Are you looking for a new credit card in Indonesia? Which one to buy? Visa card or MasterCard? Confused? Well, don’t you worry as this article will come in handy to deal with your bafflement.
But to begin with, let’s understand that neither MasterCard nor Visa card issues or distributes credit cards. The credit cards themselves are issued by the bank. Both MasterCard and Visa card are networks utilized to process payments between banks and merchants for purchases made via cards.
Before we take a deep dive into the differences between the two payment networks, let’s clarify the two; MasterCard and Visa card share more similarities than differences. Both Visa card and MasterCard offer added perks like fraud security and payment protection to their cardholders. When it comes to taking a final call on which one to choose, it is recommended to consider that what the issuing bank is offering in a credit card.
Both Visa card and MasterCard offer worldwide acceptance so it is advisable to consider the following details for each card before deciding on your credit card application:
- Annual Fees
The annual fee charged on a credit card varies from bank to bank depending upon the features available or perks covered by a credit card. Therefore, you’ll be expected to pay higher annual fees for Visa Platinum, Signature and Infinite cards as well as World MasterCard because these cards offer premium features to its cardholders.
- Interest Rates
The interest rate paid on a credit card plays a significant role in deciding on the cost of the credit card. So, consider both the purchase rate and the cash advance rate for each card before deciding on the final one.
- Interest-free Days
On clearing your credit by the statement due date, the issuer offers an interest-free period, such as “up to 30 days interest-free”. You can make purchases without bothering about the interest. So, it is worth noting the number of interest-free days that a bank offers.
- Rewards
If you are planning to go for a reward card then do consider the type of rewards available, the earn rate and your average card spending so that you can gauge if the annual fee being charged is worthwhile or not.
- Complimentary Extras
Many a times, Visa card and MasterCard offer complimentary services like complimentary insurance, airport lounge access, flight vouchers and concierge services. These services add to the value of the card. So, choose wisely after scanning the fine print of every card.
- Introductory Offers
Credit card offers features like 0% balance transfer, bonus points and 0% purchase rates for an introductory period which can add value to your card for a short-period of term.
- Security Services
Apart from the security services offered by Visa card and MasterCard, the issuer of card may offer 24*7 fraud monitoring services, temporarily locking the card on being misplaced and daily transaction limits.
It will be difficult to vouch for one of the two payment networks but we recommend you to go through the aforementioned details before going for a credit card application.