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Updated March 30, 2026 | Deals

SIPP offers and cashback deals

Investment providers often give cashback incentives for opening a new SIPP and funding your account, especially with a new tax year

Pensions typically hold a fair amount of money, so providers are keen to get you to invest with them or transfer your investments over to them. These offers mostly offer cashback when you open and fund a new account.

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Here at Be Clever With Your Cash, we’re not regulated to give you financial advice. We aim to give you the facts about a provider or investment but it’s up to you to decide if it’s suitable for you. If you’re looking for more personalised guidance, find a financial adviser who can give you specific advice. Remember that your capital is at risk when investing — don’t invest more than you are prepared to lose.

SIPP offers

These are offers to tempt you to sign up for a new SIPP or transfer existing ones. There may be a minimum amount you need to add in order to get the bonus, and sometimes the amount you’ll get will be determined by the amount you fund the account with. Remember, we’re just sharing offers here and not recommending any individual investment platforms, so do your research before applying.

SIPP offers

InvestEngine SIPP

Customer rating 4.7/5

Offer
Cashback between £25 and £5,000*
Annual fee
£0
Trading fee
£0
Minimum deposit
£100

*Earn between £25 and £5,000 cashback when you top up or transfer at least £5,000 into your SIPP

FSCS Protected? Yes
Interest on uninvested cash None
Investments available With InvestEngine, you can't invest in individual investments. You can choose between a range of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to build your portfolio
Fractional shares Not available
Trading fee £0
Fund fees When you invest in funds you'll also have to pay fund fees between 0.03% and 0.89%, depending on which ones you choose
Foreign exchange fee Not applicable
Transfer out fee None
Offer details New customers can get cashback for a new SIPP when you top up or transfer over at least. £5,000. You can get £25 to £5,000 in cashback, with the amount you get depending on how much you top up or transfer. You need to opt into the promotion on the homepage to get the cashback.

View Deal

Hargreaves Lansdown SIPP

Customer rating 4.3/5

Offer
Free for the rest of the tax year*
Annual fee
0.35%
Trading fee
£6.95
Minimum deposit
£0

*New and existing Hargreaves Lansdown customers who open a SIPP can get the annual fee waived for the rest of the year if they invest in the ready-made plan

FSCS Protected? Yes
Interest on uninvested cash 3.75%
Investments available Shares, funds, exchange-traded funds, investment trusts, venture capital trusts, gilts, bonds, IPOs
Fractional shares No
Trading fee It costs £1.95 to buy and sell funds, or there's no charge for regular investing by Direct Debit. For shares, it costs £6.95 if you made up to 19 trades in the previous month, £3.95 if you made more than 20 trades in the previous month, and no charge if you regularly invest via Direct Debit
Fees The annual fee depends on how much you invest. Investments up to £250,000 are charged at 0.35%, between £250,000 and £1m is charged at 0.25%, and between £1m and £2m is charged at 0.1% and anything over has no charge,
Foreign exchange fee 1%
Fund fees If you invest in funds, you'll have to pay fund fees depending on the funds you choose
Offer New Hargreaves Lansdown customers can get the ready-made pension plan free for a year. To get it, you need to open a Hargreaves Lansdown SIPP for the first time between 1 May 2026 and 1 July 2026. You need to invest in the ready-made plan, rather than choose your own investments.
Offer details If you follow the above instructions, then there will be no account charge on your Hargreaves Lansdown Ready-Made Pension Plan holding until 30 April 2027. You can't open the SIPP by transferring existing pensions.
Transfer out fee None
Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Yes: FRN 115248
Risk warning Capital at risk. The value of your investments may go up or down

View Deal

Freetrade SIPP

Customer rating 4.7/5

Offer
Up to £5,000 cashback
Annual fee
£0
Trading fee
£0
Minimum deposit
£0

*Get 1% cashback on deposits or transfers of £10,000 or more into a new account

FSCS Protected? Yes
Interest on uninvested cash 1% on up to £1,000
Investments available Shares, exchange-traded funds, gilts, funds, treasury bills, investment trusts, REITs
Fractional shares Yes
Trading fee £0
Foreign exchange fee 0.99%
Transfer out fee None
Fund fees If you invest in funds, you'll have to pay fund fees depending on the funds you choose
Offer If you fund your SIPP by at least £10,000 (or transfer it in from existing pensions) by 5 April 2026, then you can get 1% cashback on the amount transferred, up to a maximum of £5,000
Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Yes: FRN 783189
Risk warning Capital at risk. The value of your investments may go up or down

What is a SIPP?

A self-invested personal pension is a type of pension that you can open and pay into yourself. You have the freedom to choose what you want to invest in.

We have a full guide on SIPPs where I’ve outlined all the reasons why you might choose to invest in a SIPP, the fees involved and compare the best SIPP providers.

Updated March 25, 2026 | Articles

Will you miss out on the full State Pension?

Andy Webb

Here’s how the State Pension works and how to get the full amount

Your State Pension is a regular payment paid out by the Government once you’ve hit your State Pension age (which is currently 66 but is slowly increasing). It could allow you to stop working earlier or wind down the amount you work in later years.

You might think that it’s pointless to care about it until you’re approaching retirement, but there are important questions you should ask, such as how much you’ll get, what age you’d be getting it, and whether you’re even eligible.

When can you get the State Pension?

To start, let’s go back to basics. The State Pension is a guaranteed weekly income paid to you when you reach the State Pension age. You can, of course, retire earlier if you have other income sources or other pensions, but you don’t get this cash until you hit the State Pension age.

The State Pension age is 66 and it’ll keep rising — first to 67 between 2026 and 2028, impacting those born after 1960 and then to 68 years old. This latter change is meant to happen around 2044 (adding a year for those born around 1977) but could occur up to 10 years earlier between 2035 and 2039 (meaning those born after 1968).

Though of course, these ages could – and probably will – change again. I imagine I’ll be 69 when my time comes. And, it’s anticipated that anyone currently under 30 will have to wait until 70 years old to get the payments. Indeed, in 30 years there might not even be a State Pension at all anymore!

How to find out your State Pension age

The way to find out what the date will be (as things stand now) is for you is to use the State Pension age tool on the Gov.UK website.

You simply enter your date of birth and ta-da, you’ll see your State Pension age.

Quick note – as the earlier increase to 68 is just a proposal it’s not been factored into the calculator, so add a year if you were born after 1968 to be on the safe side.

Why you should care about your State Pension now

So you now know when you’ll get it, and it could well be a long time until you reach State Pension age. Hey, for me it’s at least another 25 years! So we can forget about it until then, right?

No – there are important reasons I care now, and you should too.

It reduces how much you’ll need in your other pensions

The full amount from the New State Pension might not seem much – currently just £230.25* a week and going up to £241.30 a week in April 2026.

That’s £11,973 per year until you die (or £12,547 after April 2026). If you live for 20 years after your State Pension age then it’s worth more than £250,000.

Say you’ve worked out you need £30,000 a year to live when you retire, the full State Pension means you’ll only actually need to save enough to cover £17,500 a year from your State Pension Age. That’s a much easier (and less scary) total to target.

* How much you get can get a little complicated so this is the most. I won’t go into detail here but you’ll get less if you ever “contracted out”. Or if you would have been better off under the older system, it’s possible you might get small top-ups when you retire.

You’re not automatically entitled to it

But, you don’t automatically qualify for the State Pension. You might think it just starts when you hit the State Pension age, but you’re wrong. You need to make at least 10 years of National Insurance contributions to qualify. Less than this and you won’t get anything.

You generally make National Insurance contributions through your pay, or you might get National Insurance credits through things like child benefit, jobseekers allowance, carers allowance and maternity leave.

You might not get the full amount

That 10-year figure is the minimum. You’ll need as many as 35 years of National Insurance contributions to get the full amount. But, depending on your age, it could be a little less – more on this later. It’s well worth making sure you have made or will make enough contributions to reach this number.

If you only qualify for two-thirds of the full amount (roughly what you’d get if you only made 24 out of 35 years of full contributions) then you’d be around £3,900 worse off a year. That will make a difference.

I’ve detailed further down the article how you can check your current status and how much you’d get (at current figures).

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You might have missed some years

If you’ve been working or on certain benefits each year since school or university (or even before) then it’s likely you’ll have each year so far marked on your record as full. But if for any reason you took time out – a gap year perhaps – you’ll have a missing year.

And the closer you get to retirement, the bigger the impact any missed year will have on how much you get. But if the missed year is within the last six years you can voluntarily pay to top it up.

Of course, if you’ve got plenty of years to catch up you might not need to do this, but it’s worth thinking about if you’re approaching the time you’d like to stop working.

You won’t want to be making future contributions if you retire early

Do you want to keep working until you actually reach the State Pension age? If you can afford to retire earlier it makes sense to ensure you don’t have to keep making (voluntary) contributions when your income is low, in order to get the max State Pension available to you.

Say you’re aiming to quit in 10 years at 55 years old but have 23 years of contributions so far. You’ll either need to change your goal to 57 years old, or you’ll need to make voluntary contributions for another 2 years to reach the magic number of 35 years of contributions.

Featured investing offer

eToro Free £50 in fractional shares

Customer rating 3.8/5

Offer
free £50 in fractional shares*
Annual fee
£0
Investment styles
Shares, funds or ready-made portfolios
Minimum deposit
$50

Invest in a general investment account or stocks and shares ISA (additional fees apply)

FSCS Protected? Yes
Interest on uninvested cash 3% on balances up to $50,000, 3.8% on balances over this
Fractional shares Yes
Foreign exchange fee 0.7%
Fund fees If you invest in funds, you'll have to pay fund fees, which cost on average ~0.16% per year, with additional market-spread effects up to 0.05%
Offer You need to sign up, verify your account and deposit at least £200 to get the free assets. ISA deposits aren't included in the £200 requirement to get the offer.
Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Yes, FRN 583263
Risk warning The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk. ISA powered by Moneyfarm. ISA rules apply. UK residents only.
Accounts available General investment account, stocks and shares ISA (additional fees apply)

View Deal

How many qualifying years do you need?

Under the current system (introduced in April 2016), you qualify for the State Pension after 10 years of contributions and will get the full rate after 35 years of contributions (this is for men born after 1951 and women born after 1953).

But as I mentioned above, it’s not going to be 35 years for everyone – it could actually be less. This is despite pretty much every major newspaper and personal finance website stating it’s now 35 years for everyone. It’s not! And I’m proof of this.

If you started making contributions before April 2016, which is going to be most people in their late 20s and some younger – the total number of years is based on a mix of the new and old systems.

For me, I only need to make a total of 30 years of full National Insurance contributions. For my wife, it’s 32 years. This is despite the fact we’ve both already contributed the same number of years so far.

A few years ago I called up the HMRC helpline to find out why this was and why so many sources reported a blanket 35 years. The answer wasn’t massively clear, but it might be down to me being a little older than her, or me earning more in some of those years. Whatever the reason, we’re both examples of people who need to pay less than 35 years – so it could well be the same for you.

How to check your State Pension record

There’s a way to check how much State Pension you’ll get when you retire, based on your current record and also if you continue paying in. You’ll also be able to see if there are any gaps.

It’s a five-minute job well worth doing so you know if you’re on track, or whether you need to take action now – and if you’re over 40 you may well need to fill in any missing gaps.

You need to request a State Pension forecast. It’s easy and doesn’t take long. You need a Government Gateway ID, and it might take five to 10 minutes to set this up. You need to validate your identity using your passport or a recent payslip, but once sorted you can find out how many years you still need to contribute to get the full amount.

In the same system, you can check your National Insurance record. You’ll see how many years you’ve already made full contributions. Add those figures and you’ll get the total number of years that you need to pay.

This page will also tell you how many more years you have left to make contributions – i.e. before you reach the State Pension age.

See if you can top-up your State Pension

Though you’ll keep gaining qualifying years when you work or claim certain benefits, you can also pay money now to fill in some gaps. This is limited to the past six years.

There’s a cost to any top-up – roughly £824 per full year if you do it for 2025. This is a sizeable amount, but for each year you add now, you’ll break even if you claim the State Pension for at least three years. So claim it for four years and you’ll be better off.

If you’re self-employed, then you’ll need to pay less per missing year to make it a qualifying credit. There are different rates for this.

Broadly, this isn’t going to be worth it for those under the age of 45, and probably a good few years after that. But the closer you get to state retirement age, the more likely it is you could benefit from a top-up rather than missing out on the full amount or having to keep working for longer.

Of course, those who are able to get free credits from things like missing child benefit, carer’s allowance or other benefits, should make sure they claim those to help fill any gaps.

You’ll probably want to contact the Future Pension Service on 0800 731 0175 before making any overpayments as they can advise on whether you need to. There have been huge backlogs and delays getting through (hence the extensions), so keep trying.

Alternatively, if you’re sure you want to go ahead, some might be able to make the payments via their government gateway account – it’ll show as an option when you check your current NI record.

Updated March 17, 2026 | Articles

How to get a refund for delayed trains

Andy Webb

A delay of just 15 minutes could mean you get compensation.

I hate being late. I’ll always try to leave early, if not bang on time, so any kind of delay is the kind of thing that really annoys me. And trains are among the worst for getting me somewhere later than I planned.

Just a few weeks ago my train down to London from Yorkshire was cancelled. Though my ticket was valid on the next train it would mean I’d arrive back 30 minutes later than planned – and this meant I could get a partial refund!

With that cash arriving in my account this week, I thought it was time to share my guide for getting a refund when your train is delayed or cancelled.

When can you claim a refund for a train delay?

The main requirement is your train has to be delayed by at least 15 minutes, though a handful will only pay out after a 30 or 60-minute delays.

Most of the operators have signed up to the “Delay Repay” scheme which will pay out for any delay, though a handful say the delay has to be the train company’s fault in order to get a payout.

How do you claim?

This is set to change in 2026, though no date has been announced. When this does happen, all claims will be managed by the combined Great British Railways, and you’ll even be able to claim via third party booking apps like Trainline.

However, until then, delays are currently refunded by the train operator where the delay happened, regardless of where you bought the tickets.

You can do this online or via the apps, but if you’d rather do it on a paper form you should be able to pick up one at the station, ask the conductor for one, or print one out from the different websites.

If you have a physical ticket, sure you keep hold of it as you’ll need to send them in with your claim if it’s via the post, or take a photo if you’re doing it online. For digital tickets you can upload a screenshot, or sometimes just connect the ticket in your wallet to the provider’s app.

A handful, including Northern and C2C, will automatically issue a refund if you meet certain criteria such as holding a smartcard or booked in advance via their website or app.

How much can you claim?

Again, how big a refund you’ll get depends on the different operators. The length of the delay will also have an impact.

With Delay Repay, most providers will return you 25% of a single delayed journey that’s delayed between 15 and 29 minutes. It jumps up to 50% back for delays between 30 and 59 minutes, and the full single fare back if you are delayed by more than an hour. Some will refund your whole ticket, including the return leg, if the delay is longer than 60 or 120 minutes.

If the train company isn’t part of Delay Repay you’re looking at 50% back for delays of an hour or more.

When do you need to claim a refund by?

You need to submit your claim within 28 days of the journey.

Can I get a refund if the train is cancelled?

If you don’t travel due to cancellation you can get a full refund from where you bought the ticket, including third party booking sites like Uber and Trainline.

If you travel on a different train (check with platform staff first that it’s ok to do this), you’ll only be able to get a refund if you arrive more than 30-minutes later than the original booked train.

How can you receive the refund?

For a long time all you could get were those annoying train travel vouchers. But for a good while now you can pick one form of payment such as a refund to your card, payment to bank account or even via cheque. For example, LNER lets you choose to have a payment made to your bank account or your PayPal account.

What if you used a split ticket?

Split tickets can sometimes cut the cost of a ticket by letting you pay for multiple tickets rather than one for the same journey. Sometimes you don’t even have to leave the train!

The same refund rules should apply here as it’s the entire journey that’s covered for delays. However, in practice it’s not always as easy to claim, so check each provider’s guidance on how to do this. For example you often can only submit one claim for an entire journey.

You’ll also need to watch out for minimum connection times when changing trains. If you didn’t leave enough time here you could be rejected. You’ll also probably miss out if there are gaps in the journey, for example if you come into London in one station but continue your journey from another. Normally the connection via tube is included in your ticket, but a split ticket might break this.

What if I have a season ticket?

You’ll be entitled to compensation equivalent to a single journey. Some train providers will also offer discounts on future season tickets if the service is consistently delayed.

What if you used pay as you go Oyster or Contactless in London?

You can claim for tube and TFL Rail journeys delayed over 15 minutes. It’s a bit of a faff and you need to use your Oyster account for this, but it’s worth doing.

Hacks when claiming for train delays

Here are a few more tricks to boost your claim when you’re on the train, when you arrive at the station and when you get home.

On the train

Track the length your delay

With most train operators you’ll only be able to claim a refund (usually 50%) if you’re delayed by more than 30 minutes. So if a delay had been 29 mins, I’d not only have been inconvenienced, I wouldn’t be able to claim!

On some journeys, the conductor actually informed us that we could get a refund, though this often doesn’t happen – so it’s usually down to you to track the length of your delay.

The rules do change – more will refund you if the delay is 15 mins, while some require at least 60 minutes.

Ask why you’ve been delayed

The cause of the delay doesn’t matter if the train operator has signed up to the Delay Repay scheme. But if it hasn’t, you might be only to claim if the delay could have been avoided (so bad weather or strike action don’t count).

To help your claim, ask the guard if the company has signed up to Delay Repay, and if not what was the cause of the delay

Take a photo of your ticket

You’ll need proof of your journey to claim a refund, so if you have a physical ticket, take a snap with your phone just in case you lose it.

At the station

Don’t use the electronic gates

This one has caught me out a few times. Most automatic gates will eat your ticket, and no ticket means it’s harder to claim your compensation. So even if you’ve taken a photo it’s best to find the manual gate with a guard so you can keep hold of your ticket for the claim. Of course, with more and more tickets now digital when booked online, you can scan and go without worry.

Take a screenshot of live information or the arrivals board

Once you’ve arrived, take a photo of the arrivals board or the live tracking information on an app. You might not need it, but it’s extra proof if your delay time is close to one of the compensation brackets (normally 15, 30, 60 or 120 minutes).

Get a form at the station

You’ll be able to apply online for most if not all train firms now, but if you want to be sure or prefer doing it via post, you can pick up a compensation form at the station. Though it’d be nice if these were easy to find, I imagine you’ll need to ask for one at the ticket or information desk.

It’s not the end of the world if you can’t get one as you can usually print a form from the website.

Featured investing offer

eToro Free £50 in fractional shares

Customer rating 3.8/5

Offer
free £50 in fractional shares*
Annual fee
£0
Investment styles
Shares, funds or ready-made portfolios
Minimum deposit
$50

Invest in a general investment account or stocks and shares ISA (additional fees apply)

FSCS Protected? Yes
Interest on uninvested cash 3% on balances up to $50,000, 3.8% on balances over this
Fractional shares Yes
Foreign exchange fee 0.7%
Fund fees If you invest in funds, you'll have to pay fund fees, which cost on average ~0.16% per year, with additional market-spread effects up to 0.05%
Offer You need to sign up, verify your account and deposit at least £200 to get the free assets. ISA deposits aren't included in the £200 requirement to get the offer.
Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Yes, FRN 583263
Risk warning The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk. ISA powered by Moneyfarm. ISA rules apply. UK residents only.
Accounts available General investment account, stocks and shares ISA (additional fees apply)

View Deal

When you get home

Find out how long a train was delayed

If you didn’t make a note at the time, then check out the Recent Train Times website. It’s not the most user-friendly, but it shouldn’t take you long to find out exactly how long a delay was.

Work out where to apply

You’ll need to apply directly with the rail company where the delay occurred. So if you’ve changed lines during the journey, then it’ll be the one responsible for the delay who should pay you for the full ticket (assuming it wasn’t a split ticket).

Find the form online

If the train provider allows online claims this is usually quicker. You can upload a picture of your phone, which means it’s often easier to do this from your phone rather than a desktop. Here’s a list of all the different rail firms.

Ask for a bank transfer

It’s not always clear but you are legally entitled to a bank transfer or cheque refund. If you don’t ask for this you could be sent an annoying rail voucher than can only be used at ticket desks.

Take a copy of your ticket and form

If you’re posting your compensation claim form and ticket, make sure you have a copy (just take a photo if you don’t have a scanner). If you’re filling it in online you should be able to save a copy.

And make a note of to chase if you haven’t heard back within the time stated on the form.

Put the refund claim in before 28 days pass

Remember, you’ve only got four weeks to request your refund, so don’t leave it too late.

Updated March 16, 2026 | Best Buy

The best business credit cards

Zoe Roddy

You can earn cashback or earn rewards on your business spending

Business credit cards can be used for your business spending to earn you rewards and cashback. They often come with an annual fee; however, a lot of them offer a free first year, so you can switch cards after a year if you don’t want to pay. Here are some of the best business credit cards currently available.

Featured Business Savings account

Capital on Tap Instant Savings Account

Customer rating 3.7/5

AER (variable)
up to 3.82% for first 60 days (up to £1m) / 3.23% thereafter
Minimum deposit
£1
Withdrawal penalty
None

Monthly fee None
Interest paid Monthly
Rate details AER (variable) linked to Bank of England base rate. T&Cs apply. Powered by ClearBank.
Eligibility Businesses must be registered in the UK. Business categories not covered by the FSCS are ineligible. A valid business bank account registered under a business's exact legal name is essential for opening a Capital on Tap Instant Savings account.

View Deal

Free business credit cards

Free Business Credit Cards

Virgin Money Business Credit Card

Customer rating 3.6/5

Annual fee
£28 (from year 2)
Cashback
1% cashback on your spending
Interest free days
59

Representative APR: Based on a credit limit of £1200 charged at 21.9% variable per annum for purchases. Fee of £28 per annum applies from year 2. Representative 27.7% APR variable.

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Potential rewards include 25% back on Slack, 20% back on Dropbox, 5% back on Microsoft Advertising and 5% back on Avis car rental in the UK
Additional cards Split your credit limit between as many cards as you want

American Express Amazon Business Card

Customer rating 3.8/5

Annual fee
1yr free then £50 per year
Cashback
0.5%
Interest free days
56

£25 Amazon Gift Card upon approval, then £75 statement credit when you spend £1,000 within the first 3 months. Representative APR: Based on a credit limit of £1,200 charged at 26.7% variable per annum for purchases. Representative 37.9% APR variable.

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Earn 1.5% in Amazon reward points or get 60 extra interest-free days on some Amazon purchases
Additional cards Up to 20 complimentary Supplementary Cards for your employees
Offer details If you spend £1,000 on your card within the first three months you'll get an additional £75 as statement credit

American Express Amazon Business Prime Card

Customer rating 3.8/5

Annual fee
1yr free then £50 per year
Cashback
0.50%
Interest free days
56

£50 Amazon gift card then £50 statement credit if you spend £1,000 within the first 3 months. Representative APR: Based on a credit limit of £1200.00 charged at 26.7% variable per annum for purchases. Representative 37.9% APR variable.

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Earn 2% on selected Amazon purchases or get 90 extra interest-free days on some Amazon purchases
Additional cards Up to 20 complimentary Supplementary Cards for your employees
Offer details If you spend £1,000 on your card within the first three months you'll get an additional £50 as statement credit

Capital on Tap Business Credit Card

Customer rating 3.7/5

Annual fee
£0
Cashback
1% earned back in points
Interest free days
42

Representative APR: Based on a credit limit of £1200 charged at 34.96% variable per annum for purchases. Representative 34.96% APR variable.

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Exclusive offers at partner brands
Additional cards Unlimited, free employee cards

View Deal

Funding Circle Cashback Card

Customer rating 3.1/5

Annual fee
£0
Cashback
2% earned for the first 6 months (up to £2,000) and 1% on all business spending after that
Interest free days
42

The standard interest rate on purchases is 34.9% pa. (variable), so if you borrow £1,200 the Representative APR is 34.9% (variable)

FSCS Protected? Yes
Cashback Get 2% cashback on all card spend for the first 6 months or to a limit of £100,000 spend - that's a total cashback cap of £2,000. After this, you'll earn 1%. T&Cs apply.
Rewards None
Additional cards Not available

View Deal

Business charge cards

Charge Cards

American Express Business Platinum

Customer rating 3.8/5

Annual fee
£650
Cashback
1 point per £1 spent. 2 points per £1 spent on Amex Travel.
Days to pay
54

You can earn 50,000 bonus points when you spend £6,000 in the first three months

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Travel rewards, including airport lounges, £200 credit towards Amex Travel, room upgrades and travel insurance
Additional cards Up to 19 additional Business Gold cards for employees
Offer details If you are approved and spend £6,000 on purchases within the first three months then 50,000 bonus Membership Rewards points will be awarded shortly after the end of the three months.

American Express Business Gold

Customer rating 3.8/5

Annual fee
1 year free then £195 per year
Cashback
1 point per £1 spent. 2 points per £1 spent on Amex Travel.
Days to pay
54

You can earn 20,000 bonus points when you spend £3,000 in the first three months

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Partner discounts and statement credits with purchases at Dell
Additional cards Up to 19 additional cards for employees
Offer details If you are approved and spend £3,000 on purchases within the first three months then 20,000 bonus Membership Rewards points will be awarded shortly after the end of the three months.

Business credit cards with an annual fee

Business Credit Cards With Annual Fee

Santander Business Cashback Credit Card

Customer rating 3.9/5

Annual fee
£30
Cashback
1% cashback on all business spend with no cap
Interest free days
56

Representative APR: Based on a credit limit of £1200 charged at 18.9% variable per annum for purchases. Fee of £30 per annum applies. Representative 23.7% APR variable.

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards None
Additional cards Additional cards are available at no extra cost and control what each cardholder can spend.

Capital on Tap Pro Business Credit Card

Customer rating 3.7/5

Annual fee
£299
Cashback
1% earned back in points and 1.25% earned back in points for spending on pre-loaded card
Interest free days
42

Representative APR: Based on a credit limit of £1200 charged at 34.96% variable per annum for purchases. Fee of £299 per annum applies. Representative 110.86% APR variable.

FSCS Protected? Yes
Rewards Airport lounge access for the main card holder and two free guest lounge passes per year, Radisson Rewards VIP status, metal card and 6 months free Xero for first-time subscribers
Additional cards Unlimited, free employee cards

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Business credit cards explained

Who is a business credit card for?

If you run your own business, then you could benefit from a business credit card.

Anyone, from a self-employed sole trader to a company director, can get a business credit card, but not all sole traders will be eligible for all the cards on offer.

And you should always check if you’re eligible for one before you apply, however, there’s no guarantee you’ll get one if you apply.

Do you need a business credit card?

Credit cards can be expensive if they aren’t cleared each month by paying off the full balance. The interest added on top of anything left over will often cost more than getting a loan, so this isn’t a good idea.

Business credit cards can have benefits like rewards and cashback, which can sometimes be better than what’s on offer for personal accounts, however, these usually come with a cost. In addition, you may get Section 75 protection, however, this depends on whether you’re a sole trader or a ‘corporate business’, such as a limited company or partnership.

Does a sole trader need a business credit card?

If you’re a sole trader, then any credit card for your business is still a personal credit card. Applications will be based on your credit rating, and you’ll be personally liable for any debts you build up.

For this reason, most sole traders will probably be better off with a personal credit card that’s used just for business spending.

You can still take advantage of Section 75 cover, earn cashback with lower annual fees (if any), and even get fee-free spending overseas with some cards.

One of the few areas a business credit card is better for a sole trader than a personal credit card is that you might also get a much higher credit limit. That can help with large purchases. But of course, you need to be able to pay it back!

Section 75 protection for limited companies and partnerships

Section 75 doesn’t apply to these types of businesses. So there’s no added legal benefit to using a credit card in a company. Instead, you’ll need to use a personal credit card and claim the money back if you want to get this protection on purchases over £100.

However, if you run a limited company, it’s much cleaner to have spending made directly via the business rather than claiming it back as an expense. Particularly if you have any employees.

What’s the difference between a charge card and a credit card?

Some of the cards above are charge cards and won’t have an interest rate. These aren’t technically credit cards, as you have to pay the full balance every month. Meanwhile, a credit card lets you roll over a balance and will charge interest after a set period. Be careful which one you choose, as a credit card can make you accumulate debt, however, a charge card may charge you fees if you don’t repay the full balance within the set time provided.

What you get with a business credit card

Additional cards

Most business credit cards will give you supplementary cards tied to the same account for your employees. This reduces your admin for expenses and helps you track individual spending. With some, you can limit the spending allowed per account.

Cashback and rewards

Another feature of business credit cards is earning rewards in the form of cashback or air miles. There are a handful that offer this on purchases. But these tend to come with a fee, which can wipe out most of the cashback you earn if you’re not a big spender.

You’ll need to calculate just how much you’re likely to earn in cashback after the fee to work out if they’re worthwhile. But say you spend £5,000 a year earning 0.5%, you’ll make £25.

Interest-free days

You’ll get a certain number of interest-free days with your business credit card or charge card, ranging from 42 to 59 days. This is how long you’ve got until a purchase will start to accumulate interest at the variable rate you’ve got with the card. Be sure to clear the balance within this timeframe to pay no interest on your purchases.

Updated March 3, 2026 | Deals

Flower discount codes and offers

BCWYC Team

Get the best deals on flowers for valentine’s, mother’s day and any other special occasion.

Here’s a round-up of the latest offers we’ve found. Don’t forget to check cashback sites such as Quidco and TopCashback – and if you’ve never used them make sure you get the new member bonuses available. Here’s more on how to claim those (worth up to £47.50 combined).

Bloom & Wild flowers offers

Bloom & Wild: £10 off your first order

New customers at Bloom & Wild can get £10 off the first order when using this referral link.

Order flowers from Bloom & Wild

Bloom & Wild: £5 free credit

Set three reminders for dates like mum’s birthday and you’ll get £5 credit added to your account. Head to the Bloom & Wild home page and scroll until you see the Save the Date offer.

Order flowers from Bloom & Wild

Bloom & Wild: 50% off on your birthday

Once you’ve joined the Rewards Club you’ll be prompted to add your birthday, and in return, you’ll be sent a voucher to get 50% off an order on that date each year.

Jolin Bloom & Wild rewards

Bunches flower offers

This is a really good online florist — plus there’s free delivery.

Bunches: 15% off

You can get 15% off all flowers with the code SAVE15

Shop at Bunches

Interflora

Interflora: 15% off when you sign up to their newsletter

If you register for Interflora’s newsletter, you get a 15% discount on your first order. If you’ve already signed up, you can nab a £5 discount for each date you set a reminder for.

Interflora offers

Serenta flowers offers

Serenta Flowers: 10% off your first order

You can knock 10% off the price of you tfirst order at Serenta flowers with the code: SERENATAD

Buy flowers from Serenta

Waitrose florist offers

Waitrose Florist: Various deals

Waitrose usually offers a discount of some kind on certain flowers, especially for specific occasions.

Get Waitrose flowers

Updated March 3, 2026 | Deals

Free and cheap wills

BCWYC Team

Save money and give to charity with these two cut-price will campaigns.

There are a few ways to get a will drawn up, but if you want a solicitor to do it for you, you’ll have to pay more than £100.

According to MoneyHelper, a single will drawn up by a solicitor could cost you between £144 and £240, while a joint will could go up to £300.

However, there are a couple of offers which run every year that could bring down those costs:

Regular offers

Free Wills Month

Twice a year in March and October, over-55s can get a free will from participating solicitors with the Free Wills Month campaign. It’s done with several charities that sign up to take part. You’re not required to make a donation, though it’s hoped people will give something in return for the service.

You can register your interest ahead of time, then on 1 March or 1 October you’ll be able to sign up, choose which charity you’d like to write a will with and book an appointment. These can book up quickly, so be sure to get in soon if you want a free will.

Octopus Legacy: the cost of your will paid for by charity (ended)

Until 9 November 2025, Octopus Legacy has partnered with UK charities to to cover the cost of writing or updating your will, up to £150.

A simple will would be fully paid for, or you can get a discount on a will with trust. You can complete your will online yourself, or you can write it over the phone or face-to-face with one of Octopus Legacy’s Estate Planning Consultants.

Remember that these are charities — most people say thank you by choosing to leave a gift in their will. There’s no obligation to do so, but it lets you repay them for their help.

Get a free or reduced will

Will Aid – £100 for a basic will (ended)

Every November, as part of Will Aid, you can get a “free” appointment with participating solicitors to draw up a will. In return they ask you donate £120 for a single will and £200 for a joint ‘mirror will’ to one of the partner charities, which includes NSPCC, Save the Children and Age UK.

You can now book for 2025. The appointments go quite fast, so you have to be quick! The Will Aid website has a postcode-based search option so you can find any solicitors taking part near you.

Other offers

National Will Register: Register for free in May (expired)

The National Will Register is offering free will registrations in May with the code FREEWILLREG24.

It’s not a legal requirement to register your will but if you had your will done by a solicitor, they may have done this for you already. You can also just let your executor know where your will is. However, having it registered means it can be located and prevents it from being lost, misplaced or forgotten.

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Interest on uninvested cash 3% on balances up to $50,000, 3.8% on balances over this
Fractional shares Yes
Foreign exchange fee 0.7%
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Updated March 3, 2026 | Articles

Does bank switching affect your credit score?

Andy Webb

Moving bank can bring you savings and make it easier to manage your money. But what does it do to your credit report?

I’ve had a few readers ask me recently about the impact of switching bank or opening up new accounts on their credit score.

When you switch bank there are two things you’re doing. Opening a new current account and closing an old one. Both these actions could have an impact on your credit report.

Though for most people the odd switch won’t make much difference, the more you do it, the bigger the impact. Here’s what you need to know.

New bank accounts and credit checks

Each time you open a new current account to switch to, the new bank will look at your credit report. There are two ways they can do this.

One is known as a ‘soft check’. For a current account, this is essentially just to verify you are who you say you are. Although it could potentially be used to let you know the chances of getting an overdraft – perhaps even a pre-approved one.

Just performing a soft check won’t appear on your file. This is also what happens when you get comparison sites to provide a load of quotes or when you check your own file.

However, most banks and lenders will instead conduct a ‘hard check’. This is where the result of the application – good or bad – will appear on your report, usually for a year. With most bank account applications it will be one of these hard checks.

I’ve shared further down the article which main banks won’t hard search a new current account, so you can use it as a dummy account for switching.

When opening a bank account can hurt your credit score

Multiple hard checks on your report

If the bank is running a hard check when you apply for an account, this mark will appear on your report. Now, if you’re just opening a new bank account that’s not really going to be much of an issue.

But if you’re opening more than one current account in a short space of time, or also opening a credit card, switching your energy, applying for a loan and so on, they’ll see multiple searches.

This could indicate to a lender that you’re desperate for credit, and therefore not a good person to accept.

That doesn’t mean you can’t do it. If you have a healthy credit report and don’t have any essential applications for credit coming up you can probably get away with a number of applications – though your score will dip, it will recover.

Applying for an overdraft

Though most people don’t realise it, an overdraft is essentially a pre-approved loan (at a staggering rate, close to 40%).

Just applying for one as part of your application can have a negative impact on your credit score – even if you don’t use it.

It’s not just that if you do this the bank will conduct one of those hard searches on your report. The overdraft itself will also show future lenders that you already have access to credit and they might not want to lend you more.

There’s a chance an unused overdraft could help your credit report in the longer term if it helps you keep your credit utilisation (i.e. the percent of borrowing you’re actually using) at under 25%. But using one will cost you unless it’s at 0%.

So if you don’t need an overdraft with your new account then don’t apply for it. And I’d suggest you look elsewhere for cheaper lending IF you eventually need it.

Opening a joint account

When you open any financial product with another person, your credit files become linked. So if the person you run the account with has a bad credit score then it could bring your rating down too. And it goes both ways, so you could hurt someone else’s ability to get credit.

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When closing a bank account can hurt your credit score

Losing longevity

This is one to consider if you’re switching from an older bank account. A good signal for your credit score is a long relationship with a financial provider.

Often the longest one we have is with our bank, so switching away replaces years and years of this for an account with no history.

So even if the new account is just a soft search on your credit report, switching could still see a knock-on effect.

There are a few ways around this. First, it’s all your credit accounts, including credit cards, which are looked at, and it’s often the average age. So if you have an older credit card, that mitigates moving away from a long-term bank.

Or you avoid closing the old account completely. If you open a new account and can run a partial switch rather than a full switch. This will help you move all your direct debits, standing orders and balance without you having to close the old account.

However, you won’t be able to claim any of the free cash from bank switch offers or get the benefits of the seven-day Current Account Switching Guarantee.

Alternatively, you can open a new account designed just for switching. You might have to set up a couple of direct debits or make a minimum deposit each month, but you can use this to switch for bonuses.

The best bank switch bonuses

Check out our list of all the bank switch offers you can get when opening a new current account

the best bank switch offers on a blue background

Does your credit score really matter?

Now we know the impact of bank switching, it’s important to clarify a few things about credit scores. First up, there are three different scores from three different credit reference agencies. They all assess your credit report differently, so each contributing factor might have a different impact on each score.

Second, though scores can give you an idea of how healthy your credit report is, it’s the credit file itself that banks and lenders look at – not the score.

The way they will interpret the data on the report will change from institution to institution, so they might not agree with the scoring set by the credit reference agency.

And the credit report isn’t even the only thing banks will look at. For example, they might have their own data about if you’re an existing or past customer, and you’ll provide some additional information when you apply.

That means even with a great score you could get turned down for certain applications, or even if you’re rejected for one product, another might accept you.

So the point is, though credit scores are useful for us as customers, it’s what appears in the file that matters to those doing the checks. And that means don’t get too caught up in your score dropping after a bank switch.

When to avoid a bank switch

Saying that it’s still very important to keep your credit score in mind when thinking about the latest switch offer.

In particular, if you’re planning to apply for anything major in the next six months, such as a credit card or loan, and especially a mortgage, then it makes sense to avoid opening a new account and switching for six months to a year.

Are multiple bank switches a bad idea?

The more you switch, especially in a short space of time, the bigger the drop in your credit score. So it’ll make short-term applications harder.

Experian recommends spacing out new applications for any type of credit every three months or so. At best that’s four bank switches per year. And if you factor in other things like credit cards that could reduce further.

But you can switch more than this – I once switched three accounts in the same month, and I’ve regularly opened new types of credit in concurrent months. But I also didn’t have anything important to apply for that year.

Of course, this won’t be a probem if you’ve been switching for a while as you might find you’re only eligible for new switch deals once or twice a year, if that.

Bank accounts that won’t hard credit check you

No credit check bank accounts are obviously useful if you need a new current account to switch from.

Full current accounts

Starling Bank

This digital bank will only do a soft check when you apply. They’ll use that to verify who you are and check what overdraft they could offer you, but they won’t do the full hard search unless you say you’d like the overdraft. Here’s a full Starling Bank review.

Monzo Bank

There’s also no hard check for Monzo, another digital bank, as long as you don’t go for the overdraft. Here’s a full Monzo Bank review.

Chase Bank

You can switch in and out of Chase, though if you switch away you won’t ever be able to open another. The good news is there’s a work around. Here’s a guide to using Chase Bank for switching.

Basic bank accounts

Most major banks will offer these free accounts. They won’t be subject to a credit check and you can open one with just one form of ID. You can do everything with one that you can with a standard account. However if you’re eligible for a full account you probably won’t be able to get a basic account.

Some additional accounts

If you already have a current account with a bank, it might be possible to open an extra one without a hard search. Over on the Facebook group, some readers have reported this for Lloyds, Halifax and Santander, and I had the same experience. However I’d always approach doing this with the expectation that a hard search could happen.

Updated February 19, 2026 | Articles

The best auto savings apps and hacks

Andy Webb

Automating savings with AI and more is an easy way to see your savings grow

Often one of the biggest barriers to putting money into savings is simply remembering to do it. So your salary comes into your current account and stays there. Some of it goes to bills, some of it to shopping and going out. And before you know it, there’s not much (or any) left to put into savings. So nothing gets saved. And this repeats month after month.

But it is possible to break that chain so some of your money goes into savings before you can spend it – and you don’t even need to do anything each month. After the initial set up, these three methods will automatically move money out of your main account into a separate account.

Set up standing orders

This is the simplest way to ensure you save every single month. Doing this means the money is automatically saved month after month.

You need to do three things. First, set up a separate account which is just for your savings (try for one with some kind of interest, though that’s hard right now). This doesn’t have to be a standard savings account with your current bank. It can even be a separate savings account at a different bank where it’s possible to get 7.5% with regular savers from Principality Building Society.

Then work out how much you can afford to save each month. This isn’t difficult. Just add up all your regular bills and essential outgoings such as food and petrol for a month and deduct this from how much you earn in a month. What you’ve got left is what you have to spend for the rest of the month until your next payday.

Finally, set up a standing order for that amount to come out of your current account and into your separate account on the same date every month. This is often referred to the “pay yourself first” savings method.

Personally I’d set this to be as close to payday as possible so you can’t spend the cash before you save it. If your payday tends to move when it happens on a weekend, then allow a couple of days before the standing order takes the cash. You can always change the size of the direct debit if you feel it’s too much or too little.

The best savings accounts

Check out our list of the highest paying regular, easy-access, fixed and ethical savings accounts

Use an AI app

If you’re not confident you have enough money spare each month to save at payday then there are some apps that will help save smaller amounts as the month goes on.

Once you’ve downloaded the app you need to connect it to your bank account. Doing this gives each app access to see your bank balance and monitor regular payments in and out. The apps then use smart algorithms to analyse your spending.

Now it’s the clever bit. The apps can work out how much they think you can afford to save, and transfer that money automatically to a separate account. Slowly but surely the total saved adds up. You can, of course, use one of these as well as set up standing orders in order to save that little bit more each month.

With each of these apps you have the ability to increase or decrease how much and how often you save, and well as reject a saving if you think you need to keep hold of the money. And if you change your mind it’s easy to withdraw the money back to your current account, though it might not be until the next working day, depending on the app.

I know some people worry about the safety of this but your banking data is all encrypted to keep it safe. Your money is also protected if the companies running the apps were to go bust, though not necessarily if the bank holding the cash goes under. I’m happy with the ones listed below but if you’re not comfortable with doing this then do a bit more reading to put your mind at ease.

Here are the main artificial intelligence savings apps that will automatically move money for you:

Plum

The free version is all you need for the automatic savings, though if you choose to pay more you’ll also have access to Plum Plus which comes with more investment options. The interest rate paid on its easy-access pockets is 3% for the free version.

If you put your money into these pockets, it’s held with Investec and protected up to £120,000 by FSCS.

Sprive

Sprive is an app doing the same thing, though it has one major difference – the money saved goes towards overpaying your mortgage rather than a savings account. If your mortgage rate is higher than what you can get in savings, and if you already have a substantial emergency savings fund, this could be a better option for you.

Just bear in mind once it’s in the mortgage it’s much harder to access that cash if you need it later (you’d need to remortgage and release capital). It’s also early days so not all mortgage providers can be connected.

Chip

The AI feature on Chip stopped being free to all users in mid-2022. It now charges 45p per save so I wouldn’t use this app for auto-savings.

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Trigger auto-savings & savings challenges

The final form of automated savings is something I’m calling ‘triggered’ savings. Effectively, when a certain event happens your bank will move money from your main account into a separate savings pot.

Monzo and IFTT

The main bank for this is Monzo, which has a 1p savings challenge available. Sadly this year’s challenge ended on 31 January for free customers, though if you pay for a packaged Monzo account it’s available all year.

You can also connect to an app called IFTT (If This Then That). You can set up other simple savings challenges very easily, either choose from a catalogue of pre-made options or create your own.

For instance, you could use your maps app as a trigger when you visit a certain shop, or your weather app to trigger a save every time it rains. You’re limited to two free ‘applets’ with the IFTT basic plan.

Plum

The paid version of Plum also offers some of the standard ones, eg the 1p savings challenge, but I don’t think it’s worth paying extra for this.

Round up your spending automatically

The most common way to get money in your savings account without any effort is to use a “rounding up” system. When you spend money on your debit card, the bank will round up the transaction to the nearest pound, moving this spare change across to a savings account. For example, spend £3.75 and 25p will be moved over.

I rarely use this option myself as I tend to spend with my cashback cards instead, but I like the idea of small amounts adding up each time you shop. If you use your debit card a lot it could quickly build up a few quid every day or two.

More and more banks (listed below) offer this and you’ll need to opt-in for the rounding-up to happen. All work a little differently so make sure you understand how what you’re signing up to. And if your bank doesn’t offer this there are third-party apps you can try.

The pick of the bunch are probably NatWest and RBS as you’ll also earn 5.25% interest on the top ups for a year. Chase also offers a decent 5% on round-ups, though it restarts every 12 months.

What accounts offer round ups?

Bank of Scotland
Chase
Halifax
Lloyds
Monzo
Nationwide
Natwest
Revolut
RBS
Starling
Trading 212
TSB

The following also allow you to round up from spending at other banks

MoneyBox
Plum

The best auto saving apps

So there are a lot of options for auto saving, here are the ones I’d recommend:

PLUM

Focus on Plum in the first instance. It’ll be the most impactful. But move your money across to a better paying account at least every month, if not weekly.

MONZO

Finally, if you already use Monzo, then the IFTT feature has huge potential to add more to your savings. And it could be fun!

Updated February 5, 2026 | Articles

First time credit cards to build your credit score

Andy Webb

If you don’t have any credit history or are looking to rebuild your credit report, then specialist credit cards could help.

Want to get a mortgage, credit card, loan or other form of borrowing? A healthy credit report can be the difference between acceptance and rejection, a good rate or a bad rate.

There are plenty of things you can do to strengthen your credit file – registering to vote through, paying bills on time checking your report for errors and having a bank account all help. And alongside these is to spend on a credit card.

That might seem counter-intuitive. Using a credit card is to spend money that isn’t yours. If you don’t need to borrow then surely it’s better to not have a card?

Well, what you’re doing by using a card showing you are a responsible borrower. That you can be given credit and pay it back.

Here’s more on how this helps your credit report and how to find the best credit building cards.

Using credit cards to boost your credit file

There are some key rules you need to follow to make sure spending on a credit card helps rather than hurts your credit report.

Use them only for everyday spending

A very simple one to start. Having a credit card shouldn’t encourage you to buy things you wouldn’t normally be able to afford.

Instead use it only for everyday spending. I often suggest something like supermarket shopping or filling up on petrol. You might be able to pay some bills with your credit card too, though that won’t include your rent.

This way you’re just swapping spending on your debit card for spending on your credit card.

It helps to avoid temptation if you only take it with you when you are going to make that regular purchase, and leave it at home the rest of the time.

It doesn’t matter if you use it just once a month, or every day, it’s regular payments that matter. I would say you do want to be spending on it at least once a month though. Longer gaps will mean it takes longer to help boost your score.

Clear the card every month

It’s vital that you remember to pay off the card in full. This shows you are responsible and can pay back what your borrow. Big tick for that credit report.

But it also means you’ll avoid getting charged interest. Credit cards have high-interest rates, generally starting at 19% and going above 50%. This is added on each month to any money not cleared.

You can do this whenever you want, but it’s probably best not to do it as soon as you spend on the card as you need time for the spending to be reported to the credit reference agencies, which might just be monthly when the statement is issued.

You can do this manually via a bank transfer, but it’s probably better to set up a direct debit for the full amount. Doing this means you won’t forget, though you’ll need to ensure there’s enough cash in your linked current account to cover the payment.

If you can’t afford to pay the full amount you owe, then pay as much as you can. And that needs to be at least the minimum repayment. This varies and is set by the card provider. Fail to do this and you’ll be hit by charges and it’ll be shown on your credit file – going against the good work you’re doing to improve your credit score.

However, it’s worth pointing out that if you’ve not spent on the card and don’t owe anything, there will be no minimum to pay.

Watch out for spending the money twice

Though you’ll be spending on things you’d normally buy, that money doesn’t leave your current account until your pay off the card.

There’s the risk that you’ll see the extra cash in your bank account and forget you need it to clear the card. So you spend it elsewhere.

If you are worried about this you can actually transfer the money from your current account into a sub account (either a “pot” or “space” or a completely different one just for credit card spending) as soon as you spend.

Then you can pay the credit card bill from this account and be guaranteed to have enough cash set aside. It might be sensible to add a little extra in there in case you forget, but to be extra safe just put a note in your diary before the direct debit is due to leave the account that the balance is high enough.

Try not to use more than 30% of your credit limit

Lenders often look at something called “credit utilisation”. This is how much of your available credit you use.

Though it’ll be different for every credit card company, a good rule of thumb is to keep that level below 30%. The closer you are to this level each month the better it reflects on your overall report.

So if you have a £500 credit limit you don’t want to owe more than £150 on that card.

However, this isn’t a target to aim for. If you don’t have normal spending which you can put on a credit card to increase your credit utilisation, or if you’re worried about budgeting if you put too much on there, then stick to what you have. It’ll be worse to spend money you don’t have just to get closer to 30%.

Focus on credit building

There are a number of other reasons credit cards can be useful – extra consumer protection, cashback and rewards, 0% spending and cutting the cost of debts. But I’d try to not get distracted.

Keep it simple by just spending and repaying, spending and repaying, and so on, month after month. Once you’re comfortable with this, and your credit report has improved, you can look at better cards.

The best credit card deals

Check out my list of the best credit card offers and promotions

Applying for credit building credit cards

Some get caught in the vicious circle of not having enough of a credit history to get accepted for a credit card, but needing a credit card to help improve their report in order to get one. And every rejection makes it harder still to get another card.

So how do you avoid this?

Check your eligibility

Many credit card providers will let you undertake a ‘soft’ eligibility check before a full ‘hard’ application. Do this and you’ll know whether you’ll get the card or not, or at least see your chances of acceptance.

Personally, unless there’s a very specific card you are after, I’d go via a comparison site such as Money Saving Expert’s Credit Club. This will show you your chances against a range of different cards. You can then pick the card with the highest chance of acceptance.

Here’s more on how these checks work.

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Look at specialist credit building credit cards

Though any spending and repaying on any credit card will help you improve your credit report, if you’re starting from scratch or have had problems with credit in the past you’ll probably want to look at a specific credit building card.

These are easier to get, but often come with restrictions. The interest rate for a start is likely to be higher than you’ll see on other cards. But this shouldn’t be an issue if you are clearing the balance completely each month.

You’ll also probably get a relatively low credit limit. But that is no bad thing either as it prevents you spending too much on the cards.

Watch out for representative APR

Though I’d encourage you to not get a credit card if you think you’re going to pay the interest charges, it makes sense to be aware of what you could be charged just in case.

Sadly it’s not as easy as just picking the card with the lowest rate as only 51% of successful applicants need to be offered the advertised rate – meaning 49% could pay more, sometimes a lot more.

Best first-time credit cards

The best first-time credit card is the one you’ve got the best chance of getting (so check that eligibility). But if you’ve got a choice I think these cards are worth considering as your first credit card. They’re designed for building credit and they come with some welcome cash if you’re accepted.

Tesco Bank Foundation Credit Card

£25 cashback via TopCashback
1 bonus Clubcard point for every £4 spent at Tesco
1 bonus Clubcard point for every £8 spent elsewhere
£200 to £1,500 credit limit
29.9% APR

Going via TopCashback will earn you around £25 (the amount can vary). Once you have this card it offers money back when you spend – but don’t get too excited. You’d need to spend £100 a month for a year outside of Tesco to even make £1.50 – and that’s only if you are spending full multiples of £8 each time.

Check eligibility at Tesco Bank

Barclaycard Forward Credit Card

£15 cashback via Quidco
£50 to £1,200 credit limit
33.9% APR
0% interest for six months on purchases and balance transfers

My final pick also comes with cashback when you successfully apply, this time via Quidco.

If you think you will have to pay interest then the rate will drop by 3% after year one and another 2% after year two if you make all your payments on time and stay within your credit limit. Of course, you might be able to get a lower rate straight off from another card.

Check eligibility at Barclaycard