2025 Credit Cards Star Ratings and Awards

Canstar releases its
2025 Credit Card Awards.

Released: 17 April, 2025

About this year’s awards

Despite the Reserve Bank cutting the cash rate in February 2025, most credit card interest rates are unchanged and some have even increased. This reflects a long-standing trend where credit card interest rates don’t necessarily follow changes in the official cash rate.

Over the past year, 22 low-rate credit cards increased their interest rates by an average of 1.08%, while only four lowered theirs. Meanwhile, the RBA’s recent February 2025 credit card statistics revealed Australians are using their credit cards more than ever, with the total value of purchases rising 3.06% year-on-year to a record high.

If you are someone who pays off your balance in full each month, this increased spending could be working in your favour. Rewards credit cards offered an average of 1.24 points per dollar spent across the cards assessed, giving savvy spenders the chance to earn more value from their everyday purchases.

The cost of living is still an issue affecting many households across Australia, and with credit card usage still high, it is now more important than ever that consumers have the right credit card to suit their needs.

Canstar’s Credit Card Star Ratings and Awards strive to identify financial providers whose credit card products offer outstanding value to consumers in Australia.

There are three individual awards that make up the Credit Card Outstanding Value Awards:

• Low Cost Credit Cards: awarded to providers across the Low Rate and Low Fee Star Ratings profiles
• Frequent Flyer Credit Cards: awarded to providers across all Frequent Flyer Star Ratings profiles (except the $12,000 annual spend)
• Rewards Credit Cards: awarded to providers across all Rewards Star Ratings profiles (except the $12,000 annual spend)

Does Canstar rate other products?

About Canstar

Canstar also has insights and information about financial products and services generally. You can find out about topics such as: interest rates, buy now pay later (BNPL), business products and tax. You may also be interested in discovering more about calculators and resources, such as our rate checker and free credit score tool, to help you with your financial decision-making.

About: Josh Sale, Group Manager, Research & Ratings

Bachelor of Commerce, Economics/Finance dual major, Griffith University. Master of Data Science, Strategy and Leadership, RMIT (ongoing studies)

Joshua Sale is responsible for developing the methodology and delivering Canstar’s flagship Star Ratings, as part of Canstar’s Research team. With tertiary qualifications in economics and finance, he enjoys helping Australians find more suitable financial products by transforming complex calculations into a consumer-friendly Star Rating that explains the values and benefits of different financial products.

As one of Canstar’s company spokespeople, Joshua has participated in print, radio and broadcast interviews with the likes of the Australian Financial Review, news.com.au and Money magazine, along with other leading media outlets, discussing topics such as home loan equity, banking incentive schemes, digital wallets and wider finance trends.

Joshua is known for his ability to simplify complex products and technical information, crunching the data into meaningful insights for consumers about finance. He has analysed several consumer markets across banking, insurance and wealth, and is keenly interested in various topics, ranging from how Australians interact with their superannuation funds, to the dynamic nature of the health insurance market, and collecting and redeeming credit card reward points.

Joshua believes that knowledge is the first step towards empowerment. Even while studying, he facilitated peer-assisted study sessions for economics, and represented his University’s Business School in an academic committee.

You can follow Josh on LinkedIn, and Canstar on X and Facebook.