Most people have more than one credit card. There’s the main one they use, a spare or two (three? four?) and perhaps some store credit cards. All that really adds up.

credit cards

The trouble with having a lot of credit cards is that you have to keep track of them. If you have several, that’s not easy. And making mistakes such as missing payments or making them late is what messes up your credit report.

The key is to use as few as possible. Think about why you have each credit card. If you have many, it may be time to pay off and close out the excess accounts, or at least quit carrying the card in your wallet. Put it someplace safe at home.

But how do you decide which to keep? There are a few factors to consider.

  1. What’s the APR? Especially if you’re carrying a balance, you want to keep using the relatively cheap cards.
  2. Which cards have annual or monthly fees? If you have others without fees, you can probably get away with canceling the ones that cost you extra. They need to be pretty exceptional to be worth paying for beyond what the APR costs.
  3. Do you really need those store credit cards? Sure, you probably got a nice discount the day you applied for the card, but what has it done for you lately? Most store credit cards charge a rather high interest rate.
  4. Do you even use the card?

Depending on your credit history and what you have now on credit cards, it can sometimes be worth your while to pick a better card to apply for, then quit using your old ones. Don’t cancel all your old cards, as how long an accound has been open makes a difference to your history. But if you think you can now get a low rate credit card or 0%APR for a time, why not save the money?

Any cards you want to keep open but not use, find a safe place in your home to keep them. With important papers is one idea. You don’t want to be carrying cards you won’t use. In case your wallet is lost or stolen, they would just be more cards to report. Carry only what you need.

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