Macquarie credit cards

Using your interest free days to their full potential is one of the best ways to keep your credit card costs down. With a Macquarie credit card, you have a period of 55 days to pay off your purchases before you’ll be charged interest on them.

Yep. All Macquarie credit cards come with a balance transfer period in which you’ll pay exactly zero interest. This can be a great way to manage credit card debts, but remember, this 0% interest rate only counts on the balance you transfer and not on new purchases. Plus, keep in mind that until you pay off the balance you’ve transferred, you won’t get any interest free days.

Each Macquarie credit card comes with an annual fee, cash advance fees that are calculated as either a dollar amount or a percentage of the transaction, over the counter transaction fees and a foreign exchange fee. Plus, you’ll have to keep an eye on how you use your credit card to avoid all the usual late payment or dishonour fees. Check out our guide on avoiding credit card fees to make sure you’re not paying penalties you don’t have to.

Your minimum payment on a Macquarie credit card will usually be whichever is highest between $50 or 2.5% of your balance (2% if you opt for the low rate credit card option). If your balance is less than $50, you’ll usually have to pay the whole lot as a minimum.
Although this is the minimum you’ll need to pay, it’s always a good idea to pay off as much of your credit card balance as you possibly can, as part of a strategy to manage your credit card balance.

Macquarie credit cards all work on the VISA network, which means you can use payWave for easy, quick payments on purchases under $100. 

Of course! Because they work on the VISA network, you can use any Macquarie credit card all around the world, wherever VISA is accepted. That’s pretty handy, and if you’ve got a prestige Macquarie credit card, you’ll also get the added bonus of complimentary travel insurance for your trip. But don’t forget to keep an eye on those foreign transaction fees, not to mention the exchange rates. If you want to travel without those pesky worries, check out a prepaid travel card before you head off.

If you’ve got a prestige Macquarie credit card, you’ll have access to a host of complimentary insurance options to protect you while you spend all your hard earned cash, including overseas travel insurance, as mentioned above. Other insurances include:

Interstate flight inconvenience insurance

Transport accident insurance

Purchase security insurance

Extended warranty insurance

Are you a traveller, or a shopper?

When you opt for a Macquarie rewards card, that’s the question you’ll have to ask yourself, so you can decide between a Qantas card or a Macquarie rewards card. To help you decide, here’s a breakdown of each.

Qantas

If you’re a traveller, funnel all your spending into building up frequent flyer points with a Macquarie Qantas card. You’ll earn 1 point for every $1 you spend, or, 2 points for every $1 you spend on Qantas products, like flights.

Platinum cards are capped, but if you’ve got a flashy black card, you can earn unlimited points.

Macquarie rewards

If you’d prefer to hit the shops with all your rewards points in your back pocket, then opt for a Macquarie rewards card, so you can redeem it for a range of retail products, gift vouchers and even event tickets. A platinum credit card will earn you 1.25 points for every $1 you spend, while  black card will bump that up to 2 points.

Like with Qantas cards, Macquarie rewards points are uncapped for black cardholders, but capped for those flashing platinum plastic.

Considering the hefty annual fees that can come with a rewards card, you should take a minute to read our guide on calculating rewards points to be sure you’re getting the most out of your rewards cards.