Visa or Mastercard?

[xixifrank]

I wanna apply for a credit card.But I don't know which one to choose. So I wanna listen to everyone's advice. Any difference between them? which one is better and more popular?



Thanks a lot! :smile:

[Hush]

first of all you should post the country to use. in my country (germany) the visa ist more popular because of the higher acceptance

[tokiodrift1]

... in my country (germany) the visa ist more popular because of the higher acceptance

I wouldn't bet on that... :wink2:

[hontoCorti]

I have the experience, that everyone where Visa is accepted, also Mastercard is available.
I would take the one that you can get cheaper, sometimes you can get them for free from a bank.

[xixifrank]

first of all you should post the country to use

USA,UK,Germany,Netherland,and so on. I apply it just for travelling. And I will also do some shopping online at some foreign sites.

[desodorante]

VISA is widely accepted, Master Card too, but not as much.
I will look more into costs, benefits, interests, etc. (from the bank)
Besides, check which one will give you an international credit card.

[SealLion]

Aren't most credit cards accepted globally with respect to 'an international credit card', desodorante??
Sorry, I'm somewhat confused b/c just about any credit card, VISA or MC are acceppted internationally. AMEX too, I am sure; however, the problem with AMEX is that it is not as widely known internationally, yes??

[Blocker]

According to wikipedia AMEX( American Express ) is spread in 130 countries :tongue:

[yoco]

I'd take Mastercard! Not sure but I think it's more expanded than Visa!

[desodorante]

Aren't most credit cards accepted globally with respect to 'an international credit card', desodorante??
Sorry, I'm somewhat confused b/c just about any credit card, VISA or MC are acceppted internationally. AMEX too, I am sure; however, the problem with AMEX is that it is not as widely known internationally, yes??

Here, where I live, most credit cards can not be used world wide. In fact, I had a friend working in the US and I had to make a deposit for him because he couldn't use his Credit Card to purchase a camera for me.
And also, i have a $AR account, so If I have to buy something in dollars, I have to take whatever currency exchange the bank wants me to pay (it is slightly higher than on the street)
I am sure it is not the same everywhere, but I can only speak from my experience.

[PartyOfOne]

I have one of each, but there is absolutely no difference as far as I can tell.

[Clair]

I would opt for Mastercard just my 2 cents

[johno]

none dont do debt its bad for you and if things go pear shaped will just stress you out i like stress free so dont ever get in debt id rather have nothing than get in debt tbh but then again it depends on circumstances i dont have children if i did then i guess hat would change because id want them to have everything and the best of it.

[Sazzy]

I'd say both are accepted almost everywhere. I personally have a Visa and I have yet to go anywhere where they won't accept it.
Anyway long story short, as far as I know the biggest difference is the limit of the card. Standard, Mastercard goes a lot higher than Visa but I don't exactly earn enough to spend like 5000 euro a month, so Visa will do.

[johno]

ve seen my parents get a bankloan to pay off a visa coz of the interest i guess so tbh id go for the one that charges the least :D

[Sazzy]

ve seen my parents get a bankloan to pay off a visa coz of the interest i guess so tbh id go for the one that charges the least :D

Visa doesn't have interest. Here it costs 20 euro per year and you can use it all you want. The card has a limit though which is usually set at 1250 euro but can easily be doubled. For more you'd switch to a silver or even golden mastercard. Mastercard here costs a bit more but it's still neglectable. The card, however, does have a fee when you use it to get money out of the wall. But you obviously use your normal bank card for something like that and as a result, do not have to worry about said fee.

What does cost a lot of money though, is when the Visa bill arrives and you do not have the money to pay it. In other words, you've been spending money you do not have. The amount gets taken out of your bank account automatically, and if you do not have the money, you will end up well below zero depending on how much you bought. This kind of "loan" that the bank gives you is often referred to as a short loan and obviously thanks its name to the fact that the interest on the amount you're below zero is a killer. Yet this is still interesting if you need like 100 euro or something for one day eg you need to pay a bill this very day and you know your new pay check gets deposited tomorrow or something. Not paying your bill would probably cost (either money or trouble) you more than 1 day of interest.

Seeing your parents had to take a bank loan to pay it off, I can only conclude they have been spending money they do not have for several months and got themselves into trouble they couldn't get out of without having to loan money. No offence to your parents, but as a note to the original poster, having a credit card takes responsibility. Think before getting one as it might get you in a lot of trouble if you can't handle it right.

[johno]

yea it was probably a holiday or something and decided to just pay it go away then sort it out after i mean my parents arnt rich but they dnt do bad they go where they want when the want got own house car all that stuff holidays every year maybe something just come up where they needed money quick maybe to help my sister out whene she got divorced idk it was a while back all i remember them saying is going to bank to get loan to pay the card off so i just guessed visa's piled interest on but idk maybe they had a few bills and wanted the lot payed off so got the loan so they only had 1 (probably smaller) monthly payment to make. still as long as i can possibly keep out of debt i will. when i left school and got a job i got a overdraft then when i was outa work and had to pay it back it killed me lol, im a bricklayer so work is hard to get these days sooo its best i do my best to keep out of debt.