Banking · Germany
Compare credit cards in Germany
Start with the type of card and how you repay it. Then compare cash, foreign-use fees and the conditions behind the headline offer.
Fabian BeiningFinanz2Go · 13 min readProduct terms checked 13 October 2026 · General information, not a personal recommendation.
Start with these three questions.
Card type
Separate debit, charge and revolving-credit mechanics.
Repayment
Read the payment settings and the cost of carrying a balance.
Actual use
Check cash, foreign currency, merchant acceptance and eligibility.
Start here
First identify the card type
Debit is not credit. A debit card normally charges the linked current account promptly. A charge card collects transactions and normally settles the complete monthly bill. A revolving card permits a balance to remain, but interest can make that flexibility expensive.
All three selected cards can be requested without switching your main current account. That does not mean approval is automatic or that every German or foreign bank account works as a reference account.
Four card structures
Do not compare unlike products as if they were identical
Debit card
Payments are normally taken promptly from the linked payment account. It has no separate revolving credit line. A debit card can be a useful spending alternative, but it is not labelled a credit card here.
Charge card
Transactions are accumulated and the complete statement is normally due monthly. Timely full settlement avoids revolving interest, but cash and currency fees can still apply.
Revolving credit card
A minimum payment can leave debt outstanding. The unpaid balance attracts the contractual debit rate. A low annual card fee does not make financed spending inexpensive.
Prepaid card
Spending generally uses funds loaded in advance. It may limit debt risk, but fees and hotel or rental-car acceptance can differ. No prepaid product is ranked in this comparison.
Method and scope
Three standalone cards, selected for decision-relevant differences
The products are sorted by card structure and then issuer—not by remuneration. They were selected because they are currently marketed to German private customers without a mandatory current-account switch and expose materially different repayment and travel-cost designs.
Included
American Express Blue Card, Bank Norwegian Visa and Hanseatic GenialCard under the exact German tariffs and documents named below.
Compared
Card type, default settlement, interest, annual and supplementary-card fees, currency, ATM use, access, language evidence and material extras.
Excluded
Complete market coverage, temporary bonuses in the cost ranking, subjective service quality, personal testing and any unconfirmed English or acceptance promise.
Comparison
Published terms and practical limits
“€0 annual fee” says nothing by itself about partial-payment interest, cash, foreign currency, special transactions, external ATM fees or optional programmes.
| Product and type | Fee | Repayment and interest | Foreign use and cash | Published access | English evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Express Blue CardCharge card · checked 13 October 2026 | €0 main card; first supplementary card €0; each further card €10/year. | Monthly statement normally collected in full. No revolving balance is assumed for this tariff. | 2% foreign-currency fee. ATM: 4%, minimum €5; account limit €750 per seven days. | German residence, regular income, German bank details, identification and positive SCHUFA context. | German application and binding documents. Complete English contract set and guaranteed English human support: not confirmed. |
| Bank Norwegian VisaRevolving credit card · checked 13 October 2026 | €0 annual fee. | Minimum 3.5%, at least €30. Full statement by due date receives contractual interest waiver; transfers to reference account accrue interest immediately. 21.99% nominal / 24.4% effective APR. | 0% foreign-currency fee and €0 issuer ATM fee. External ATM fees can apply. | German residence, age 20+, taxable income, no active collection, compatible device/app, VideoIdent and creditworthiness check. | German application and contract. Complete English app, contract and human-support coverage: not confirmed. |
| Hanseatic GenialCardRevolving credit card · checked 13 October 2026 | €0 annual fee for checked new-customer tariff. | Default 3%, minimum €20, with interest; full repayment can be selected. 18.30% nominal / 19.92% effective APR. | 0% foreign-use fee. ATM Germany €3.95; ATM outside Germany €0 issuer fee. External ATM fees can apply. | Age 18+, regular income, German residence, valid mobile, identity check and own SEPA reference account. SCHUFA relationship documented. | German application and contract. Complete English app, contract and human-support coverage: not confirmed. |
American Express Blue Card
Charge card
Bank Norwegian Visa
Revolving credit card
Hanseatic GenialCard
Revolving credit card
Approval and limits remain individual. Meeting published entry conditions only permits an application. Issuers can assess identity, income, existing obligations, credit history and internal risk criteria; no particular limit is promised.
Charge card
American Express Blue Card
Where it differs
The exact current application tariff and linked information document state a free main card and one free supplementary card. Each further supplementary card costs €10 per year. The monthly statement is normally collected in full from the nominated bank account, so this is not presented as a revolving credit line.
Foreign-currency transactions carry 2%. ATM cash costs 4%, at least €5, with a published account limit of €750 per seven days. Blue includes public-transport accident insurance, but only within its definitions, insured events, limits, exclusions and special conditions; it is not described here as broad travel medical or cancellation cover.
German residence, regular income, German bank details, identification and positive SCHUFA context are published. Merchant acceptance, an internal spending limit and English support are not guaranteed.
Revolving Visa
Bank Norwegian Visa
Where it differs
The minimum payment is 3.5% of the billed amount, at least €30. If the complete statement is paid by the due date, the contract waives interest on the listed purchase and ATM transactions. If it is not paid in full, interest continues from the transaction date; transfers from the credit line to the reference account always accrue interest from that date.
The published nominal rate is 21.99% p.a. and effective APR 24.4%. The issuer publishes no annual, foreign-currency or ATM fee, although an ATM operator may charge separately.
Application conditions include German residence, age 20+, taxable income, no active collection proceedings, a compatible app/device and VideoIdent; a creditworthiness check follows. Included travel/cancellation insurance requires at least 75% of qualifying trip costs to be paid by card, a trip beginning and ending in Germany, German health insurance and a maximum 60-day trip. The general excess is €185; cancellation is 20%, minimum €185, with exceptions and exclusions in the terms.
Revolving Visa
Hanseatic GenialCard
Where it differs
The application starts with partial repayment: 3% of the outstanding balance, at least €20. That setting carries interest outside the stated new-customer introductory promotion. The customer can switch to full monthly repayment, under which the covered negative balance is settled without debit interest.
The checked new-customer tariff has no annual fee. The nominal variable rate is 18.30% p.a.; effective APR is 19.92%. Card and foreign-use fees are 0. ATM cash is €3.95 inside Germany and €0 issuer fee outside Germany; operators may charge separately. Certain gambling, securities, financial-institution, money-transfer and crypto merchant categories carry separate charges.
Published entry conditions are age 18+, regular income, German residence and a valid mobile number, followed by VideoIdent or eID. The applicant needs an own SEPA reference account; the contract documents a SCHUFA relationship. Non-EU applicants may be asked for residence/work permission.
Scenario 1
Everyday euro purchases with full repayment
Assumptions: €1,200 of ordinary euro purchases, no cash, no special merchant categories, no optional rewards programme, no late payment and the complete statement paid on time.
Amex Blue
Known annual and transaction fees in this defined case.
Bank Norwegian
Known fees when full payment qualifies for the interest waiver.
GenialCard
Known fees after selecting full repayment rather than the default partial setting.
This does not make the products universally “free.” Late payment, revolving debt, cash, foreign currency, special transaction categories, optional programmes and external charges follow separate terms.
Scenario 2
A foreign-currency trip with cash
Assumptions: €1,500 equivalent in card purchases plus two €200-equivalent ATM withdrawals outside Germany, all in foreign currency; full repayment; no Dynamic Currency Conversion; no external ATM-owner fee; exchange-rate movement is not forecast.
Bank Norwegian
Published issuer FX fee 0% and issuer ATM fee €0.
GenialCard
Published foreign-use fee 0 and outside-Germany issuer ATM fee €0.
Amex Blue
2% × €1,900 = €38, plus 4% × €400 cash = €16.
These are known issuer fees only. The network conversion rate, merchant pricing, DCC, an ATM operator surcharge and declined/offline acceptance are outside the totals.
Scenario 3
Simplified cost of carrying €1,000 for 30 days
Assumptions: constant €1,000 balance, no repayment during 30 days, no introductory rate, no extra fees and an unchanged nominal debit rate. This uses nominal rate × 30/365—not effective APR divided into months.
GenialCard
€1,000 × 18.30% × 30/365.
Bank Norwegian
€1,000 × 21.99% × 30/365.
Amex Blue
The checked base charge product requires full monthly settlement.
Simplified model only. Actual interest follows transaction dates, changing daily balances, repayments, statement rules and rate changes. The effective APR is a standardised comparison measure, not the monthly rate used in this calculation.
Expat access
Eligibility and English are separate questions
Residence and documents
All three publish German-residence requirements. Identity, income/employment and bank-account data are requested. Hanseatic documents additionally identify possible residence/work-permit evidence for non-EU applicants.
Credit decision
Hanseatic and Amex document SCHUFA context; Bank Norwegian documents a creditworthiness check and SCHUFA data relationship in its contract. Internal thresholds and the approved limit remain unknown.
English evidence
The checked applications and binding documents are German. A complete English application, app, contract set and guaranteed English-speaking human support were not confirmed for any selected product. Verify each layer before applying.
Do not infer contract or support language from an international brand, an English explainer or a translated app-store listing. If German documents are not understandable, obtain independent translation or clarification before accepting them.
Travel and DCC
Pay in the local currency when you reject DCC
A merchant or ATM may offer conversion into euros. That DCC offer uses its displayed rate and may include extra charges. Choosing local currency leaves conversion to the card route, but your issuer’s own FX fee can still apply.
ATM operators can impose a separate fee even when the issuer fee is €0. Check the screen before confirming.
Hotels and rental cars
Acceptance depends on the merchant
Hotels and rental companies may require a physical card in the main driver’s or guest’s name, classify debit and credit differently, place a deposit hold and require enough available limit.
No card is promised to work everywhere. Confirm card network, card type, name matching, deposit amount and offline/terminal requirements with the merchant before travel.
Decision guide
Match the product mechanics to the job
If automatic discipline matters
A charge design that settles the full bill avoids an embedded revolving default, but Amex cash and foreign-currency fees can be material.
If foreign issuer fees matter
Bank Norwegian and GenialCard publish 0% foreign-use fees and €0 issuer ATM fees outside Germany, but repayment settings and interest risk remain decisive.
If you choose revolving credit
Set and verify full repayment when available, understand when interest starts, and treat a minimum payment as a financing choice—not the cost-free default.
Also check acceptance needs, contract language, identity route, reference account, supplementary-card cost, insurance conditions and what happens after a residence change.
Disclosure
Selected comparison, not advice or testing
This page compares three selected products. It is not a complete market survey, a personal recommendation or evidence of hands-on testing. Prices and eligibility can change. Check the exact issuer, tariff, application and contract immediately before applying.
Product links are ordinary official source links without tracking parameters.
Affiliate status
No Finanz2Go partnership or affiliate programme was confirmed for these products. No provider paid for placement, and remuneration does not determine the order.
Official sources
Product facts checked 13 October 2026
HTTP availability and claim-bearing content were checked. Provider marketing does not replace the linked price and contract documents.
Continue