First Command Platinum Visa

First Command Bank is a subsidiary of First Command Financial Services, a bank organized in 1958 to serve America's Military families. Today, First Command serves nearly 300,000 families, military and civilian, and offers a variety of financial services.

First Command Visa Platinum Offers One Simple Low Rate For All Balances The First Command Bank Visa Platinum is popular with federal employees and military families due to it's simplicity.

The low Prime + 3% APR, which is 6.25% at the time of this writing, applies to all balances. This includes balance transfers, cash advances, and purchases. Other fees are also reasonable - there is no balance transfer fee, there is a 2% cash advance fee, and late payment fees are capped at $15, which is substantially better than the $39 typically charged by large national banks.

The Negatives

The downsides of the card are two-fold. First, it does not earn rewards. Second, it does not have a great introductory APR promotion like many other cards out there, though that is offset to a large extent by the low ongoing APR.

However, if you think you may run up a balance, you should consider whether you are willing to switch from one 0% intro APR credit card offer to the next every so often. And if you already carry a balance, you should consider whether you would be better off getting a 0% balance transfer deal, which can land you up to 0% for 21 months at the time of this writing.