Ted Rossman
8 min read
The average credit card interest rate is 19.73 percent, down from a record-high 20.79 percent set on Aug. 14, 2024.
|
Weekly national averages |
Variable |
|---|---|
|
12/24/2025 |
19.73% |
|
12/17/2025 |
19.75% |
|
12/10/2025 |
19.80% |
|
12/3/2025 |
19.83% |
|
11/26/2025 |
19.86% |
|
11/19/2025 |
19.87% |
|
11/12/2025 |
19.87% |
|
11/5/2025 |
19.98% |
|
10/29/2025 |
20.03% |
|
10/22/2025 |
20.01% |
|
10/15/2025 |
20.03% |
|
10/8/2025 |
20.03% |
|
10/1/2025 |
20.09% |
|
9/24/2025 |
20.11% |
|
9/17/2025 |
20.12% |
|
9/10/2025 |
20.12% |
|
9/3/2025 |
20.12% |
|
8/27/2025 |
20.12% |
|
8/20/2025 |
20.13% |
|
8/13/2025 |
20.13% |
|
8/6/2025 |
20.13% |
|
7/30/2025 |
20.13% |
|
7/23/2025 |
20.13% |
Since 1976, Bankrate has been the go-to source for personal finance data, publishing average rates on the most popular financial products and tracking the experience of consumers nationwide.
The typical credit card rate formula is the Prime Rate plus a profit margin set by the card issuer. On average, this margin often runs between 12 and 13 percent. The Prime Rate is currently 6.75 percent. It’s typically 3 percentage points higher than the federal funds rate, which is set by the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee.
Essentially, the federal funds rate is the interest rate that banks charge each other for short-term (generally overnight) loans. The Prime Rate is a benchmark for what banks charge their most creditworthy customers. It serves as a basis for many financial products.
Credit cards have a higher markup than other loans, such as mortgages and auto loans, because credit cards represent unsecured debt. That means they aren’t backed by an underlying asset such as a home or car that a lender can seize if the borrower doesn’t pay them back.
Have a question about credit cards? Get in touch with me at [email protected]. I’d be happy to help!
The CARD Act, which took effect in 2010, altered the way credit card rates were set. Previously, credit card issuers had much more flexibility in terms of when they could change customers’ rates. Now, the easiest way for them to adjust rates (especially on existing balances) is to tie the rate to an index such as the Prime Rate.
If the Prime Rate changes, almost all credit card agreements are written in a way that the adjustment affects cardholders’ new and existing balances without any special notice required. The exact timing of the change varies. Sometimes the issuer uses the Prime Rate on your statement date. It might also be the first day of the month or the last day of the month or another date of their choosing.
