are common

Almost all balance transfer cards charge an upfront transfer fee, typically between 3 percent and 5 percent of the amount you’re transferring. This fee could be well worth it if it helps you avoid a 20 percent credit card APR for a year or more, but it’s a reason to think twice before moving a lower-rate debt to a balance transfer card.

Your credit limit will probably be relatively low

If you’re not already convinced not to use a balance transfer card for anything but credit card debt, consider this: Your balance transfer card will probably have a credit limit that’s much lower than what you owe on your car, student or home equity loan. In fact, Equifax reported the average limit for a credit card opened in July 2022 was just $5,115.

You’ll have to deal with limitations

Balance transfers come with limitations. Let’s say you have $3,000 of credit card debt with a certain bank. You can’t transfer that to a balance transfer card from the same bank. Similarly, if you have an auto loan with Bank XYZ, you can’t move that auto loan debt to a balance transfer card that’s also issued by Bank XYZ.

In addition, some banks are stricter than others regarding which external debts you can move to a balance transfer card and whether they provide balance transfer checks for added flexibility. If you still want to pay off a loan with a balance transfer after reading this, call your issuer’s customer service department before you apply to make sure you can actually do what you want to accomplish.

Benefits and drawbacks of transferring a loan to a credit card

There are both advantages and disadvantages worth considering before you transfer a personal loan balance to a credit card:

Benefits

• Can save money by temporarily avoiding interest payments
• May make it easier to pay off debt faster
• Might simplify debt repayment

Drawbacks

• Balance transfer fees
• Interest rate probably higher after 0 percent term expires
• Harder to pay off debt if you fail to pay card off before 0 percent period ends

Is it worth transferring a loan to a credit card?

Balance transfer credit cards offer an excellent way to get out of credit card debt. For example, let’s say you owe $5,000 at 16 percent interest. If you only make minimum payments, you’ll be in debt for more than 15 years, and you’ll end up paying a grand total of about $10,400.

A much better option would be to transfer that balance to a card such as the U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card, which has an 18-billing-cycle 0 percent introductory balance transfer promotion (after that, the variable APR ranges from 19.49 percent to 29.49 percent). Including the 3 percent or $5 (whichever is higher) transfer fee, you would only have to pay about $286 per month to knock out the entire debt before the interest-free clock expires.

That’s an incredible deal — but the math usually doesn’t work out nearly as well if you’re considering using a balance transfer card to pay off your auto, student or home equity loan. It’s generally better to keep those separate.

Bottom line

If you have a plan to aggressively pay down your debt during the introductory 0 percent period (which can be as long as 21 months), transferring a loan to a balance transfer card can help you avoid pricey interest charges and pay off your debt faster.

However, if you can’t pay off your debt before that period ends you’ll likely end up with a higher interest rate than you had before, which will make it harder to pay off your debt. The key to transferring another type of loan to a balance transfer card is to do the math and plan accordingly before you sign on the dotted line.