How many credit cards should I have open for a good credit score?

The Black Jason Bourne on Tue, 16th Dec 2008 8:12 am 



AT LEAST 14 CREDIT CARDS

Laissez-Faire Guy on Fri, 19th Dec 2008 4:50 am 



Cut up the card, but keep the account open.

One of the things your credit score looks at is the ratio of credit balances vs credit available. If you can keep that ratio under 25 or 30%, it helps your score.

CALI GIRL on Sun, 21st Dec 2008 9:05 am 



I say three is enough

jewel64052 on Mon, 22nd Dec 2008 5:37 am 



Having lots of cards is not the problem..Have lots of card that are maxed out is…I have 25 cards I keep them always paid on time and always pay more than needed the keep the balance owed low if any!! My credit score is 810 Bet that!!

gls_merch on Mon, 22nd Dec 2008 10:59 am 



I am of the opinion you need one MasterCard or Visa and one AMEX card.

You get the occasional store card (Best Buy, Macy’s) becuase of the deals you get.

But basically two.

Your credit score is a function of the size of the credit line you have and the balance you have against your combined credit line. So two cards with $10,000 credit lines but no balance will be doing better than your four maxed out cards.

sdmike on Wed, 24th Dec 2008 6:14 pm 



Keep it with a 0 balance. As long as it doesn’t have an annual fee you aren’t hurting yourself. Having more accounts (3-4 minimum, not more than 6-7 revolving accounts) helps you by giving a lender MORE evidence that you can manage your debts over a longer period of time. If a person has no late payments but only has one credit card with a 500 limit for the last 6 months – how do you know they are a good risk?

Perdendosi on Sat, 27th Dec 2008 1:09 am 



Cards with low limits lower your score because it shows that someone doesn’t trust you with much debt. Get rid of both of the two 500s.

jncwhite on Sun, 28th Dec 2008 5:47 pm 



Keep the account open but dont use it, dont let the other accounts get close to their max balance as that is harmful to your credit score. If you have too many cards it doesnt look good either. Credit can be tricky.

jynxx25 on Mon, 29th Dec 2008 8:05 pm 



A good credit score is based on information such as accounts in good standing, length of establish account history in good standing, payments in good standing, (get the point of “good standing”).

A credit score is not based on the quantity but the quality of how you manage those accounts and your debt. I would recommend keeping two cards, three at the most.

Keep the cards that are most valued such as Visa and MasterCards. You did not state if any of those cards are proprietary cards such as gas or department store cards. In truth, those cards are valued lower because they carry a limited purchasing power (only within that store).

My first initial recommendation is keeping the cards with a higher credit limit. However, if you only have a few months established history with those cards compared to a few years with the lower credit limit ones, you may want to wait before canceling. Also, consider interest rates, annual fees, and other fees. Remember, you can always request to have your limit raised on the $500 credit limit cards if you have a longer history and a lower rate with them.

momo on Thu, 1st Jan 2009 7:42 am 



You only need one credit card to build up a good credit score, I do this and I am in the top 95% nationally. You might want to consolidate all to a low fixed rate and pay off the balance ASAP. If you don’t consolidate then keep the oldest cards (two max) that you have with the BEST payment history (with no annual fees and low APR). You do not need to keep the one with the highest balance unless you plan on buy expensive needed items like a washer/dryer, refrigerator, etc.

But, if you consolidate once you get your new credit card before you activate it, sit down and bring out your checking book. Look at your balance and look at your receipts that you pay for items using cash (assuming you actually kept the receipts). Now ask yourself and be honest with yourself, “Am I responsible with my money and do I spend my cash responsibly”? If you regularly save your checking and savings accounts will reflect this. If your answer is no to either question, then you need to realize something about credit card traps. To avoid the credit card trap first recognize your spending habits. If you spend easily and have not developed a savers mentality, then possessing a credit card will be a tempting vehicle for you to spend beyond your income. To avoid this, know exactly how much you possess in your checking account and conscious do NOT charge to this limit.

I advise spending primarily with your credit card. It’s by far much earier to track ALL of your spending habits instead of trying track both credit card and your cash spending habits. If you see something you desire or like, stop yourself and think do I really need this item and can I afford it? Sometimes it is hard to resist buying somethings you like with the convenience of the credit card, but when you think about what you really need versus what you want, you will begin to become a self conscious credit card user.

Everytime you fail to pay or only pay the min and not the balance the three credit card bureaus will track this information. You do not want them to record that you have bad spending habits b/c it will negatively impact your credit score, which will effect your ability to gain loans (for a car, a home, a business, etc) in the future. So building a good credit history is quite important, so it’s important to do the right things right. Also, try to only have at most two cards b/c the more you have the more you are “liable for” in the eyes of the creditors. Even if you do not use the one card keep it open and use it responsibly. You do not need to request an increase in your card once it is transferred b/c in time they will raise it for you whether you ask for it for not. I never ask for it and it keeps on getting raised every few years, this is not great it just means I am liable for more and I have a higher limit. Good luck and welcome to taking one of the first major steps towards building a good credit rating!

STEVEN F on Sun, 4th Jan 2009 5:24 pm 



If you actually get out of debt, you don’t need any. Save the money you don’t use for payments and you can buy things with cash. you don’t need a credit score to spend cash.

orange1 on Mon, 5th Jan 2009 7:32 am 



Keep the accounts with the OLDEST history. If these 4 cards have a low APR and no annual fee I would keep ALL of them open. Just keep the balances low or nonexistent and you will build your credit score over time. Don’t listen to people who say you don’t need a good credit score. It is very important if you ever want to buy a car or a home or rent an apartment. If you plan on living in your mom’s house for the rest of your life then yeah, you don’t need a good credit score.

'67 Shelby GT on Wed, 7th Jan 2009 9:29 pm 



The number of credit cards really doesn’t matter. It’s all about how you manage them. If you are responsible with them, you should be okay as far as credit scores are concerned.
If you close a credit card, that skews your debt ratio. You can [ay off one of the $500 cards, but don’t close it.

Tell us what you're thinking...
and oh, if you want a pic to show with your comment, go get a gravatar!

Name (required)

Email Address (required)

Website

Speak your mind

CAPTCHA Code