Milvionne Chery Copeland, Writer
@milvionne_copeland
It is good to have 3 or 4 credit cards if you can manage multiple credit cards responsibly and can use all the cards to maximize your savings. The average person has about four credit cards, according to data from the credit bureau Experian, so it’s a reasonable number of cards to have. But if you are not responsible with the credit cards, it can lead to overspending, missed payments, and damage to your credit. Check below for some of the biggest pros and cons to having 3-4 credit cards.
Pros and Cons of Having 3 or 4 Credit Cards
| Pros | Cons |
| Chance to build credit faster as there will be more information to report to bureaus | Creates hard inquiries into your credit, which negatively affects your score |
| Opportunity to take advantage of multiple attractive sign-up perks, such as 0% financing or initial bonuses | Increases the possibility of accidentally missing a payment |
| Access to more credit, which can help lower overall credit utilization | Increases potential to rack up unsustainable debt |
| Opportunity to minimize interest and maximize rewards with the Island Approach | Potential damage to your credit if all accounts are not kept in good standing |
Whether or not it’s good to have 3 and 4 credit cards really depends on your credit standing and your organizational skills. If you need an ideal way to manage this many cards, try WalletHub’s Island Approach, where you use different credit cards to meet each one of your specific financial needs.
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Is it better to have more credit cards or fewer?
There is no golden rule about whether it is better to have more credit cards or fewer. In fact, there is no rule about how many cards you should have, or how many cards are too many. It really depends on your personal needs, as well as your credit standing… read full answer
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