Subscribe to newsletter

UrbanObserver

https://demo.afthemes.com/newsphere/fashion/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/04/cropped-af-themes-main-dark.png

Always Active
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

No cookies to display.

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

No cookies to display.

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

No cookies to display.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

No cookies to display.

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

No cookies to display.

Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.

No cookies to display.

Monday, March 17, 2025

Top 5 This Week

Related Posts

Should you have more than one credit card?

With nearly 60 million credit cards floating around the UK, it’s fair to say plenty of us are using multiple credit cards at once.

But how many is too many?

If you’re wondering about opening another account, consider the pros and cons before you make a move.

Lower your credit utilisation

Multiple credit cards, if used correctly, are great for your credit score. This is because of a feature called credit utilisation and how credit providers perceive it.

Credit utilisation is, in short, the percentage of credit you are using against your credit limit. For example, if you had a monthly credit limit of £1,000 and were using £800 a month, your utilisation would be 80%. £500 would be 50%, £200 would be 20%, and so on.

Where your provider is concerned, high utilisation is bad news and will affect your credit score negatively. Providers like to see utilisation of no more than 30% so, if you are close to your credit limit on one card (indeed anything above 30%), it benefits you and your credit score to spread the debt across several cards.

Spread the spend

Speaking of spreading your debt, the same process is beneficial to those struggling with a lot of debt on one card or looking to spread out a purchase cost (and avoid high utilisation).

Where high interest debt is concerned, you can use multiple cards to transfer a balance from a high interest account to a new, 0% interest card or two in order to release the pressure on an account building interest. It’s a temporary solution but saves you money in the long run.

Back yourself up

If credit cards are your main source of payment, it’s worth having multiple cards so one can be used as a backup or for emergency use.

This is useful if your card provider freezes your main card, for example if it suspects fraudulent use, or an unexpected payment comes up that needs dealing with immediately.

Reap the rewards

Credit cards offer various incentives to spend, and different credit cards offer different perks. An example would be a percentage cashback amount on certain purchases across the month.

Using different cards on the right purchases means you’re getting the most back from your spending.

Don’t lose track

The big risk with multiple cards is that they can, if mismanaged, rack up debt and harm your credit score.

The more cards you have, the easier it is to lose track of both spending and repayments. Purchase frivolously and you may spend more money than you have. Meanwhile, missing repayments can mean interest and a hit on your credit score.

The combination of the two is a vicious and very damaging cycle you don’t want to find yourself in.

Unwanted extras

Whilst you’ll no doubt be looking for the best interest deals and lowest charges, introductory offers do come to an end and many cards come with an attached monthly fee.

If you’re running a handful of cards, such fees and interest can add up, leaving you with unwanted costs at the end of the month.

Fraud risk

Just as it’s easy to lose track of your spending and repayments, it’s also harder to notice possible theft or fraud across multiple accounts if you’re not paying too much attention.

An unlikely occurrence, but another thing you need to be on top of.

So, how many cards?

The answer is no one really knows!

It depends on your current situation with outstanding debt and your future plans. More than anything your ability to responsibly manage your finances will be the determining factor in selecting the right number of credit cards for you.

Clyde K. Valle
Clyde K. Valle
Clyde is a business graduate interested in writing about latest news in politics and business. He enjoys writing and is about to publish his first book. He’s a pet lover and likes to spend time with family. When the time allows he likes to go fishing waiting for the muse to come.
Subscribe
Notify of
guest


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Popular Articles

0
Would love your thoughts, please comment.x
()
x