First ever credit card - please help!

psychofreckles

Hello all,
Bit of background info - I'm a 24 year old graduate with a good job and very few outgoings (no, i don't live at home, its all to do with my job) and I have been considering having a CC to up my credit rating, so purely to use it for petrol OR food shopping (just one thing within a monthly period) so I can pay it off in full every month.

I'm about to go on holiday with my boyfriend and friends to Spain, and we'd like to hire a car, book flights altogether etc, but again, pay this off straight away.

My problem is that i can't find much on here about getting a credit card for the first time, just which ones to get if you have debt that you are trying to manage which thankfully I don't.

I'd really like a card that I can use abroad (as I am often away with work and this could provide me with a safety net in case of emergencies) and one which I can pay off in full each month regardless of whether I owe 50 pounds or 500!

Any help would be much appreciated as I'm very reluctant to enter into anything without knowing more!

Laura

CLAPTON

try your own bank as you already have a relationship with them

jason1231972

psychofreckles wrote: »

Hello all,
Bit of background info - I'm a 24 year old graduate with a good job and very few outgoings (no, i don't live at home, its all to do with my job) and I have been considering having a CC to up my credit rating, so purely to use it for petrol OR food shopping (just one thing within a monthly period) so I can pay it off in full every month.

I'm about to go on holiday with my boyfriend and friends to Spain, and we'd like to hire a car, book flights altogether etc, but again, pay this off straight away.

My problem is that i can't find much on here about getting a credit card for the first time, just which ones to get if you have debt that you are trying to manage which thankfully I don't.

I'd really like a card that I can use abroad (as I am often away with work and this could provide me with a safety net in case of emergencies) and one which I can pay off in full each month regardless of whether I owe 50 pounds or 500!

Any help would be much appreciated as I'm very reluctant to enter into anything without knowing more!

Laura

Getting a CC isn't a major life decision, and doesn't need to be agonised over

All CCs give you the option of paying every penny you owe every month, so as for that criteria, just pick 'any'. Even ones with really high headline interest rates can be used to the effect that you pay zero interest (or literally pennies) with sensible management.

Using abroad is a different matter. Pretty much any CC will let you spend abroad - most are Visa these days, a few are Mastercard - both are accepted globally.

However, some CCs are better than others for spending abroad. Spending on a card abroad often comes with associated charges, usually in the form of transaction fees, currency conversion fees, etc. In the grand scheme of things, these charges are usually quite small and manageable, but some CCs are much better in the sense that overseas charges are fewer, cheaper, or even absent.

Most of the 'better' CCs only want to attract 'better' clients. Not just well-paid clients, but those who have a proven track record of handling credit well. If you don't have this kind of history, you probably will find a card, but not a so-called market leader.

First port of call should be your own bank - see what they've got on offer.

walderston

for overseas have a look at moneysupermarket.com/credit-cards/overseas-spending/

psychofreckles

Thank you all - you're right I should loosen up! It's hard (when you're being told by everybody to be so careful) to remember that providing you are sensible and aren't getting one to buy things you want but can't afford, you're unlikely to run into trouble.

Thanks again x

jason1231972

psychofreckles wrote: »

Thank you all - you're right I should loosen up! It's hard (when you're being told by everybody to be so careful) to remember that providing you are sensible and aren't getting one to buy things you want but can't afford, you're unlikely to run into trouble.

Thanks again x

Good luck and let us know how you get on!

Fingerbobs

jason1231972 wrote: »

most are Visa these days, a few are Mastercard

My experience is opposite to this. I haven't had a new Visa card for several years, and just recently closed the last Visa card I had (Nationwide). All my cards are now Mastercard, and looking back through my stack of old cards, all except the Nationwide ones were Mastercard.

Incidentally, I was recently in Amsterdam, and was surprised by the number of places that just don't accept any credit cards. I've got used to being able to use credit cards virtually everywhere, so finding that so many places in a capital city didn't accept them was quite a shock.

opinions4u

Incidentally, I was recently in Amsterdam, and was surprised by the number of places that just don't accept any credit cards

Cash only those places .... So I'm reliably informed.

Mk14:37

If you're confident that you have a sound credit history then you could go directly for one of Martin's Best Buy credit cards - it doesn't have to be tied to your current account provider.

yangptangkipperbang

opinions4u wrote: »

Cash only those places .... So I'm reliably informed.

They don't display the Mastercard or Visa logo - just a red light :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

JoshBee25

I'd go through nationwide;

After getting my bank loan through them I applied for a cc because the 19.9% apr I got £1500 limit with a score that had been knocked for getting a loan then offered it up to £2000 once I took it.