{"id":125193,"date":"2018-04-12T11:55:19","date_gmt":"2018-04-12T15:55:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/?p=125193"},"modified":"2018-04-12T11:58:10","modified_gmt":"2018-04-12T15:58:10","slug":"gas-station-credit-cards-not-the-deal-they-appear-to-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/2018\/04\/gas-station-credit-cards-not-the-deal-they-appear-to-be\/","title":{"rendered":"Gas Station Credit Cards: Not the Deal They Appear to Be"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Gas station credit cards may offer some appealing perks, but often those are offset by higher interest rates and other problems.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Everyone\u2019s looking for a good deal these days, especially on credit cards. So many cards offer a variety of bonuses, incentives and other enticements to get folks to sign up.<\/p>\n

Some cards are better than others, and often gas station credit cards seem like they would be part of that \u201cyes, please!\u201d group of cards to sign up for, but a closer examination by CreditCards.com suggests that gas station cards are actually among the worst.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Product News!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

First and foremost are the interest rates. These cards \u201coffer\u201d interest rates that average 23.61%. That rate is close to what starter credit cards or cards for those with poor credit scores are offered, usually 29.99%.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also 7% higher than the national average for all credit cards, according to the website, which examined 28 widely available gas station credit cards.<\/p>\n

(Gas prices on\u00a0the rise as summer driving season nears. <\/em>Click Here<\/a><\/span>\u00a0for the story.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The gas station credit cards in this survey offer per-gallon discounts averaging $0.05 per gallon. If you consider that the national average for a gallon of gas is $2.66, according to AAA, then $0.05 per gallon is just under a 2% return.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Using gas station credit cards may get users a break on the price per gallon.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If you live in a state where gas costs more, the numbers are even worse. In California, the survey noted, the average price per gallon of gas is $3.52. So a 5-cent-per-gallon discount comes out to a less than 1.5% return.<\/p>\n

This is where general purpose credit cards provide a better deal than gas cards, in fact, many offer 2% rebates on gas and other purchases. CreditCards.com says those cards will also charge lower interest rates and they may offer other perks like sign-up bonuses.<\/p>\n

(Fuel economy of new vehicles continues to drop. To find out why,\u00a0<\/em>Click Here<\/a><\/span>.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

A few other things to know about gas station cards:<\/p>\n