CardTrak.com - Most Trusted Source of Credit Cards Since 1986

While offered interest rates on bank credit cards hover at 12% to 14%, the APRs most consumers are paying are much higher. Excluding short-term promotional interest rates but including penalty rates charged to consumers with deteriorating credit scores, the average rate for standard bank credit cards topped 19% last month, compared to 16.5% four years ago. Platinum bank credit cards have also jumped dramatically from 13.90% in 2003 to 18.76% in March 2007. Most of the top issuers charge penalty interest rates above 32%, the highest rates ever charged among the nation's top 10 issuers.