# How much credit card debt do you have? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 2, 2014, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138 "2014-12-02T17:24:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/41 "2014-12-03T03:20:48Z")
No debt at all. Pay off our credit cards every month. Paid off my mortgage a decade ago. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/42 "2014-12-03T03:41:18Z")
About 5% now, zero by February and until say September and then a slow creep towards 5% again. Been that way for ages and I can live with that. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/43 "2014-12-03T03:51:26Z")
At one point I had an enormous amount of credit card debit. Something like $50,000. This was the result of a lot of expenses combined with a huge cut in income. It took 5 years or so, but I paid it all off, and even managed to pay off my 15 year mortgage around 7 years early. Now I have no consumer debt of any kind. I still charge everything, and pay it off each month. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/44 "2014-12-03T03:57:34Z")
I use cards only for travel expenses and pay them off when I get the bill. ---
**Author:** ![scootergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e99b99/32.png) [@scootergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scootergirl)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/45 "2014-12-03T06:39:03Z")
I have 3 credit cards: Discover, Macy’s and Kohls. There’s a zero balance on the department store cards. I don’t make purchases that I can’t pay back within 1-2 months. On the Discover card I have a $128 balance which will be paid off before the end of the year. At the beginning of 2014 I owed about $1000 on it. I paid as much as possible every single month and tried not to use it for anything. I’m happy that I’m almost done with it. I have huge credit limits on all of the cards. Sometimes I just want to be totally irresponsible and go on a shopping spree that I can’t afford. There are women at my work who have umpteen outfits and many many shoes and boots. I kind of envy that. I dress nice but within my budget. I don’t have a closet-full with a huge variety of clothes. I look for clothes at resale shops and thrift stores and sometimes go to the mall to get something new, but I pay it off right away, or pay cash. The other day I resisted the urge to buy a bottle of Coco Mademoiselle, by Chanel, one of the few perfumes that I really like. It was $90 for 3.5oz bottle. Sure, I could put it on my Macy’s card and worry about it later, but I don’t like that kind of thinking. It can get me in trouble. ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/46 "2014-12-03T06:57:17Z")
I like having a credit card where you get miles for shopping. We used it recently to pay for our hotel on a trip. If you use an airline credit card and you fly alot you can get some free trips out of it. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/47 "2014-12-03T13:23:10Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > I don’t even have a credit card. I do have a Visa-branded debit card which, as far as I know, does all the same things a credit card would do (although I’m to understand that some rental car companies don’t like to take debit cards). As far as I know, use of a debit card is more dangerous as there is no recourse, no way of disputing a charge. I have a couple of Visa or MC branded debit cards but I avoid using them. I put about $4K a month on my main credit card and get a 1.25% rebate and pay it off every month. This much more than makes up for the $80 annual charge. But I wonder. If the merchants (who are obviously paying that 1.25%) would give me a 2 or 3% discount for cash, I would give them the cash. Of course, there is no recourse for cash either, but that discount would make up for it. So nearly 4 of 5 dopers carry no balance. Or nearly 4 out of 5 who chose to respond. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/48 "2014-12-03T13:35:01Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > My credit card debt (we’re only talking what we don’t pay off at the end of the month, right?) just about always averages between 1 and 3 days take-home pay. So…look, I’m not good at math, but I know it’s a tiny tiny percentage of my income. > > I don’t think I’ve ever had more than $1,500 in credit card debt at once in my entire life. Unless the rules have changed while I wasn’t looking, this is not wise. The difference between you and me is that since you have a debit balance you pay interest on your purchases from the day you buy them, while I pay nothing on my purchases ever. If I had a $1 debit balance and charged $4K over the month, I would be paying something like $40 a month interest on my new purchases (I can only guess because I have no idea what my interest rate is). So that 1 - 3 days income of CC balance is costing you a lot (unless you charge very little). It is well worth paying it off. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/49 "2014-12-03T14:00:48Z")
Mine’s in the 25-50% range, which sounds horrible, but it was for a dental issue. It’ll get paid off by February. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/50 "2014-12-03T15:12:00Z")
> [@Urbanredneck](#): > > If you use an airline credit card and you fly alot you can get some free trips out of it. Alot? Is that the Israeli national airline? > [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > So nearly 4 of 5 dopers carry no balance. **Or nearly 4 out of 5 who chose to respond.** (My bolding.)\* Ding ding ding ding ding\*… we have a winner. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/51 "2014-12-03T15:30:46Z")
I have one debit card. When I see people pull out a wallet full of cards while I’m cashiering, I always wonder WHY? ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/52 "2014-12-03T15:39:49Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I have one debit card. When I see people pull out a wallet full of cards while I’m cashiering, I always wonder WHY? Well, the duh answer is because they got the offers, took them, and think it’s some good thing to have 1-5X their annual income in card credit. (May as well have a wallet full of razor blades, IMHO.) I have four cards - debit, airline miles Visa for regular spending (paid off each month), high-limit Visa for major purchases, and a business Visa mostly used for online purchases and vendor payment. About the only reason we have two general cards is wariness of having one credit provider - we’ve been caught in a noose of provider changes or problems (theirs - not ours) more than once, so having a backup has paid off from time to time. The miles card is also relatively high rate - 9 something - while the major card is much lower and makes it cheaper to spread out purchases over a couple of months when necessary. I’d rather pay a few bucks in interest to pay things from income than move money in and out of deeper resources. ---
**Author:** ![Pixel\_Dent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bc8723/32.png) [@Pixel\_Dent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixel_Dent)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/53 "2014-12-03T15:45:06Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > I have one debit card. When I see people pull out a wallet full of cards while I’m cashiering, I always wonder WHY? Business Amex that gives 3% cash back Business Mastercard for stores that don’t take Amex Business Amex for a Client company for which I occasionally make purchases Personal Amex that gives 3% cash back but only at gas stations and grocery stores Personal Mastercard that gives up to 5% cash back but only at certain restaurants I know it sounds like a hassle to keep track of various cash back programs, but I just think of it as my restaurant card, my grocery store card, my office supply store card, my computer equipment card, etc… It’s worth the hassle to get a few thousand back at the end of the year. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2014, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138/54 "2014-12-03T16:03:47Z")
I should add that our cards were chosen for lowest cost - no annual fees, lowest tier of interest rates, minimum of gotcha fees and charges - and stability. The miles from the spending card are nice but nothing I value much; I’d switch if the card costs went up in any way. Most reward and rebate cards are a hassle to manage and maintain - annual fees, having to watch where you use them, often high(er) interest rates, limited acceptance, and forever having to monitor, switch, keep track and juggle them. If you’re of a mind to do that juggling and management, power to yez… it’s like perpetually having cable or internet at introductory rates by jumping providers every 6-12 months. I’ll take low fixed costs, reliability and zero management effort over “rewards.” I’d wager I come out ahead of even users of generously-rebated cards after you factor in extra costs from management mistakes (high late fees and interest when purchases aren’t paid off a month or two) and price management time at minimum wage. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-credit-card-debt-do-you-have/706138.md?page=2)