How Many Credit Cards Should You Have?
Should you have more than one credit card? If you’ve ever spent your way into a massive pile of credit card debt, you probably know the answer: No! However, there are reasons why the answer may be: Yes!
It’s certainly true that taking out multiple credit cards can make your debt repayments unsustainable. However, there is no simple answer as to how many credit cards you should have, and there can even be advantages to having more than one credit card. Most experts agree that having multiple credit cards can either help or hinder your credit score, depending on how well you manage them.
- The average American now holds 3.84 credit cards. That figure is down 4% from 2019, and it follows a pattern of U.S. consumers shedding credit card debt as the coronavirus pandemic spread financial uncertainty.
- Having more than one credit card may help you keep your credit line utilization ratio per card lower than the recommended 30% by spreading charges.
- There are potential benefits to having multiple cards, such as pairing various types of rewards cards to optimize earnings on all categories of spending.
You can learn all about handling multiple credit cards here.