Rachel Robson checks out a top new credit card that's good for both purchases and balance transfers...
With Christmas less than nine weeks away - yes, really - you might be starting to think about how you're going to pay for all those Christmas presents this year.
And I reckon that means there's a fairly good chance that a trusty piece of plastic, known as a credit card, is going to be enjoying a lot more time out of your wallet than in it! I know mine will be.
Credit cards really are wonderful spending tools if you know how to use them properly. So if you're currently on the hunt for a new credit card, the good news is there's a fabulous new offering on the market in the shape of the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard!
Interest-free for 10 months
Any purchases you make on this card will be interest-free for an impressive 10 months! So if you're planning to use a credit card to buy your Christmas gifts, you'll have 10 months to pay off your debt without having to worry about interest building up.
And if you're a regular Sainsbury's shopper, you'll get an extra two months interest-free on any purchases you make in the supermarket! Pretty handy for buying the Christmas turkey...
What's more, this card offers 10 months interest-free on balance transfers. So you can transfer an existing credit card debt onto the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard and you won't pay any interest for 10 months.
The downside is that a 3% fee will be charged for any balance transfer. So factor this in to your costs.
And remember that if you don't manage to pay off your debt in full during that 10 months, you'll need to move your debt to another 0% balance transfer card, otherwise you'll be hit with an interest rate of 15.9% APR.
Ouch!
Fight back against negative payment hierarchy
So we've established that the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard is great for both purchases and balance transfers. But there's another great bonus to this card, and that's the fact that it side-steps a nasty trick called negative payment hierarchy, as my colleague John Fitzsimons explains in this video.
Frustratingly, the vast majority of credit cards operate this system, which means that your cheapest debts are paid off first and your more expensive ones last. (Watch the video for a more in-depth explanation.)
But if you take out the Sainsbury's Mastercard, you can completely avoid negative payment hierarchy, because the interest-free period for both purchases and balance transfers is identical - so your debts will be treated exactly the same!
That said, bear in mind that if you don't pay off your balance transfer in full once the 10 months is up and you continue to use the 12 month purchases 0% deal to spend in Sainsbury's, you could get caught out. So make sure you've paid off that balance in full before those 10 months are up.
Double the points
If you're a regular shopper in Sainsbury's there's even more good news. Every time you shop in Sainsbury's with the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard you'll receive two Nectar points for every pound you spend in the first two years. So you'll double your Nectar points on every Sainsbury's shop!
Of course this does mean that if you don't already have a Nectar card, you'll need to apply for one. But that can easily be done by picking up a registration form at Sainsbury's or applying at the Nectar website.
You can find out more about this in Get free stuff for picking the best deal.
The competition
OK, so the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard certainly looks like a decent credit card. But how does it compare against the competition?
If, in the battle of the supermarkets, your loyalty lies with Tesco and you're only planning to use your credit card for spending, you might be more interested in the Tesco Clubcard Credit Card which offers 0% interest on all purchases for the slightly longer period of 12 months.
But make sure you only use this card for purchases, or you'll become a victim of negative payment hierarchy.
On the other hand, if you're after a longer balance transfer period than the one offered by the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard, take a look at the Virgin Credit Card which offers 0% on balance transfers for a whopping 16 months (with a 2.98% balance transfer fee).
But if you're hoping to use your credit card for balance transfers and purchases, and the idea of having to use two separate credit cards doesn't appeal, I think the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard really is the best credit card around. You could, of course, consider the Halifax All in One Mastercard which offers a nine month interest-free period for both balance transfers and purchases. But given that this is one month less that the Sainsbury's credit card, it's pretty clear who the real winner is.
So if you're looking for a convenient way to spend this Christmas, I think the Sainsbury's Finance Mastercard is hard to beat!
Watch our video review of the Sainsbury's card.
If you're strugging with credit card debt, don't forget to check out our Pay off credit card debts goal.
More: The top five best credit cards | Reduce the cost of balance transfer credit cards