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by Answerbag Staff on December 28th, 2010

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How many credit cards is too many?

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Answers. 31 helpful answers below.

  • by Stickjesus on December 28th, 2010
    voted: 1 to 3

    Stickjesus

    1 is too many. Credit cards are a bad idea.

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  • by Thinker on January 3rd, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    Thinker

    Even one is too many if the person using it cannot control their spending and use them to purchace things beyond their ability to pay them off each month.

    I have one credit card I use only in emergency or for such things as car rental that requirs a credit card.

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  • by megcham on February 26th, 2011
    voted: 3 or more

    megcham

    For me, 4 would be too many. I have one work, one for my gasoline and one for my personal stuff. I only charge what I can pay up when the bill comes in. I don't carry a balance, because I wouldn't be able to afford the extra charges.

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  • by Chris E on January 30th, 2011
    voted: 3 or more

    Chris E

    I feel once the cards exceed the persons ability to pay them that too many.

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  • by Want To Sleep With A Miner on December 28th, 2010

    Want To Sleep With A Miner

    42

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  • by my2cents--Vote for Paul on May 15th, 2011
    voted: 3 or more

    my2cents--Vote for Paul

    4 or more is getting out of hand. 3 is ok. But only if you are making payments on time everytime.

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  • by Mark "The Beard" on February 26th, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    Mark

    I think having one is enough. If you use it smartly it can end up being quite a boon to your budget keeping skills and you get the rewards programs with little to no extra cost. When you get to 2 or 3 though, I think difficulty managing them and temptation to spend beyond your means will begin to outweight their advantages.

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  • by Kelli_Kanyon on January 9th, 2011

    Kelli_Kanyon

    1 card that has NO annual fee, and then use it only in a real emergency. Buying a pair of shoes or going out for dinner DOES NOT constitute an emergency!

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  • by formichinoo on January 3rd, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    formichinoo

    You only will know that you have too many cards is when your wallet gets lifted, and you are in a mall with no details and can take half an hour a card to get it stopped, and chip and pin is crackable, as in only 20 minutes they got $450 from one card alone last week when it happened to me.

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  • by WhiteyGruelle on December 29th, 2010
    voted: There's no such thing

    WhiteyGruelle

    But 37 would definitely be too many. Reduce the number to 7 and I would say that would probably be unnecessarily high too, or marginal at best. Personally I always pay off the debt before any interest penalty is incurred, regardless of whether or not I have actually received the monthly bill yet (I check my credit cart bill online. I only have two credit cards anyway, one Visa, one is for a grocery chain, plus I have my direct debit bank card. There is no user fee associated with any of these cards plus two cards accrue financial benefit to me, the user. If I could not use the cards at positive benefit to myself at no cost I would dispense with them and revert to cash-only transactions.

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  • by Old School on December 28th, 2010
    voted: 3 or more

    Old School

    For most people, ONE credit card is plenty.

    Maybe two if you need a separate one for business use.

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  • by Kittyknowsbest on December 28th, 2010
    voted: 1 to 3

    Kittyknowsbest

    Ideally, credit cards should be last resorts that are paid off in full at the end of the month of the purchase. Otherwise, you'll slowly drift into the land of debt.

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  • by JPsgirl on December 28th, 2010

    JPsgirl

    More than one is too many. No matter what your income level, you can not afford to pay off more than one. If you have too many, or keep applying for them, this will show up on your credit report as a bad risk. Keep one for emergencies, hotels and car rentals, and pay cash for everything else. If you can't afford to pay cash, you certainly can not afford to pay 30% interest on a card.

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  • by Tom Slick on December 28th, 2010
    voted: There's no such thing

    Tom Slick

    the actual number of cards doesn't matter if you use them responsibly ... if you use credit foolishly, spending more than you can afford, paying only the minimum each month and racking up interest charges, then even one card is too many ... used correctly, they establish a credit history and avoid the need to carry large sums of cash ... in that case, carry as many as you want

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  • by -NUNYA-- on June 28th, 2011
    voted: 3 or more

    -NUNYA--

    More than 3 is too many

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  • by QuartzKitty on June 18th, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    QuartzKitty

    1 is too many. Credit cards are evil, and are designed to trap you in debt and unable to get out.

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  • by Isaac on May 15th, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    Isaac

    One.

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  • by Strength on February 26th, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    Strength

    I think allowing a limited overdraft on my debit card is more than enough. Even then I never use it, but I think a credit card is a bad idea on the whole. Unless you know you can pay it back off and you know how to handle your expenses. Many people seem to have trouble with this though which is a shame. :-)

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  • by jango787070 on January 3rd, 2011
    voted: 3 or more

    jango787070

    well now why do You think america is in DEBT !!!!!....... Credit cards are bad things but people dont just carry 5k eveywhere they go either so mabey 1 creditcard is enough

    -jango-

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  • by -O-uknow on December 28th, 2010

    -O-uknow

    One more than a backup unless you need a backup for the backup ;)

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  • by richardgannon on February 5th, 2012
    voted: 3 or more

    richardgannon

    Share your answer...

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  • by Iceander on April 18th, 2012
    voted: There's no such thing

    Iceander

    I've got 85 major ones & a small handful of gas/dept. store ones.

    I've never ever paid even 1 cent for any annual fee's. I'm constantly offered 0% interest for 6 months alternating on my cards.

    I can draw close to $200k simply by signing my name 85x's. I then have 30 days interest free. Meaning as long as I pay them back with in 30 days I pay 0.

    So where else can you get a $200,000 30 day interest free? Nowhere unless you got a rich friend.

    But it does require discipline to know when & how much to & not to use them.

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  • by richardgannon on February 5th, 2012
    voted: 3 or more

    richardgannon

    Three is fine, just pay them off every month and use them wisely. Try and live within your means and keep in mind that having too many credit cards can harm your credit score.

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  • by Aaron585 on February 19th, 2012

    Aaron585

    From my experience I wish I didn't own one. When you are in your teens there is a good chance you will start out with perfect credit. When I first turned 18 I got my own cell phone AND plan. The rep on the phone said I was the first person that didn't not have to pay the deposit cuz my credit was perfect. See what happens is credit card companies will send you dozens of pre-approved cards. The problem is they usually start you out in the $200-$400 range and increase your limit as you pay off the balance. You will find 200 doesn't buy much and will want another card to get more money. What kills you is every time you swipe that card the APR start stacking on top of each other. So you will quickly find 90% of your min. payment is APR. Even if you stop using your card you can still go over your limit. Every time you are late on your bill...$25 fee. Every time you go over your limit...$25 fee. They will also can increase your APR rate to 30% if you are late (even one time). All these fees go against your card limit. I had 3-4 cards. They didn't have high limits but together they were over a grand. When you make min. wage at 18 and your APR goes up you don't have extra income to pay that. Hence the fees. So what seems like free money to a teen actually can ruin their credit. So my advice is if you don't have it don't buy it. Cut up the cards you have. Pay the largest one off first (your fee is largest on this one). Use a debit card with logo on it. Otherwise you will end up like me getting 5 calls EVERY DAY asking where's my money.

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  • by Iceander on December 9th, 2011
    voted: There's no such thing

    Iceander

    What might be bad for most of you may not be bad for all.

    I have 85 major credit cards that I could max out for a total of $185,000 just by signing my name on 85 pieces of paper.

    I've used these credit cards to acquire foreclosed properties at a fraction of what the listing price was.

    I have absolutely perfect credit. Owe nobody nothing. Own free & clear 6 nice single family homes in which I rent out 5 which gives me more than enough to pay the taxes & insurances on all 6 plus plenty to live quit comfortable.

    So just because most of you didn't or can't figure out how to correctly use something be it a gun, car or even a simple credit card, don't go bad mouthing it because you failed to have positive results.

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  • by Jade Balle on January 6th, 2011

    Answerbag Experts

    Great Answer

    Professionally Researched. (What's this?)

    On One Hand: Three Cards

    Red flags will likely go up for potential lenders if they see that you have more than three credit card accounts. According to Experian, having too many credit cards can negatively impact your credit score.

    On the Other: Credit Utilization

    Another school of thought, particularly held by business people, says that there is no such thing as having too many credit cards, as long as you are using them correctly. According to Emily Davidson of Credit.com, "credit utilization" (how effectively and responsibly the credit is used) is more important than the number of cards that a consumer is holding.

    Bottom Line

    Avoid opening more than three credit cards, because it is hard to keep track of that many card accounts and signals to banks that you may be in financial trouble. If possible, limit yourself to one credit card for personal use and one for business use (if applicable). If you already have too many cards, don't close the accounts because that can negatively affect your credit score. Instead, pay them off and cut the cards up.

    Though some people are able to utilize many different credit cards optimally, having too many accounts open is too great a risk for the average American.

    Source:

    University of Maryland University College; Too Many Credit Cards

    Experian; Credit Score Basics (Does having too many credit cards affect a credit score?)

    RISMEDIA; Credit Cards -- How Many Are Too Many?; Eve Mitchell; May 19, 2008

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  • by AnswerBag_Stuff on December 30th, 2010
    voted: 3 or more

    AnswerBag_Stuff

    It does seem many people are not equipped to handle the enormous potential for outrageous debt provided by credit card companies to their naive clients. The 'Till Debt Do Us Part' program on TV is an eye-opener to how people conduct their finances. How can intelligent people not think constant and deepening debt will not catch up with them eventually. It is very sad.

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  • by thatsJustme on January 3rd, 2011

    thatsJustme

    you forget to put 'any' is too many.......the only one i would have if NEEDED , would be the one you pay in full every month and a fee once a year.....but then you have bank cards so what the heck.....
    and why 'pay' people to handle your budget , because you can't handle yourself ?

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  • by Christine on December 28th, 2010

    Christine

    More than 5 is probably too many. Less than 5 is probably too few as it gives you less of a credit history thus hurting your credit score. (This of course assumes that you can manage your credit. For some people, 1 credit card is too many.)

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  • by Over and Out on June 28th, 2011

    Over and Out

    You have too many credit cards when you can't afford to pay off the balances monthly ... or at least make more than the minimum payments each month.

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  • by Rip Van Winkle on July 19th, 2011
    voted: 1 to 3

    Rip Van Winkle

    Any amount over ONE is to many!

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