Last week I got myself the 28 Degrees because I shop a lot on eBay and I wanted to stop paying foreign transaction fees to PayPal. So the exchange rate should be way better than PayPal's rate?
I also tried to get a Bankwest Zero Platinum but they rejected me.
Reading through old topics, apparently 28 degrees was better a few years ago. What is the difference between the 28 Degrees of today and the 28 Degrees of yesteryear?
Thanks for the links. There shouldn't be any issues for me, just make sure to pay in full and on time. If I get any nasty surprises, I'll stop being a customer (seems some people are quitting 28D from that link)
You have to pay either via direct debit or through their website to be fee free. They charge money if you BPay to pay off your card (95 cents iirc).
It used to be better because you could over top up the card and get cash out overseas fee free, now you can't since they slug you with a 2% fee for it but nowadays we all use either ING, Citibank Plus or others.
I'd use ING's but it requires 5 transactions a month and my hands are already full with MEBank's once per week and HSBC's 2% cashback. I'll check out Citibank if 28D fails me.
Only need Citibank plus if you're going overseas and using ATMs to pull cash out. 28D is fine for everything else.
Exactly.
I dislike how the pending transactions only say "Purchase" instead of the store name. Makes it hard to keep track of things.
I agree. Other cards can identify pending transactions. I always make this point when I fill out surveys for the 28 Degree card.
So long as you're using the card outside of paypal, yes you're avoiding their fees.
You can add price protection insurance to the card if you want, but be aware it costs extra to have / doesn't cover everything.
I've had the card for years and mainly use it on my travels :)
So long as you're using the card outside of paypal
Wait, I thought I was supposed to use this with eBay/PayPal?
As far as i am aware - Paypal still uses their own conversion regardless of what payment method you use - you are just avoiding international transaction fees imposed by the bank/credit card issuer.
Hmm, maybe it's a bit ambiguous… from this it sounds like you can avoid Paypal conversion?
From Paypal website;
"Buying around the world.
Many international sellers accept Australian dollars. If you’re buying from one that doesn’t, we can convert the currency for you.
To US or Canadian dollars 3.5% above the exchange rate
To all other currencies 4% above the exchange rate
Within your PayPal account (not as part of a purchase) to any currency 2.5% above the exchange rate"
No you have the option to use Paypal's currency rates or not. When you go through the process to the page where it shows the currency conversion rate they provide, there is an option to deselect and go with your bank's exchange rate. I've been using my Citibank card with Paypal for ages now, and don't use Paypal's rate.
I like how on the statement, the "Total Due" number is the minimum monthly payment and is bold and red. While the closing balance (the important number) is only bold and unimportant looking.
Very cynical.
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/285477
https://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/28_degrees
Seems like a good card overall