What Is a Credit Card Expiration Date?
A credit card expiration date is the month and year when the credit card will stop working, and it appears on the front or back of a credit card in a MM/YY format. For example, if the expiration date on a credit card is 02/25, it means that you can use the card until the end of February 2025. The actual expiration date is usually three to five years after the card is first activated, and you can use the card without interruption through the end of the listed month.
All credit cards have expiration dates, and they actually serve a number of important functions, including fraud prevention. You can learn more below.
Where Is the Expiration Date on a Credit Card?
The expiration date on a credit card is usually located on the front, but it may be on the back of some cards. When it’s on the front of the card, it’s typically printed below the 15-16 digit credit card number.
It should be relatively easy to find the expiration date because it’s the only set of numbers on the card listed in a MM/YY format, such as 01/24 for January 2024 or 12/25 for December 2025. In addition, the expiration date will also be clearly labeled.
Common Ways an Expiration Date Is Labeled
- Expiration Date
- Expires
- Good Thru
- Valid Thru
How to Find Your Credit Card Expiration Date Without Your Card
To find out your credit card expiration date without your card, you will likely need to call customer service and answer questions proving your identity to receive that information from the representative. Your expiration date usually won’t be listed in your online account or on your account statements.
How Do Credit Card Expiration Dates Work?
- The first two digits indicate the month the card expires.
- The second set of numbers indicates the year the card expires.
- The card can be used through the last day of the stated month.
- After the card expires, it can no longer be used and should be cut up.
- The cardholder will receive a replacement card a few weeks before the old card expires, and must activate it to continue using their account.
Reasons for Expiration Dates on Credit Cards
There are a few logical reasons why credit card expiration dates exist. While they primarily serve to benefit card issuers, a credit card company’s interests aren’t always counter to ours as consumers.
Fraud Prevention
The inclusion of expiration dates on credit cards is mandated by fraud prevention agreements between card issuers and card networks (e.g. Visa, Mastercard), as they give payment processors one additional piece of account data to cross-check and verify. This makes it harder for criminals to use stolen credit card numbers (which are much easier to come by than expiration dates) to make unauthorized transactions online or over the phone.
Refresh Inventory
Credit card companies regularly introduce new card designs and security features, and expiration dates give them an opportunity to get as much fresh inventory into circulation as possible. Creditors also have a monetary incentive to improve the ease with which you can use your card. The more you spend, the more issuers make in transaction costs and interest. Since it’s difficult to use a beaten up card with a damaged magnetic stripe, expiration dates allow issuers to keep their customers’ cards functional and keep revenue flowing in.
Reengage with Consumers
Expiration dates give credit card companies a built-in excuse to get in touch with you, maybe reminding you of an unused card that you’d forgotten about or providing the issuer with an opportunity to upsell you on other products and services. In this sense, expiration dates actually help with customer retention.
Tips for Dealing With Credit Card Expiration Dates
- Know what your expiration date is. When you first receive your card, be sure to locate your expiration date so you know how long your card is valid.
- Keep your expiration date a secret. You will need to provide your expiration date when making a purchase online or over the phone, but you shouldn’t give out the date to anyone aside from that. The more information someone has about your credit card, the easier it is for them to make an unauthorized online purchase.
- Keep an eye out for replacement cards. A few weeks before your card expires, you will get a replacement. You must activate this card in order to use it, so you should do that as soon as possible. You don’t need to wait until the day your old card expires to activate the new one. Once you have received and activated your new credit card, even if it's before the expiration of your old card, your old card will no longer be valid.
- Dispose of your old credit card. You should dispose of your old card by cutting it up if it’s plastic, or by sending it back to your issuer if it’s metal.
