Shopping for a Better Credit Card

IF YOU'RE THE type who carries a credit-card balance, how long do you think it's going to take to pay off those Christmas gifts you charged last month? Be honest: Have you even paid off the presents you bought last year?

If the answer is no, now could be the time to go shopping for a new card. After all, with more than 6,300 card issuers to choose from, you could probably save yourself some money by rolling over that debt to a card with a lower annual percentage rate, or APR. Thanks to the recent Federal Reserve rate cut, interest rates on credit cards — especially those with variable rates — are dropping.

Both variable-rate and fixed-rate cards generally follow the prime rate, which recently fell to 9.0% from 9.5%. But variable-rate cards, which are allowed to change their rates without giving their customers notice (unlike fixed-rate cards), tend to drop more rapidly, explains Andrew Randall, spokesperson at Myvesta.org, an online debt-counseling service. That said, some variable-rate cards still don't reflect the drop in the prime rate. That's because banks typically reprice their credit cards on the first week of each month, or on a quarterly basis.

Just how good a deal you can get on a credit card depends on several factors, including your credit rating and the type of card you want. Cards with perks (i.e., frequent-flyer miles or rebates) are best suited for people who pay off their balances each month, since the interest rates can be downright usurious. If you're a real credit junkie, you'll be better off focusing on getting the lowest rate possible, and skipping the gimmicks. As you'll see in our table below, some companies are offering basic cards with rates as low as 9%.

Thanks to the Internet, searching for a new card is easy. Sites like Bankrate.com (a partner of SmartMoney.com) and Xolia.com allow you to screen through hundreds of offers in a few seconds flat. (Cardweb also allows you to do this, although the site is only updated on a monthly basis, so at times it can be out of date.)

Here are the best deals we spotted during a recent online perusal.

Reward Cards
Card Name	Type	APR	Fees	Description
Citibank Sony Card	MC/Visa	15.40%	none	Earn Sony Points (to purchase Sony products) for every dollar spent; earn triple points on any Sony purchases made with card
L.L. Bean MBNA America	Visa	15.99%	none	Earn 0.5-3% discount coupons per $1 purchase
Universal Studios Discover	Discover	19.40%	none	Earn a StudioPoint for every dollar spent; use points toward CDs, theme park admission, live television show tapings and even appear as a walk-on
Harley Davidson High Performance	Visa	17.90%	none	Earn points for every dollar; 2500 gets you $25 Harley Chrome Cash Certificate, redeemable at Harley Davidson dealers and cafés

Basic Cards
Card Name	Type	APR	Fees
Aria Platnum	Visa	9.99%	N/A
Wachovia Prime For Life Gold	Visa	9.00%	$98
Simmons First Platinum	Visa	9.95%	$50
Metropolitan National Bank Gold	Visa	10.50%	$35