Is a 20% APR Good or Bad? (2024)

FAQs

Is a 20% APR Good or Bad? ›

Key takeaways. A good credit card APR is a rate that's at or below the national average, which currently sits above 20 percent. While there are credit cards with APRs below 10 percent, they are most often found at credit unions or small local banks.

For someone with a good or very good credit score, an APR of 20% could be good, while a 12% APR may be good for someone with an excellent score. If your score is lower, an APR of 25% could be considered good.

A 20% APR is not good for mortgages, student loans, or auto loans, as it's far higher than what most borrowers should expect to pay and what most lenders will even offer. A 20% APR is reasonable for personal loans and credit cards, however, particularly for people with below-average credit.

APR (annual percentage rate) is the yearly cost of borrowing money. If you borrow $1,000 for a year at a 20% APR, the total to pay back would be $1,200. Although that's a straightforward explanation, APR can be more complicated when it comes to credit cards.

A good personal loan interest rate depends on your credit score: 740 and above: Below 8% (look for loans for excellent credit) 670 to 739: Around 14% (look for loans for good credit) 580 to 669: Around 18% (look for loans for fair credit)

Key takeaways. A good credit card APR is a rate that's at or below the national average, which currently sits above 20 percent. While there are credit cards with APRs below 10 percent, they are most often found at credit unions or small local banks.

A 20% APR on a credit card means that an unpaid balance will grow by about 20% over the course of a year due to interest charges. For example, if you have a $1,000 balance for one year, you will have to pay around $200 in interest with a credit card that has a 20% annual percentage rate.

USURY LAW (LIMITATIONS ON INTEREST RATES CHARGED ON LOANS) The California Constitution prohibits loans that are made primarily for personal, family or household purposes from having interest rates above 10% per year. This is California's general usury law. However, there are many exceptions.

If you are near-prime (basically meaning you have a good credit score, but it's not excellent) then expect to pay from 12% to 19%. Specialist lenders for those with lower credit scores kick in around the 20% APR mark rising to 50% and even higher if you have a poor credit history.

Your APR doesn't matter if you pay off your balance each month, thanks to your grace period. The Credit CARD Act of 2009 requires lenders to deliver your bill to you at least 21 days in advance of when it's due. During this time, most lenders offer an interest-free grace period.

Is APR charged monthly? ›

The APR on a credit card is an annualized percentage rate that is applied monthly. If the advertised APR on a credit card is 19%, for example, then an interest rate of 1.58% will be imposed on the outstanding balance each month. As mentioned, any given credit card may come with several different APRs attached.

It basically tells you how much extra you'll pay on top of your credit card balance. An APR can also include fees charged by the lender as well. So, a 20% APR means that if you have a $1,000 balance, you'll pay $200 in interest (assuming no fees are added to the total).

Factors that increase your APR may include federal rate increases or a drop in your credit score. By identifying changes to your APR and understanding the actions that led to your increased rate, you can take steps that may help reduce your interest charges in the future.

According to Rachel Sanborn Lawrence, advisory services director and certified financial planner at Ellevest, you should feel OK about taking on purposeful debt that's below 10% APR, and even better if it's below 5% APR.

But depending on the lender, the borrower's credit score and financial situation and other factors, personal loan interest rates can generally range from under 6% to 36%—although higher interest rates aren't unheard of in states where it's allowed.

Penalty APRs are part of why credit card overspending can be so dangerous, as they may reach higher than 29.99% when a payment is at least 60 days late. Interest rates this high would be unthinkable in most other common lending contexts.

How to evaluate credit card APRs. As of November 2023, the average APR charged for credit card accounts that incurred interest was 22.75%, according to the Federal Reserve. For all accounts, the average was 21.47%. If your APR is below the average, you can probably consider it good.

Generally, an APR below 21% is relatively low. Anything over 24% is more expensive. If you pay off your credit card balance in full every month, the APR won't be as important as you won't be paying interest. But if you forget and the APR is high, the interest charges will quickly rack up.

Annual percentage rates (APRs) include both the interest rate and the added costs that come with auto loans, so they're often the rate most advertised by lenders. APRs range anywhere from 5.64% to 21.55% on average based on your credit score and what kind of auto loan you're looking for.