What Is a Grace Period on a Credit Card?

A credit card grace period is the amount of time between your statement closing date and payment due date. It’s typically at least 21 days, but it will vary.

A woman wearing headphones and using a laptop.

This article contains general information and is not intended to provide information that is specific to American Express products and services. Similar products and services offered by different companies will have different features and you should always read about product details before acquiring any financial product.

At-A-Glance

A credit card grace period is the period of time between the end of a billing cycle and the payment due date.

Most credit card issuers have a grace period of at least 21 days, but this will vary, depending on the issuer.

Paying your entire credit card balance during the grace period can help you avoid interest charges on most purchases.

A grace period is the amount of time between the end of the billing cycle and your payment due date. Understanding how grace periods work can help you to manage your credit card payments and avoid certain types of interest. In this article, we’ll explore how grace periods work and their significance for credit cardholders.

What Is a Grace Period on a Credit Card?

Put simply, a grace period on a credit card is the amount of time during which your credit card won’t accrue interest on the money you’ve borrowed. If you pay your credit card balance in full during the grace period or before your due date, you can save on interest. 1 Let’s say you spent $1,000 during your credit card’s billing cycle that closed on June 1, and your due date is June 21. As long as you repay the entire $1,000 balance at some point within those 21 days, you won’t have to pay interest on the purchases that you made during this time. Note that interest, however, may still apply for certain transactions such as cash advances and balance transfers.