Credit cards have an interest-free period, which can be as short as 20 days and as long as 50 days. When it comes to the most cost-effective way to use it, of course the longer the interest-free period, the better. There are three most critical factors that affect the length of the interest-free period of a credit card: the card swiping date, the billing date, and the due payment date. Let’s take a look at them together.

The card swiping date is the date when you swipe your card to make a purchase; the billing date is the date the bank stipulates that the money on your credit card is entered into the account and a statement is formed; and the due repayment date is the date the bank stipulates that you return all the money before this date. You can enjoy the interest-free treatment on the date of the single period bill amount.

Generally speaking, the repayment due date is 20 days after the bill date. For example, if the statement date of your credit card is the 5th, then the 25th is the due date of the credit card. We use specific examples to illustrate how the card payment date, billing date, and due payment date affect the length of the interest-free period.

In fact, the statement date is a watershed, and it is the key point in determining the length of the credit card interest-free period. If you swipe your card before the bill date, you may enjoy a shorter interest-free period (the closer you swipe your card to the bill date, the shorter the interest-free period); if you swipe your card after the bill date, you may enjoy a longer interest-free period (the closer it is to the bill date, the shorter the interest-free period). The more the card is swiped on the billing day, the longer the interest-free period will be).