If you are looking to take out a credit card, you will find that the wide choice of credit cards on the market these days makes it easier for you to find a card that is perfectly suited to your needs and circumstances. If you have a good credit history and rating, you will usually find that you can choose from a wide range of credit cards, although the choices for those with bad credit will be far more limited. If you are a student getting ready to study abroad, having a credit card while overseas will be useful for your larger purchases (flights, etc.) during your time abroad.

It is important to make sure that you choose the right card for your needs and circumstances, as otherwise you could end up paying over the odds or could miss out on some valuable benefits. Below is a summary of some of the popular credit card types available these days:

Some of the different cards you can choose from

• Rewards credit cards: Amongst the different rewards that are available from credit card companies are travel rewards and air miles credit cards. Choosing the best travel credit card could save you a lot of money if you travel a lot. These are suited to those that spend on their credit cards regularly and repay their balance in full each month.

• 0% purchase cards: These cards allow cardholders to use the card to make purchases in the normal way but to enjoy a period of interest free credit within which to repay the debt in order to avoid paying any interest at all.

• 0% balance transfer cards: The way in which these cards work is by enabling you to transfer the balance from other, high interest credit cards onto your new 0% balance transfer credit card. Once the transfer has been made you have a specified 0% interest period within which to clear the outstanding transferred balance before you start getting charged interest. The length of the 0% period can vary from one provider and credit card to another.

• Life of balance transfer cards: With the life of balance transfer credit card you transfer your existing higher interest credit card balances in the same way as you would with a 0% balance transfer card, which means that you can transfer debts up to the credit limit in your new card. You will then be charged a very low rate of interest for the life of the transferred balance providing you make at least the minimum repayment each month.

• Charity credit cards: For every pound you spend on your credit card the provider will donate a certain amount to the sponsored charity. You can choose from all sorts of charities from cancer support and research charities to animal charities and wildlife preservation.

There are also credit cards for those with poor credit. There are a couple of main providers that offer credit cards to those with damaged credit, and these are Capital One and Vanquis. You should bear in mind that you will need to meet the lender’s eligibility criteria, and if you are successful the interest rate charged is likely to be very high based on how bad your credit rating is, whilst the borrowing levels are likely to be low in order to stop you from falling into spiralling debt levels.