If you plan to carry a few credit cards, watch out for these common mistakes.
It’s not right for everyone, but I’m a fan of using multiple credit cards. Different cards have different perks, such as big bonuses for new cardholders and extra rewards in certain spending categories. By getting multiple cards, you can use the benefits you like.
However, when you have more than one card, there are more ways things can go wrong. Here are the mistakes to avoid so all those credit cards don’t end up costing you.
1. Missing payments
Every credit card you have means another bill to keep track of. This can be tricky, especially if the due dates for your cards are spread all over the month. If you have credit card payments due on several days, it’s easy for one of those to slip your mind.
Late payment fees can be costly, so here are a few simple ways to ensure you never miss a credit card payment:
- Set up automatic payments. This is the best way to avoid missed payments, as long as you always have enough money in your bank account to cover all the credit card bills.
- Create monthly payment reminders on your phone or computer.
- If you can, get the same payment due date on all your credit cards. Many card issuers let you choose your card’s due date.
2. Paying too many annual fees
Credit cards with annual fees tend to have more perks, so they can be a great value. But the annual fee is usually only worth it if you use the card often. That’s harder when you have several cards you use regularly.
For most people, it doesn’t make sense to pay an annual fee on more than one or two credit cards. If you have cards with annual fees, compare how much value you get from them to how much they cost you. Depending on what you find, you might want to downgrade a credit card to a no-annual-fee alternative.
