paying off credit card debt

Balance Transfer Credit Cards: I Tried It to Pay Off Debt (Here’s What Happened)

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Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal.

I used to have $2,247 in credit card debt with an interest rate of 24.99%, which meant that every month, $38-$40 of that went straight to zeroing out the interest without even touching the principal.

I might have actually been able to pay that debt off if I hadn’t been paying it with other credit cards and if I hadn’t been living off of credit cards to pay other credit cards.

Everyone kept saying “just do a balance transfer” like it was some magic solution.

So I went ahead and tried it.

I transferred my debt to a card with 0% interest for 18 months.

Here are all the things that happened, the irritating things, the cost I didn’t anticipate, and the things that I later appreciated.

To be honest, I didn’t even get balance transfers before I did it, and I didn’t even understand what I was trying to do.

In my own words, a balance transfer means to move debt from one credit card to another.

Why would you do that? That’s because the new card has 0% interest for a certain amount of time, which can be around 12 to 21 months.

debt balance transfer process
How balance transfers work

So, to use an example, let’s say you had:

Credit card A –> $2,000 balance with 24% APR.
Credit card B –> 0% APR for 18 months, which means you can do a balance transfer.

In this example, you could transfer the $2,000 from credit card A to credit card B.

Now, that means you have 18 months to pay it off without any interest.

Pretty simple, right?

Well, not really.

What I Actually Did (My Balance Transfer Process)

Starting situation: Chase card at $ 2,247 with 24.99% APR

Step 1: I applied for a card that has balance transfers.

Out of the balance transfer cards, I chose the Citi Double Cash card because of the following reasons:

  • 0% APR for the first 18 months on balance transfers
  • 3% fee on balance transfers (this is important – I’ll tell you later)
  • I got card approval with a 680 credit score, which is pretty good

I was approved for a $3,500 credit limit.

Step 2: I initiated the balance transfer.

I called Citi, and I said, “I want to transfer $2,247 from my Chase card.”

They needed:

  • The other card’s account number
  • How much I want to transfer
  • I confirmed the 3% fee ($67.41)

The total amount I would owe is $2,247 + $67.41, which would equal $2,314.41

Step 3: Waited!

The balance transfer took 7 days. During the transfer, I continued to make the minimum payments on my Chase card.

Step 4: I confirmed the transfer

After a week from my phone call:

  • My Chase card’s balance is $0
  • My Citi card’s balance is $2,314.41 at 0% APR.

I’m done!

What Worked

1. The most successful part of the transfer was saving the largest amount of money. I saved over $400 from the time the transfer started until I finished it. I was paying $150-180 a month, but since I would have over $38 in interest each month, the transfers would just keep the balance rising.

After making a balance transfer to a 0% APR card, any payment I made went directly to the principal.

Total interest saved over eleven months was $418.

2. I had a total of eighteen months to pay off the balance of $2,314, which is $129 a month, to be debt-free before the promotion ended. With my old card, I had no end date, just endless interest choking my payments.

3. Seeing the balance go down was huge mentally.

I paid it off in 11 months instead of 18. It felt great.

The Hidden Costs Nobody Warns You About

Cost #1: The balance transfer fee ($67).

It’s a bit more of a hassle than it is worth, considering the amount of work it takes. It was worth it, considering I saved $418 in interest.

Cost #2: I lost 15 points on my credit score.

I got hit with a hard inquiry on my new card application, which set me back 5 points. The new card and lowered average account age set me back another 10 points.

Cost #3: I couldn’t use the new card

During the 0% promo period, any new purchases I make with the Citi card get charged regular APR. (20%+)

So I had to leave that card unused until the transfer balance was paid off.

The Mistakes I Almost Made

Mistake #1: Almost didn’t pay it off in time

The 0% rate expires after 18 months. If you still have a balance after that, you start paying the usual APR (18-26%).

I got comfortable around 8 months in, and I slowed down the payments, and had to catch up after 9-11.

The lesson: Set a monthly payment target and don’t assume you will figure it out.

Mistake #2: Almost used the old card again

After the balance was transferred, I still had my Chase card.

I was tempted to use it for an “emergency” (it was concert tickets, not an emergency) in month 3.

If I had done that, I would have been back in the debt cycle.

Mistake #3: I still didn’t read the fine print about cash advances

Balance transfers and cash advances are not the same thing, but the new card treated some transactions a little weirdly.

Some Venmo payments are counted as cash-like without the transaction fees. I had to avoid those.

Is a Balance Transfer Worth It?

YES, if:

  • You have to pay down $1,000 in credit card debt at 18% interest.
  • You can pay it down during the 0% promo period.
  • You’ve got a 650+ credit score.
  • You’ll stop using the card to make new purchases during the promo period.

NO, if:

  • Your debts are under $500.
  • You can’t pay it off during the promo period.
  • You need a mortgage or car loan in the next 3 months.
  • Using credit cards and adding debt is a problem.
credit card balance transfer concept
Understanding balance transfers

High APR debt is often the best candidate for balance transfer options.

What I’d Do Differently Next Time

1. Look for a card with lower transfer fees.

I spent 3% and $67 more than necessary because I didn’t know some cards have 0% transfer fees for the first 60 days.

2. Set auto payments for the card if it’s available.

I manually paid $150 every month.

3. Freeze or close the old card.

It should have given more peace of mind to cut it up or keep it frozen.

The Bottom Line

I got debt-free and saved $418 in interest because of the balance transfer.

Was it perfect? No. There were fees, a credit score drop, and it took a ton of discipline. But considering the alternative of staying stuck at 24.99% APR and paying interest forever? It was absolutely worth it.

After completing a savings challenge, balance transfer strategies can help redirect extra cash toward debt. If you have a solid payoff strategy and high-interest credit card debt, do it. Just make sure you read the fine print, do the math on your savings, and be ready to pay it off before the promo ends.

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