Key takeaways

  • The U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card could be worth getting if you're looking to pay down existing credit card debt or if you have a large purchase planned
  • The U.S. Bank Visa Platinum is not worth getting if you're looking for a card with ongoing rewards, a welcome bonus or no foreign transaction fees
  • If you're interested in a balance transfer card with more long-term value, there are other options available that come with ongoing rewards, a welcome bonus or other benefits

Paying down existing debt can be an enormous financial challenge — but it does not have to be an impossible one. There are several methods for attacking credit card debt, including transferring it to a balance transfer card with a 0 percent intro APR offer.

If you find yourself in this situation, the U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card* could be worth getting, since it offers one of the longest intro APR periods on the market for both purchases and balance transfers. With a 0 percent intro APR on balance transfers (and purchases) for 18 billing cycles, cardholders can consolidate high-interest balances onto one card and tackle debt head-on. Just note that a variable rate of 19.74 percent to 29.74 percent kicks in after the introductory period.

When is the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum worth it?

The U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card does not come with a long list of benefits, but the ones it does offer are impressive enough to pay attention to. The biggest appeal of this credit card is, of course, the exceptionally long intro APR offer on purchases and balance transfers — which can benefit your finances in a couple of ways.

If you need to pay down an existing credit card balance

The average credit card debt in the U.S. was $5,910 per person in 2022, with an average of roughly three credit cards in each person’s wallet. If you have a goal of ridding yourself of credit card debt, transferring your balance to a zero-interest card is one method.

Considering the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card has one of the longest balance transfer offers on the market, it can help you achieve this goal even faster. This card offers a 0 percent intro APR on balance transfers for 18 billing cycles, followed by a 19.74 percent to 29.74 percent variable APR. Just be sure you can comfortably afford to pay off your debt within 18 billing cycles, as you’ll incur a variable APR after the intro APR offer expires.

Keep in mind that, with this card, balance transfers must be made within 60 days of account opening, and missing this window will result in the loss of the intro APR offer. There’s also a 3 percent balance transfer fee ($5 minimum) that you’ll need to factor into your debt payoff strategy, which is fairly common.

If you have an upcoming large purchase

An additional benefit of the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum is its 0 percent intro APR on purchases for 18 billing cycles (followed by the same variable APR between 19.74 percent to 29.74 percent). You can enjoy the benefit of paying no interest on any purchase during this offer period, whether or not you’re using the card to pay off existing debt.

If you know you have a large upcoming purchase, such as a new mattress, an appliance or any item you may not have the cash on hand for, you can use the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum to avoid costly interest charges and take a little more time to pay.

If you’re working to pay down a credit card balance, though, you should limit the amount of new purchases you make with your credit card to avoid further digging yourself into debt.

If cellphone protection is important to you

With the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card, you can get up to $1,200 in annual coverage for eligible damage or theft when you pay your cellphone bill with the card each month. More specifically, that’s up to $600 in cellphone protection per eligible claim (with a maximum of two claims per 12-month period). If you could greatly benefit from this perk, the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum could be the right card for you.

If you need a low-cost credit card

The U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card has no annual fee, which makes it a more affordable balance transfer credit card option. Additionally, the 3 percent balance transfer fee (minimum $5) is a tad lower than the 5 percent fee charged by other balance transfer cards.

When is the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum not worth it?

The card’s intro APR offers are enticing on their own, and the lack of an annual fee is a welcome addition. However, the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card is significantly limited in other areas.

If you want a rewards program or welcome offer

If you’re interested in earning cash back or other rewards on your purchases, you’ll be disappointed in the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card’s lack of a rewards program and welcome bonus.

There are credit cards available that include both an intro APR offer and ongoing rewards, so it’d be worth investigating other balance transfer card options if a card’s long-term value is important to you.

If you need a credit card for overseas travel

The U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card charges a 3 percent foreign transaction fee. If you’re a frequent traveler and spend time outside of the U.S., you may be more interested in a credit card that doesn’t charge an additional fee on purchases made abroad — especially if you don’t already own a credit card with no foreign transaction fees.

Should you get the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum?

If you need as much time as possible to pay down an existing credit card balance (or a large purchase) and want to avoid additional interest charges, you should seriously consider the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card. Plus, with no annual fee, it makes it a less expensive card to carry versus other balance transfer card options.

Yet if a card’s ongoing value is important to you, you might look for other options that include ongoing rewards, a welcome bonus or worthwhile card benefits.

For example, the no-annual-fee Citi Double Cash® Card* offers a 0 percent intro APR for 18 months on balance transfers made in the first four months of account opening (19.24 percent to 29.24 percent variable APR after), as well as ongoing rewards that encourage responsible card usage: 1 percent cash back as you make purchases, plus another 1 percent back when you pay for your purchases.

If you’re more so hooked on the U.S Bank Visa Platinum’s cellphone protection perk, note that the Wells Fargo Reflect® Card offers an almost identical cellphone protection benefit, along with a longer intro APR offer — it comes with a 0 percent intro APR for 21 months from account opening on purchases and qualifying balance transfers, with a variable APR of 18.24 percent, 24.74 percent or 29.99 percent thereafter. Note that balance transfers must be made within 120 days of account opening to qualify for the intro APR offer and that a balance transfer fee of 5 percent (minimum $5) applies.

The bottom line

If your goal is to find (and take advantage of) an exceptionally long intro APR offer on purchases, balance transfers or both, the U.S. Bank Visa Platinum Card could be worth it for you. The card’s intro APR offer is one of the longer offers available, and it could provide much-needed breathing room for paying off credit card debt.

Of course, if you have different financial goals in mind — or if you’d like to earn rewards or a welcome bonus — take a look at some of the best balance transfer credit cards on the market before you decide on a card.

*All information about the U.S. Bank Visa® Platinum Card and Citi Double Cash® Card has been collected independently by Bankrate and has not been reviewed or approved by the issuer.