If you’re carrying credit card debt and think you could save money on interest by taking advantage of a balance transfer offer, HSBC should be one of the brands you consider. While these cards can offer a break from interest for a set period, they usually come with a balance tranbsfer fee. That fee’s typically about 3% of the balance you’re bringing across, so it can easily run into the hundreds.
HSBC offers multiple balance transfer deals, ranging from ultra-long, table-topping 0% periods with bog standard balance transfers fees, through to shorter 0% periods with reduced balance transfer fees. The no-fee deals should always be your first port of call. If one of those can give you long enough to clear your debt, then it’s likely to be your cheapest option.
HSBC 0% balance transfer credit cards
Table: sorted by length of 0% balance transfer offer, promoted deals first
Approval for any credit card depends on your status. The representative APRs shown represent the interest rate offered to most successful applicants. Depending on your personal circumstances, the APR you're offered may be higher, or you may not be offered credit at all. Fees and rates are subject to change without notice. It's always wise to check the terms of any deal before you borrow. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables is provided by Moneyfacts.
How do HSBC balance transfers work?
If you’re interested in one of HSBC’s balance transfer deals, start by checking your eligibility either on the HSBC site or on a comparison site (like Finder!). You’ll fill in some personal details and the tool will run a so-called “soft check” to tell you if you’re likely to be accepted for the cards without your credit score being affected.
If it’s good news, you can then proceed with the application. If you’re already an HSBC customer you can either apply online by logging in to your personal banking (HSBC will automatically fill in the form with your details for you) or by popping into a branch. If you’re a new customer, you’ll need to fill in an online form with your personal details, employment status and salary. During the application process you’ll be prompted to give the details of the balance(s) you wish to transfer. Alternatively you can request a balance transfer in the app later.
Once you receive the card in the post, you can call HSBC to activate your card (or if you already use the HSBC app, you can activate it from there). Now your balance transfer can be actioned. In practice, this means that HSBC “pays off” your old lender and takes over your debt.
While you’re paying off the balance you’ve transferred, you’ll still be able to enjoy up to 56 days interest free on new purchases, provided you pay off your main balance in full and on time each month.
Like most card issuers, HSBC doesn’t accept balance transfers from other HSBC credit cards (or M&S Bank, John Lewis or first direct cards). If you’re carrying a balance on an HSBC card and need interest-free time to clear your debt, you may want to compare other deals available on the market.
Existing Advance and Premier HSBC customers can get dedicated balance transfer credit cards with a nice series of rewards on top (but try not to let the rewards lure you into additional spending on the cards).
How long does an HSBC balance transfer take?
Once your application has been accepted, it could take up to seven working days to receive your card. You then need to activate it, which you can do online or in the app provided you already use HSBC internet banking, or alternatively you’ll need to get on the phone (0800 328 1370).
After that, you should transfer your balance to your new card as soon as possible – there’s usually a 60 days period after which the introductory balance transfer fee won’t apply anymore, and also, the sooner your old card stops accruing interest, the better.
A HSBC balance transfer credit card as it arrives, with sticker showing activation instructions Finder UK
What’s good or bad about HSBC balance transfers?
Pros
HSBC’s range of balance transfer deals makes the bank a competitive option for most scenarios.
The physical card arrives pretty quickly – usually within 2-3 working days.
You can arrange your balance transfer as part of the application process, then HSBC will do the rest.
You can transfer multiple balances to your new HSBC card (but make sure you transfer these balances in the first 60 days to ensure you benefit from the 0% period).
You can transfer balances from cards held in other names (but the debt will become your responsibility of you do so).
Cons
HSBC won’t give you any indication what your credit limit will be until you apply for a card (which involves a hard credit search). That makes it difficult to be sure if HSBC is the right choice, because you don’t know if the limit they offer will cover your outstanding debt. While this isn’t unusual, some other card issuers (including Santander) will at least give you an indicative credit limit figure after a soft search.
You can’t transfer more than 90% of your credit limit.
You can’t transfer balances from cards held issued by HSBC, first direct, John Lewis or M&S Bank.
If you don’t already bank with HSBC and use online banking or the app (but want to use these facilities), you’ll have to get on the phone to HSBC to arrange a “telephone security number”, which is a painful process usually involving waiting on hold for a long time.
Hands-on test: I tried out a HSBC balance transfer when paying-off a new car
"When my old car gave up the ghost, I needed to quickly replace it if the kids were still going to get to school! I’d paid for the new (well, new-to-me) car using my day-to-day Halifax credit card. If I’d had more time, I’d have taken out a long 0% purchases deal in advance. I knew my Halifax card balance would start incurring interest at a rate well above 20% unless I paid it off when the next bill came through.
So this was a great opportunity to try out HSBC’s balance transfer service – after all, you can’t balance transfer within your existing banking group (Lloyds in this case) because banks use balance transfers specifically to attract new customers.
Everything was pretty straightforward with HSBC. The transfer was actioned without me having to close the old card. A long time later, I was grateful to receive a text message reminder about 3 weeks prior to my 0% period expiring. At that point, another detail I liked was being able to request that the account be closed, purely through the live chat facility. I wasn’t chatting with a human, but was still able to action the closure (or at least initiate it – the account disappeared from the app perhaps 48 hours later). I nearly cried with relief that I wouldn’t have to wait on hold for hours to speak to a human on the other side of the world to get the account closed!"
Here are some of the key features you’ll want to look at when deciding which HSBC balance transfer offer might be the best option for you:
Length of 0% period. Divide your balance by the number of months in the 0% deal to see how much you’d need to pay each month to clear your debt before the promotion expires. If you think you could clear the balance in even less time, then you might want to look at shorter deals with lower balance transfer fees.
Balance transfer fee. This will be a percentage of the balance that you plan on transferring, so for larger balances, it becomes more significant.
Purchase rate. This is the rate that will apply to any purchases you make on the card, and it’s also usually the rate that will apply if you haven’t cleared your balance by the end of the 0% period.
HSBC customer reviews
In our 2023 customer satisfaction survey, HSBC scored 4.5 out of 5 stars, with 85% of customers saying they’d recommend the brand to a friend.
Customers praised HSBC’s easy to use and reliable service. Many customers also commented positively on HSBC’s high street branches and overall customer service. One commented: “Good communication. Issues sorted promptly”. Another commented that HSBC is a “very friendly brand” that “cares about its customers”.
Contact HSBC customer support
Live chat support
Live chat support offered through the HSBC app and online.
Telephone support
HSBC customers can call 03457 404 404 from 8am to 8pm every day, and those who aren’t customers can call 03455 873 444 (except on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day)
Closing your account
Call the customer service number for support.
Report card lost or stolen
You can temporarily block your card through the HSBC app or online. If you still can’t find it, HSBC will cancel it and send you a new card. You’ll get this by post within 7 working days or, if you’re outside the UK, within 10 working days. If your card does turn up, you can unblock it through the app and start using it again.
Frequently asked questions
Unfortunately, HSBC doesn’t accept balance transfers from credit cards issued by any bank of the HSBC group, which also includes M&S Bank, John Lewis Financial Services and first direct.
Up to 90% of your personal credit limit.
Yes, provided you don’t exceed 90% of your personal credit limit. Each transfer will incur a separate balance transfer fee.
Yes. Note that the debt will become solely your responsibility.
Your credit limit will be tailored to your personal situation, but frustratingly HSBC won’t tell you yours until you proceed to applying for a card (and that involves a full credit search). The lowest credit limit HSBC offers is £500.
It starts on the day your account is opened. So that’s not the day you receive your card, not the day you activate your card, but before this point – when you accept the credit agreement and HSBC actually create your new account. So you should activate your card as soon as you receive it to ensure a smooth balance transfer, as HSBC won’t action your transfer until you’ve done this.
You need to apply and be accepted for an Advance Bank Account or for a Premier Bank Account first. To become eligible for an Advance Bank Account, you need to pay at least £1,750 a month into your current account. To apply for a Premier Bank Account you need to earn at least £75,000 a year and have a mortgage, investment, life insurance or protection product with HSBC (or at least £50,000 invested).
We show offers we can track - that's not every product on the market...yet. Unless we've said otherwise, products are in no particular order. The terms "best", "top", "cheap" (and variations of these) aren't ratings, though we always explain what's great about a product when we highlight it. This is subject to our terms of use. When you make major financial decisions, consider getting independent financial advice. Always consider your own circumstances when you compare products so you get what's right for you. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables has the source: Moneyfacts Group PLC. In other cases, Finder has sourced data directly from providers.
Chris Lilly is Head of publishing at finder.com. He's a specialist in personal finance, from day-to-day banking to investing to borrowing, and is passionate about helping UK consumers make informed decisions about their money. In his spare time Chris likes forcing his kids to exercise more. See full bio
Chris's expertise
Chris has written 609 Finder guides across topics including:
Looking to score 0% on balance transfers and upcoming purchases? Find out if this card is right for you and check out the alternatives – with live rates, fees and terms.
Everything you need to know about the HSBC Balance Transfer Credit Card. Fast and simple overview of rates, fees, credit limits and eligibility requirements. Compare this card against similar products from a range of lenders.
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