- Our picks
- 5 reasons to get one of the best cards with no foreign fees
- How we picked the best no foreign transaction fee credit cards
- Sources
- About the author
- User questions & answers
- Expert opinions
Best No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards Comparison
Credit Card | Best For | Annual Fee |
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card | Winner | $95 |
Discover it® Miles | No Annual Fee | $0 |
Capital One SavorOne Student Cash Rewards Credit Card (see Rates & Fees) | Students | $0 |
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card (see Rates & Fees) | Travel Rewards | $95 |
Citi Premier® Card | Good Credit | $95 |
Capital One Spark 2% Cash Plus * | Business | $150 |
Whether you’re traveling abroad or making purchases through an internationally based merchant, there are many reasons to get a credit card with no foreign fees. Let’s take a look at some of the most important.
5 Reasons to Get One of the Best Cards with No Foreign Fees
- Most credit cards charge foreign fees. About 70% of cards have foreign fees, according to our database. So if you don’t seek out a no foreign fee card, chances are you won’t get one. And no one wants to pay an extra 2% or 3% if they don’t have to.
- Credit cards have the best exchange rates. Any Visa or Mastercard credit card will help you save time and money – up to 11% – relative to converting hard currency at a local bank or an airport kiosk. But a foreign fee would limit your savings.
- Foreign fees erode rewards. The average foreign fee is about 1.56% of the amount you spend, according to our latest Credit Card Landscape Report, but many cards charge 3%. The average cash back credit card, on the other hand, gives you just over 1% back.
- Pickpockets won’t be as scary. If someone robs you of cash while you’re in a foreign country, there’s not much you can do about it. That money is gone. But if someone steals your credit card, you can request an overnight replacement, and you won’t be held liable for any unauthorized charges.
- You won’t have to sacrifice. Getting a card without foreign transaction fee does not mean giving up hopes of earning rewards or avoiding interest. Many of the market’s best credit cards do not charge foreign fees, so you can still find a great deal for your particular needs.
Methodology for Selecting the Best No Foreign Transaction Fee Credit Cards
To identify the best credit cards with no foreign transaction fees, WalletHub’s editors regularly compare more than 1,500 credit card offers based on key WalletHub Rating components. We start by excluding all the offers with foreign fees and then calculate expected cardholder costs/savings for the remaining options. This enables us to find the best no foreign transaction fee credit cards in different usage categories, from cards for frequent travelers to offers with no annual fee.
How Two-Year Cost Is Calculated
Two-year cost is used to approximate the monetary value of cards for better comparison and is calculated by combining annual and monthly membership fees over two years, adding any one-time fees or other fees (like balance transfer fees), adding any interest costs, and subtracting rewards. Negative amounts indicate savings. When fees or other terms are presented as a range, we use the midpoint for scoring purposes.
Rewards bonuses and credits have been taken into account for two-year cost calculations. However, bonuses applicable to only a very small portion of cardholders are not considered. For example, credits and bonuses awarded for spending or redeeming rewards through a company portal with non-co-branded cards have not been taken into account. Similarly, bonuses and credits related to spending with specific merchants using a non-co-branded card have not been taken into account (for example, if Card A offers credits with DoorDash, this feature would not be factored into calculations because it is hard to assess how many cardholders would use the benefit or exactly how much value they'd get from it).
Cardholder Spending Profiles
Given that different users have different goals and are likely to use their credit cards differently, we identified spending profiles that are representative of different users’ financial priorities and behaviors. For each cardholder type, we have assumed a specific amount of monthly spending by purchase type (e.g., groceries, gas, etc.), as well as an average balance, balance transfer amount, amount spent on large purchases and average monthly payment. Spending assumptions are based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for consumers and PEX data for businesses.
Sources
WalletHub actively maintains a database of 1,500+ credit card offers, from which we select the best no foreign transaction fee credit cards for different applicants as well as derive market-wide takeaways and trends. The underlying data is compiled from credit card company websites or provided directly by the credit card issuers. We also leverage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to develop cardholder profiles, used to estimate cards’ potential savings.