Can you balance transfer debt from a store card to a credit card?

Most credit cards allow balance transfers from store cards.

If your store card has a substantial balance, transferring the balance to a credit card with an introductory balance transfer offer could save you a lot of money.

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Key takeaways

Most balance transfer credit cards allow for balance transfers from store cards.
The process for transferring a balance from a store card to a credit card is the same as transferring between credit cards.
Benefits include lower interest, debt consolidation from multiple store cards, and access to rewards (depending on the card).
Risks include being declined, getting a lower credit limit than expected/needed on the new card, and temptation to continue spending.

How to balance transfer from a store card to a credit card

Transferring a balance from a store card to a credit card is straightforward. The process is the same for transferring debt between credit cards.

Compare balance transfer offers. You can use Finty to compare credit card deals from the banks.
Choose a credit card. Look for a balance transfer credit card with no interest for an extended period. Watch out for balance transfer fees and annual fees.
Check your credit score before applying. Most banks are reluctant to approve someone with recent missed payments and defaults. You can check your credit on Finty.
Apply online. You’ll need to provide personal details and details of the store card you want to balance transfer from, such as the card number and amount to transfer. Most banks will provide a provisional decision on your application’s status within 60 seconds.
Balance transferred. Assuming you have been approved, the balance transfer will be carried out within a few days.

But before going any further, there are pros and cons to consider first.

Pros

Transferring debt from a high-interest-bearing card with an interest-free balance transfer can save interest and give you some breathing room to get your finances back on track.

Save on interest. Use the money saved on interest repayments to pay off your debt within the interest-free period. Take the amount owed and divide it by the number of months the interest-free period lasts to determine how much to repay each month so that you’re debt free by the time the introductory offer ends.
Consolidate debt from more than one store card. If you have more than one store card, you can consolidate what you owe onto a single balance transfer card, save interest, and simplify your finances.
Get a more rewarding card. You can save on interest, earn points, and get other benefits with a credit card that your store card might not offer. For example, points earned with a credit card could be transferred to different airlines.

Cons

There are potential issues to be aware of when transferring from a store card.

You may not be approved. There is no guarantee that your application will be approved. Suppose you are unsure about your likelihood of approval because of your financial situation and what’s on your credit report. In that case, it may be better to address those issues first since a rejected application will make future credit applications more likely to be rejected.
Your new card’s credit limit may be low. While many credit cards have a minimum credit limit, the actual credit limit extended to you is unknown until approved. It’s possible that the credit limit on your new balance transfer credit card is not big enough to accommodate your store card’s entire balance.
Comparable purchase rates. Interest rates on purchases on a typical credit card are similar to those of a store card.
You could keep spending on your store cards. Doing so would add to your debt. This is especially problematic if you only make minimum repayments on the balance transfer card.

Example

Say you've accumulated $5,000 on a store card — or more than one store card — after a year or two of shopping. You've just looked at your balance and realised the store card has an interest rate of 22% p.a., which is not uncommon. Time to get that thing under control.

You decide to transfer this balance — or balances — to a credit card with 0% p.a. on balance transfers for 24 months. Doing so means saving $91.67 in interest payments per month.

If you pay $208.33 each month, by the end of the 24-month-long introductory period, you'll have cleared the entire debt without paying any interest.

However, if you opt to pay just $150 each month, you'll be left with a remaining balance of $2,200 when the introductory period ends. At that point, this remaining balance will start accruing interest at the card's revert rate, which could be similar to or even higher than the store card's rate.