Let me guess how you got your first credit card: you applied for one from the bank which held your current account, right? By sheer luck, you may have found your ideal plastic, but, with 1,300 different credit cards to choose from, the odds were firmly stacked against you.

If you’re going to be a cunning credit-card player, you must learn to use different cards for different purposes. For example, if you’re paying interest on other credit- or store-card debts, then you need a 0% credit card which gives you an interest-free break lasting up to a year, such as these top 0% cards.

Even if you don’t owe anything on your existing plastic, you can still enjoy interest-free spending for up to ten months with a 0% on purchases card. Also, if you always repay your monthly bill in full, you can earn as you spend with a cashback credit card, which could mean £2 back for every £100 spent.

Finally, if you need to borrow over a long period at a low rate, then why not use a lifetime balance transfer card? With rates as low as 5.94% APR, they are as cheap as a Best Buy personal loan, but you choose how long you take to repay your debt!

Enjoy your fantastic new plastic — but don’t borrow more than you can comfortably afford to repay!