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Many of us enjoy good or excellent credit and the flexibility that comes with carrying credit cards in our wallets. You need to make sure that you are making the best use of the credit that is available to you by using the best credit cards that offer you low interest rates.

Today, credit card interest rates can be so high they border on predatory loans. The very lowest interest rates are quite reasonable, and most credit cards range somewhere in between these two interest rates. Shopping for credit cards on-line, and paying particular attention to interest rates, you'll find for instance that the American Express Blue card offers %8.99 interest - some cards have interest rates over three times that amount!

The difference in how much interest you might pay on a credit card is staggering when you look at the two extreme cases. (If you pay off the balance of your credit card each month this difference is small, but you may still pay some interest - it depends on the Grace Period your card offers. If you don't know what a "Grace Period" is, read on.) Here's an example: for each $1,000 of your yearly average balance, over a year's time you would pay $90 in interest with that low-interest American Express card, and over $250 with another high interest credit card!

You should always be aware of the interest rates that you are paying on your credit cards. You should also check periodically to see if you can find a better deal, and if you do, take it. Here are some tips to use when shopping for low interest credit cards:

* Shopping for credit cards on-line is the easiest way to get the best deal available. Credit card web sites carry many different credit card products and allow you to compare them point-for-point with the click of a mouse - and all in the privacy of your home. You can shop, apply and be accepted - all on-line.

* Don't sucker in for the credit card offers that show up every week in your mailbox. If you have good or excellent credit chances are that several of the larger banks are spamming you via US mail with credit offers. They all offer worse credit rates than those that you can find with a little time spent on-line shopping for credit cards. (By the way, every offer that comes in the US mail has to include a Truth in Lending Disclosure statement. Make a game of looking at the interest rates listed on those - just before you throw it out. You'll see what I mean about those high interest rates!)

* Look for credit cards with long Grace Periods. The grace period is the number of days between when you make a purchase with your card and when interest begins to accrue on that charge. Typical grace periods range from 0 to 30 days. Obviously, longer grace periods are better. Again, if your someone who pays their entire credit card balance off each month you might be surprised to find that you're still paying a bit of interest. That's the grace period in action -you should avoid cards with short grace periods.

* It's not a good idea to have too many credit cards. Once you get two or three that you feel comfortable with you should continue to shop for better deals, but be prepared to close the account on a credit card that you already have once you apply for and are accepted for a credit card that offers a better deal.

I don't enjoy knowing that I am throwing money away, and most people feel the same way. Paying too much interest on a credit card is throwing money away. If you carry credit cards that aren't tailored to your spending and payment habits, you can do a lot better - easily. You an always find a better deal.

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