Is it good to keep credit cards?

[cpals]

I have three credit cards. I just payed off two of them and do not plan on using them anymore (2 visas). My third one I plan on using only (a mastercard). Mainly because I only want one bill to worry about and it has the best perks out of all three.

My question is, does it help your credit if you have more credit cards, even if they are not being used?

 

[simms]

Yes. 2-3 is best, I've heard, but you should still charge small items on your other two cards and just pay them off.

 

[Yossarian]

yes, accounts that you've had open for a long time help your credit. plus it's good in case of emergency. charging small items on them and paying them off doesn't help.

 

[imported_judge]

is it good if you have 10-15 of them? and you still get offers on daily basis

 

[amdforever2]

The more the merrier, to a point.


It certainly doesn't hurt having tons of accounts.

You'll know you need to stop when you get "pyramiding" or "too many open accounts" as a response for a decline.

 

[cpals]

Originally posted by: Yossarian
charging small items on them and paying them off doesn't help.

Two differing answers here...

 

[Yossarian]

Originally posted by: cpals

Originally posted by: Yossarian
charging small items on them and paying them off doesn't help.

Two differing answers here...

yet only one is correct! if you think Yossarian is right, turn to page 69. if you follow simms's advice, turn to page 84.

 

[zimu]

keep 3, good idea to keep paying each one off and spreading the load. if your account is just static it does nothign for your credit report.

 

[CrazyDe1]

Originally posted by: amdforever2
The more the merrier, to a point.


It certainly doesn't hurt having tons of accounts.

You'll know you need to stop when you get "pyramiding" or "too many open accounts" as a response for a decline.

The more the merrier period. You never know when you might need access to large lines of credit(lots of things you can do on borrowed money). Also, it shows a lower usage ratio. Also, closing credit lines that are old hurts your score. Finally, there are cards that are more useful in certain situations. For example, one card might give you 5% cash back on gas, while another gives you more airline miles, or another insures your baggage. So, you can properly take advantage of all the benefits of all the cards.