# Do I NEED to have credit cards? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 4, 2014, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520 "2014-09-04T20:15:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/21 "2014-09-05T10:28:52Z")
If he’s accumulating on one card, as stated in the OP, he shouldn’t get another. No qualifiers needed. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/22 "2014-09-05T11:30:36Z")
Airline reward cards require $20-30,000 in purchases before you can get a round trip domestic ticket. Think about that before bothering with one. It’s worth it for me, but is it for you? I’ve “needed” a backup card exactly once. I’m glad I had it, since it meant I could avoid using my debit card for an unsafe purchase (gas), but it wouldn’t have been a disaster without. As for being too poor, I once had combined credit limit greater than my annual income. I never use that, obviously, and I paid them off in full. Always pay a credit card off in full. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/23 "2014-09-05T11:40:16Z")
You don’t need to have any credit cards, nor a credit rating, unless you’re planning on buying a house or business. – source: 47, married, 2.5 kids, no credit cards (although I have used my wife’s for online purchases). ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/24 "2014-09-05T12:16:40Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > This. However, if you are dependent on using a credit card for normal daily life, you might be wise to get a second credit card and leave it in your drawer at home. That way if your first card gets lost/stolen/compromised, and it’s a few days before the bank can get a replacement into your hands, you’ll have a backup card to carry you across that gap. For the longest time I only had one credit card, then my card got compromised at Target last year. It wouldn’t have been a huge problem except I hit a deer with my car that same week. I wasn’t able to rent a car very easily because my card was shut down. I ended up getting a second card only because it was such a pain not having one at the time. It might also be useful when I travel abroad if I were to lose one card. Other then that I wouldn’t have a second card, don’t really see much point. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/25 "2014-09-05T12:22:09Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > If he’s accumulating on one card, as stated in the OP, he shouldn’t get another. No qualifiers needed. I misread this part of the OP: > [@Sir T-Cups](#): > > I always pay part of it off per month… I thought he paid the entire bill off each month, but if he’s only paying “part of it” off, then that’s an expensive loan. OP would be better off in the long run arranging his finances so that he is able to pay off the entire bill each month. I still think a second card is an important backup resource to keep locked in a drawer at home, but in the case of the OP, that second card absolutely should not be used at all unless his primary card gets lost/stolen/deactivated. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/26 "2014-09-05T12:33:46Z")
FTR, the one card I do have from my bank is a no annual fee low apr kind of card. Literally given to me because “it’s basically a starter card”. All of the responses are pretty par for the course that I thought in the first place. Like I said in the OP I’m not going to get the card, and I had my reasons which are all what’s being said here. If nothing else I can know I’m right in a debate against my girlfriend or once 😉 ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/27 "2014-09-05T13:08:54Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > If he’s accumulating on one card, as stated in the OP, he shouldn’t get another. No qualifiers needed. He also said “I’m not in danger of maxing it out”, which means he keeps his balance under a single card maximum, even if he had a hundred more cards. No qualifiers needed. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/28 "2014-09-05T13:14:38Z")
> [@Edward\_The\_Head](#): > > …my card got compromised at Target last year. …my card was shut down. I have had about three times in the last five years when a large merchant reported a data breach (although my card specifically was never used fraudulently) and Bank of America responded by re-issuing my card under a new number. I am very surprised that your bank would simply shut down your card without immediately providing a replacement. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/29 "2014-09-05T13:24:57Z")
I only have one but here is a suggestion that may work for you if not your girlfriend. My debit card can also work as a credit card; with a mastercard logo, I can run it either way. So technically I have two cards if things should ever go awry. I don’t intend to get another. ---
**Author:** ![Edward\_The\_Head](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ce73a5/32.png) [@Edward\_The\_Head](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edward_The_Head)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/30 "2014-09-05T13:34:12Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > I have had about three times in the last five years when a large merchant reported a data breach (although my card specifically was never used fraudulently) and Bank of America responded by re-issuing my card under a new number. I am very surprised that your bank would simply shut down your card without immediately providing a replacement. My card was used, to buy something from Eastern Europe. They did reissue a card, but it still took a couple of days. My situation was pretty much bad luck, I hit a deer and had my card shut down on the same day. The rental agency wouldn’t take a debit card with out other paperwork, it really was the worst possible thing that could have happened all at once. I also travel internationally, once a year in the past few years it seems, so having a second card words for me. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/31 "2014-09-05T13:35:56Z")
> [@Sir T-Cups](#): > > \*\* I always pay part of it off per month\*\*, I’m never late, and I’m not in danger of maxing it out/getting into trouble. (Bolding mine) Based on this alone, I agree that you probably don’t need another credit card\*. However, if you’re not enjoying a low interest rate on your existing card, certainly call the bank and ask if they can lower it based on your excellent track record with them. Insinuate that you’re looking at other cards, and see what they will do for you. \*Loyalty (aka airline) cards can offer great perk for folks who know how to work the system, but you must pay off the entire balance, without fail, every month or those great rewards will be quickly eroded by fees. Alternatively, use them ONLY for the perks, but put them in the drawer and never use them for spending at all. For instance, if you consistently travel on the same airline, and you always pay for a checked bag, it can make a lot of sense to sign up for that airline’s loyalty card, if one of the perks is free checked bags and/ or priority boarding. (Priority boarding guarantees you’ll get a spot in the overhead for your carry on bag.) Even better if it comes with a companion ticket. I hold the Delta platinum credit card, and even with its hefty annual fee of $195, I always break even just on the checked bag fees, and usually come out ahead. Example: On my husband and my upcoming trip to Arizona, I used the free companion certificate and booked two tickets for $444, a savings of $444. Add in the free checked bag fees worth $100 and I’ve come out AHEAD $350. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/32 "2014-09-05T14:05:22Z")
To answer the question specifically stated in the OP, no, you don’t NEED any credit cards. My wife and I destroyed ours about 10 years ago. It does mean we delay large purchases if we can’t afford to pay in cash. Sometimes that is not comfortable. Sometimes it calls for hard choices. For us, it has been worth it. OTOH, I have travelled all over the US, Central & South America and the Carribean with nothing but my debit card. The only thing that is more difficult without a CC is car rental. In every case where I have needed one, though, I have found a company that would take cash or a debit card. I’m certainly not advocating that choice for everyone, but the simple fact is that if you NEED a credit card to get by each month, there are generally deeper financial issues. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/33 "2014-09-05T14:10:49Z")
Get one credit card, use it once a month, and pay it off immediately. It looks bad to spend near the limit each month, even if you do pay it off immediately. You have no reason whatsoever to get a second credit card. ---
**Author:** ![shiftless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9c0ed/32.png) [@shiftless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shiftless)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/34 "2014-09-05T15:07:39Z")
Is the crux of your girlfriend’s argument that geting a second card will improve your credit rating? Because my wife makes the same argument and I disagree with her. One of our kids destroyed his credit and maybe, just maybe, it would help him to have a few cards to get his rating back up quicker. But my argument is that having money is more useful than having credit. Unless a second card is going to give you more money in some way (like a better cash back deal) then you don’t need it except perhaps for an emergency backup. But the most important thing to remember with a credit card is to pay it off every month, no mater how many oyu have. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/35 "2014-09-05T15:48:46Z")
FWIW you are the kind of customer the credit card companies love - you carry a balance, so they can charge you massive interest, and you pay regularly, so they can expect to make a lot of money off you for years to come. Expect to be snowed under with offers from every credit card company on the planet, all offering “WONDERFUL DEAL! NO ANNUAL FEES for the first six months. MILLIONS OF AIRLINE POINTS that aren’t redeemable holidays, weekends, during months with no R, or for any destination except a hub”. Or you’ll get the offer I got once. It was in December, and they said I was such a good customer that they were going to let me skip a whole month’s payments! And it wouldn’t count on my credit report! I could charge as much as I wanted, all throughout December, and not pay a dime until February! Then at the bottom of page 3 it happened to mention that they would be charging the “standard” interest on the balance. Gosh, thanks. I have one credit card, It charges no annual fee, and has a cash-back option. I charge everything on it - groceries, gas, cigars, online shopping, clothes - everything. I pay the balance off, in full, every month, always and without any exceptions. And I tear up and throw away all the offers they send me. No, I am not going to buy insurance. No, I don’t need another card. No, I am not going to take advantage of any special offers. What I am going to do is treat this as what it is - a short term, interest free loan. And your cashback program is going to pay me for the privilege of hoping that I will forget and carry a balance that you can change me for. Which I will not do. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/36 "2014-09-05T16:01:53Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > He also said “I’m not in danger of maxing it out”, which means he keeps his balance under a single card maximum, even if he had a hundred more cards. No qualifiers needed. No, it means he’s approaching his maximum, even if slowly. He has admitted that he can’t live off his earnings. Unless something changes, he will extend his limit or get another card. ---
**Author:** ![MrsTime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@MrsTime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrsTime)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/37 "2014-09-05T16:10:50Z")
One can get along with no credit card, so obviously a second one is unnecessary. We wanted to use our credit card for internet purchases, but our only card had a very high limit and we didn’t want to risk having it on line. So we went to several banks and discussed our wish for a card that would have a strict $500.00 limit and would never increase. Most of the banks were not able to assure us that the limit would never go up, in fact they seemed to feel that $500.00 was way to little and the least they would give us was any where between $1000.00 to $5000.00. No matter what we said they simply could not do it. So we finally found one bank that said yes they could do that so it is used and used pretty often for all our online purchases, we have had it now for many years and now it is our only credit card. We disposed of the one with the very high limit shortly after we got the low limit. Then our friendly financial adviser talked us into his banks card which also raised the limit as soon as we got near the original $500.00. We recently disposed of that one too. Now you want another line of credit, talk to your bank, They call it ‘a line of credit’ or ‘over draft protection’. That’s what we have now and we are happy with that, if we need an extra few thousand quickly all we have to do is go in and ask for it. ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/38 "2014-09-05T16:24:36Z")
I’m not sure why you’re scared of a higher limit. You aren’t responsible for purchases you don’t make. Now, if you’re afraid you might run it up, then that’s a good reason to be afraid of a higher limit. ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/39 "2014-09-05T16:36:19Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > No, it means he’s approaching his maximum, even if slowly. He has admitted that he can’t live off his earnings. Unless something changes, he will extend his limit or get another card. This is pretty close. I can get rid of a bunch of it by sacrificing money in my checking account that I never use, but I tend to not do that but once every couple months > [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > I’m not sure why you’re scared of a higher limit. You aren’t responsible for purchases you don’t make. > > Now, if you’re afraid you might run it up, then that’s a good reason to be afraid of a higher limit. More closely with the second one. Despite how I may have seemed in my OP I am more responsible with money than I came across, and due to that I understand that I don’t make enough to confidently handle two separate credit cards. I would be worried that I would get TOO complacent and therefore run one (or both) of them up too much and have a helluva time recovering. Forcing myself (if you call it that) to stay at one card keeps me grounded…which was the point of the conversation between she and I in the first place ---
**Author:** ![DingoelGringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9d8465/32.png) [@DingoelGringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DingoelGringo)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2014, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520/40 "2014-09-05T16:47:03Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > I’ve had this argument with my girlfriend a couple of times but I wanna run it by ya’ll as well. > > So I have been poor/barely an adult for my life (FTR I’m 28) and have never had money, and I still don’t. I have a job that pays low/decent enough for me to survive…but not enough for me to not put money on a credit card. I have one credit card through my bank and I use it for 99.9% of my purchases because I have a pretty high limit. I always pay part of it off per month, I’m never late, and I’m not in danger of maxing it out/getting into trouble. > > So because of this or maybe just because she discovered it, my girlfriend is wanting me to get another credit card that has some airline points associated with it. I keep saying “no” because in my mind, I don’t make enough money to merit having a second credit card. I don’t like the concept of credit cards in the first place because I’m uncomfortable spending money that I don’t have. I do it now out of necessity, but up until now I’ve never had a CC and I only wanted one for emergencies. > > The crux of her argument is that you NEED to have more than one credit card open because you need to have multiple lines of credit open for…some reason. I don’t completely believe her because I have a car loan (and probably always will in some form or fashion), I have my student loans right now, and my credit card now. She keeps saying that I need to have multiple lines of credit open even if I don’t use it, but I’m still skeptical. > > All of that being said, she is much smarter, wiser, and has more life experience than I do…so I have no doubts that at the end of the day she is right. But I wanted to get other opinions So many times a woman can destroy a guy financially by pushing him into too much credit. The lady sees something for $1.29 that she wants, the store won’t process transactions on a card for less than $5.00 so she picks up several more little things she had no desire for and at the end of the month she pays the minimum payment, it takes 25 years to pay off her $1.29 desire. Resist this type of pressure. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-to-have-credit-cards/697520.md?page=3)