The average American have 4 credit cards, according to the 2019 Experian Consumer Credit Review. But is that too many? Select explains how to know how many credit cards you should have.
More than 80 percent of American adults had at least one credit card in 2020, according to the Federal Reserve. The average American has 3.84 credit cards, according to the most recent data from Experian.
There is no universal number of credit cards that is “too many.” Your credit score won't tank once you hit a certain number. In reality, “too many” credit cards is the point at which you're losing money on annual fees or having trouble keeping up with bills—and that varies from person to person.
There's not a one-size-fits-all solution for the number of credit cards a person should own. However, it's generally a good idea to have two or three active credit card accounts, in addition to other types of credit such as student loans, an auto loan or a mortgage.
Having a lot of credit cards can hurt your credit score under any of the following conditions: You are unable to service your current debt. Your outstanding debt is more than 30% of your total available credit1 You have added too many cards in too short a time.
Four or fewer accounts is generally considered to be a "thin file." It's harder to score high with a thin file than a fatter one, and lenders also might view thin files as riskier. And with a thin file your credit actions can have a bigger effect on your score than if you had more accounts.
There is no specific number of credit cards considered right for all consumers. Everyone's credit history is different. Lenders tolerate different levels of risk, and different credit scoring formulas have different criteria. What one lender views as too many credit cards may not be the same as another.
We recommend having at least two open credit card accounts. It's best for your credit score to keep your oldest account open, and you should be able to get an upgrade for everyday spending after a bit of credit building. But there are lots of ways to get the job done.
Having multiple credit cards won't necessarily hurt your credit score, and, in fact, it can sometimes help. But if you have more cards than you can handle or use them irresponsibly, your score could drop considerably.
How much money does the average American owe? According to a 2020 Experian study, the average American carries $92,727 in consumer debt. Consumer debt includes a variety of personal credit accounts, such as credit cards, auto loans, mortgages, personal loans, and student loans.
The average American have 4 credit cards, according to the 2019 Experian Consumer Credit Review. But is that too many? Select explains how to know how many credit cards you should have.
And yet, over half of Americans surveyed (53%) say that debt reduction is a top priority—while nearly a quarter (23%) say they have no debt. And that percentage may rise.
The bottom line
There's no magic amount of credit that a person “should” have. Take as much credit as you're offered, try to keep your credit usage below 30 percent of your available credit and pay off your balances regularly. With responsible use and better credit card habits, you can maintain a good credit score.
On average, Americans carry $6,194 in credit card debt, according to the 2019 Experian Consumer Credit Review. And Alaskans have the highest credit card balance, on average $8,026.
MoneyGeek recommends waiting six months between credit card applications. Building your credit with two or more cards is possible, provided you use them responsibly. Not using your cards responsibly can hurt your credit score.
The answer depends on your circumstances. If you want to stay organized and avoid overspending, then two or three debit cards may be a good number for you. However, if you are not careful with your spending or you favor simplicity, you may want to stick with just one debit card.
Bottom line: Is it good to have multiple credit cards? Being a multiple credit card holder is good as long as you keep track of payments due, avoid overspending and maintain a low credit utilization ratio.
A 0% credit utilization rate has no real benefit for your credit score. Instead of aiming for no utilization, keep your credit utilization rates below 30%, and preferably under 10%, to help your credit.
In general, it's best to keep unused credit cards open so that you benefit from a longer average credit history and a larger amount of available credit. Credit scoring models reward you for having long-standing credit accounts, and for using only a small portion of your credit limit.
Summary. Not using your credit card doesn't hurt your score. However, your issuer may eventually close the account due to inactivity, and that could affect your score by lowering your overall available credit. For this reason, it's important to not sign up for accounts you don't really need.
While the number of cards that you carry likely won't affect your score in itself, you should avoid applying for several new credit cards at one time. Over time, if managed properly, more cards—and thus a higher credit limit—can help you improve credit scores.
The standard advice is to keep unused accounts with zero balances open. The reason is that closing the accounts reduces your available credit, which makes it appear that your utilization rate, or balance-to-limit ratio, has suddenly increased.