Glossary

Grace period

A credit card's grace period is the time between the end of a billing cycle and the payment due date, at least 21 days, during which new purchases charge no interest if you paid the last statement in full.

Carry a balance and you usually lose the grace period: new purchases start charging interest right away until you pay in full again. Cash advances and most balance transfers have no grace period.

Work it out

Credit Card Payoff Calculator

Where you’ll see it on RateHerald

Variable card APRs today19.74–28.74%The prime rate plus a margin of 12.74 to 21.74 points, on the 11 cards whose terms state their margin over prime.

Related terms

APR (annual percentage rate)The yearly cost of borrowing as a percentage: on a credit card, the interest rate on balances you carry; on a loan, the interest rate plus certain fees.
Statement balanceA credit card's statement balance is what you owed when the billing cycle closed; paying it in full by the due date avoids interest on purchases, while the current balance also includes charges since then.
Cash advanceCash borrowed against a credit card's limit, at an ATM or bank, usually with a fee of about 5% and a higher APR that starts charging from the same day, with no grace period.

Sources: CFPB: Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.5