When looking for a new credit card to place in your wallet, there are a variety of factors you should always consider. First of all, credit cards are not for everyone. In order to take advantage of the rewards that some credit cards provides, you should honestly evaluate whether increasing your use of credit cards will lead to increased spending. Besides the personal factors, credit cards come with a variety of interest rates, introductory offers and rewards programs and finding the one that suits your needs can sometimes be difficult.

The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card is one of Citibank’s most popular credit cards. This card brings a few different features to the table, including a low interest rate and an excellent balance transfer and purchase APR option.

The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card currently offers an introductory rate for 18 months on both purchases and balance transfers. The 0% introductory APR on balance transfers requires a 3% balance transfer fee ($5 minimum), which is currently the lowest fee available from major credit card issuers, making this card best for taking advantage of a balance transfer opportunity. Once the introductory rate expires, the APR becomes 11.99%, 16.99% or 21.99% depending on your credit history. The better your credit, the lower the APR you’ll receive.

The rewards program bundled with the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card is almost nonexistent, so this should not be your everyday credit card. They do offer special access for Citi cardmembers to purchase presale tickets, preferred seating, VIP packages and other unforgettable live entertainment experiences through Citi Private Pass. The card provides “Citi cash” for each purchase, but you can only redeem these rewards for discounts online through Citi. While most credit card rewards programs offer points or cash back, this program does not.

The benefits of this card lie in the introductory offer, so keep that in mind. If I were to use this card, it would be to transfer a balance from a high-APR card or to purchase items I knew I wouldn’t be able to pay off within the next month.

Outside of the excellent purchase and balance transfer offer, the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card also comes with a few perks that most other credit cards include. Some of the most prominent are:

• $0 liability on unauthorized purchases
• Citi® Identity Theft Solutions
• No annual fee

The Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card may not be the best overall package, but for consumers who need to stretch important purchases over time and for whatever reason can’t save for the purchase in advance, the zero APR introductory period makes this one of the best cards for keeping interest expenses low. If you’re in need of a long balance transfer offer or are thinking of making a big purchase soon and can take advantage of 18 interest-free months, consider the Citi® Diamond Preferred® Card.

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