Credit Card Interest Rates Reach All-Time High
Comes as Fed hikes rates to tamp down record-high inflation
Getty Images Benjamin Wilson • November 10, 2022 1:05 pm
The price of carrying a credit card balance has never been higher.
The current rate of 19.04 percent is the highest on record, according to financial services company Bankrate, which has tracked rates since 1985.
“This eclipses the previous all-time high of 19.00% from July 1991,” Senior Vice President Greg McBride said.
The increase comes as the Federal Reserve raises interest rates to fight record-high inflation.
The new credit rate average is a sharp increase from just earlier this year, NBC reported:
The new average is a substantial increase from the 16.3% average rate for credit cards at the beginning of the year. According to Bankrate, if you carry a $5,000 balance on a credit card — which is the current national average — making just the minimum payment each month at that rate would cost $5,517 in interest over 185 months, or about 15 years. At today’s 19.04% rate, you would pay $6,546.
While rates are high, prices for consumers rose less than expected last month, suggesting inflation may be starting to ease.
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