- Uswitch.com>
- Credit cards>
- Compare our best Mastercard credit cards
Mastercard credit cards
Compare Mastercard credit cards
Virgin Money Everyday Cashback (27.9%)
Virgin Money Everyday Cashback (24.9%)
MBNA Dual 0% Transfer and Purchase Credit Card
More Information
- Balance transfers – 0% for up to 21 months on balance transfers made within the first 60 days of account opening ( 3.49% Transfer Fee), then 5% fee thereafter
- Purchases – 0% for up to 21 months on purchases made within the first 60 days of account opening
- Money transfers – 0% for up to 12 months on money transfers made within the first 60 days of account opening ( 4% Transfer Fee), then 5% fee thereafter
- You may be eligible to apply for this as a second credit card. Terms apply
- be a UK resident for at least 3 years
- be 18 or older
- hold a UK bank or building society account
- have a good credit history
- not have been declined for an MBNA credit card within the last 30 days
- cannot transfer between another MBNA account
Santander Everyday Long Term Balance Transfer Credit Card
More Information
- 0% for 28 months, 3.9% balance transfer fee (minimum £5)
- 0% for 3 months on purchases
- Up to 56 days interest-free credit on purchases.
- Up to 3 additional cardholders (you will be responsible for the use of and payments on the additional cards).
- Get cashback, vouchers, prize draws and other offers personalised for you with Santander Boosts.
- Credit is subject to status, to UK residents aged 18 and over.
- be a permanent UK resident
- be 18 or older
- minimum income of £10,500
- have a good credit rating
- must not be an existing Santander balance transfer credit card customer
- additional criteria for acceptance from the lender may apply
Halifax Longest 0% Balance Transfer Credit Card
More Information
- Pay 0% interest for up to 27 months on balances you transfer in the first 90 days ( 3.49% transfer fee)
- 0% on purchases made in the first 6 months of card opening
- You may be eligible to apply for this as a second credit card. Terms apply
- be a permanent UK resident
- be 18 or older
- have a good credit rating
- not been declined a Halifax Bank credit card within the last 30 days
- can't transfer from another Halifax account
- additional criteria for acceptance from the lender may apply
Lloyds 0% Purchase and Balance Transfer Card
More Information
- Up to 18 months 0% on balance transfers ( 2.99% fee) made within 90 days of account opening 5% fee thereafter.
- 0% on purchases made in the first 20 months from account opening.
- be a permanent UK resident
- be 18 or older
- have a good credit rating
- not been declined a Lloyds Bank credit card within the last 30 days
- can't transfer from another Lloyds Bank account
- additional criteria for acceptance from the lender may apply
Santander All in One Credit Card
More Information
- 0% for 15 months on balance transfers, with no balance transfer fee.
- 0% for 15 months on purchases.
- No foreign transaction fees.
- 0.5% cashback (up to £10 a month) on all your purchases.
- £3 monthly fee
- be a permanent UK resident
- be 18 or older
- minimum income of £10,500
- have a good credit rating
- must not be an existing Santander balance transfer credit card customer
- additional criteria for acceptance from the lender may apply
M&S Bank Transfer Plus Credit Card
More Information
- 0% on balance transfers for 27 months, available for 90 days from account opening (3.49% fee applies, minimum £5)
- Collect one point per £1 spent at M&S online and in-store. Collect one point per £5 spent elsewhere and abroad. You will be rewarded in vouchers to spend at M&S
- 0% on shopping for 3 months
- have a good credit rating
- be 18 or older
- be a permanent UK resident
- have an annual income/pension of at least £6,800
- additional criteria for acceptance from the lender may apply
What is a Mastercard credit card?
Mastercard is a payment system that is recognised across the globe by shops, ATMs and more.
Card providers, including banks, can choose to issue their credit cards and debit cards using Mastercard's payment system. This
If you look at the bottom right-hand corner of a credit or debit card in the UK you will see the logo Mastercard, Visa or American Express.
Mastercard and Visa are two of the biggest payment systems, so your credit or debit card is likely to be linked to one of them.
Mastercard has partnerships with a lot of big banks and financial service companies including Halifax, Sainsbury's Bank, Virgin Money and Capital One.
How does Mastercard work
You pay with a Mastercard
The payment gets authenticated
The transaction's submitted
Authorisation is requested
Response and merchant payment
Why should I choose a Mastercard credit card?
Mastercard and Visa credit and debit cards are both more or less universally accepted at all electronic payment terminals, so access shouldn’t be a problem whoever provides your card.
Mastercard offers security online with ‘Mastercard SecureCode’. This protects your Mastercard details with a code, to shield you from fraud when you purchase online from participating online shops.
Like all providers Mastercard should offer a money-back guarantee if you fall victim to card fraud.
All Mastercard cards have Chip and PIN protection and are increasingly offering contactless payment for sums under £100 on their cards. Since 2014 Mastercard has provided payment through Apple’s iPhones and other products.
Mastercard credit cards pros and cons
Pros
Cons
What is the best Mastercard credit card?
The best Mastercard credit card is the one that suits your lifestyle. You can use our comparison tables to find out the best deals for you.
Our comparison tool lists our best Mastercard credit card deals. You can choose to list the cards by:
Popularity – how popular they are
Lowest APR – that means the cards with the lowest interest rates
Longest balance transfer period – how long you can have money owing on your credit card that you have moved from another card, before you have to start paying interest on it
Longest purchase period – how long you have after you have made a purchase before you have to pay interest on it.
You can browse the best Mastercard credit card deals using our online tool, and then click through to the card you are interested in.
You will need to fill in a few details online, and then wait to see if you have been approved. Or you can apply by phone, post, or by visiting a branch of your preferred provider. Before you make a formal application you can use our credit card eligibility checker. This will reduce the chances of you being rejected for credit cards and potentially damaging your credit score.
If you make a lot of applications for credit it can affect your credit rating, which is a score that banks and financial companies use to decide whether they will give you a credit card."
About Mastercard
Mastercard has been a debit and credit card provider since 1966. Cards provided by Mastercard are accepted in 36 million locations worldwide.
It was originally founded to compete with VISA cards in the US but has expanded to provide payment cards for banks and card issuers worldwide.
You can see if Mastercard provides your card by looking for its recognisable orange and red 'Venn diagram' logo on your credit or debit card.
Mastercard credit card FAQs
What's the difference between Mastercard and Visa?
Mastercard and Visa are rival payment systems - it's up to banks and other card providers to choose which one to use with their cards.
But both are accepted around the world at most retailers online and in store.
It's possible some shops will accept one and not the other, but it's incredibly rare in practice.
For owners of the cards, the only real difference is the exchange rate charged on foreign purchases.
Traditionally, these have been very similar, but Mastercard has offered a very slightly better rate a little more often than Visa has.
How to pay with Mastercard?
You pay with a Mastercard credit card in the normal way – you present your card to the shop or merchant, and then sign for the goods or service, or put in your personal PIN number to confirm payment.
In the UK you can also use contactless payments for purchases worth up to £100.
Where is Mastercard accepted?
Mastercard credit cards are widely accepted around the world, meaning that you can use them both at home and when you travel.
This includes shops, stores, restaurants, online and many other outlets. You can use it instead of carrying cash to pay for goods and services.
How Uswitch compares credit cards
What does ‘most popular’ and ‘popularity’ mean?
When we use the term ‘most popular or ‘popularity’ on Uswitch in reference to credit cards, these cards are ranked by the number of clicks they have received on the site in the past 30 days.
The most clicked on cards are at the top, with the least at the bottom. This reflects how popular they are with visitors to Uswitch.com. Consequently, this is a good table to look at if you’re interested in seeing which cards most people think are worth getting.
Does Uswitch compare all the credit cards on the market?
We compare over 100 credit cards from all of the major banks and credit card providers.
However, we do not compare all the credit cards that are available in the UK.
This is because some credit card providers have offers that are only available exclusively through their own website or branch, or through other comparison websites - in the same way some credit cards are exclusively available through Uswitch.
There are also many credit cards that are only available to people in member organisations and clubs.
About the author
Didn’t find what you were looking for?
Our best deals on a range of credit card categories by use:
Our top credit cards by type, most popular deals and business cards