Who uses credit cards?

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by LivingAlmostLarge

why not use them for gas for car and auto-bill pay. Stuff you'd budget to pay anyway. Sure you can overspend if you lack self-control on eating out and groceries.

But couple of categories how can you overspend? Cell phone bill, cable, etc?

That's exactly what we do. Our one credit card, a Chase Visa, we use almost exclusively for auto-payments. Our home phone, cell phone, cable, alarm fee and a couple of other things get charged to that card each month. It is so much easier to just make one payment rather than 5 or 6 individual payments. Plus we get the rewards in the process. The bills are the same no matter what so why not get the added benefit from using the credit card.

[BuckyBadger]

Originally Posted by James Pollock

I use debit cards because i personally not in favor of any debt from person or business.Personally i am not in favor of taking debt.It makes your life limited so always depend on your own resources.Specially when you do borrow in business then it becomes a bit difficult and irritated as well.So i suggest you all to do business in your resources and try maximum to avoid from debt.

The other advantage of credit cards over cash and ESPECIALLY over debit cards is the element of safety and insurance that using credit cards gives you. Consumer protection and limited liability are huge benefits of using credit cards.

Don't charge what you can't already pay for. Enjoy free money from your credit card company. Rinse and repeat.

[kork13]

Originally Posted by BuckyBadger

The other advantage of credit cards over cash and ESPECIALLY over debit cards is the element of safety and insurance that using credit cards gives you. Consumer protection and limited liability are huge benefits of using credit cards.

!!!TANGENT ALERT!!! (sorry...)

Why is that? Why do credit cards fundamentally offer greater protections? My only thought might be that it's a difference between who is providing the funds to cover the card purchase. Visa and Mastercard and other CC companies have extremely large vats of operating funds, so they can better afford to offer more advantageous coverages than smaller, individual banks which issue debit cards directly, and must cover charges directly.

No idea... It just strikes me as strange that two nearly identical methods of swiping a card to buy something has such vastly dissimilar customer protections.

(If this topic needs to go to a separate thread, we can do that easy... I just didn't bother doing it right now. )

[krantcents]

We use credit cards for everything! They are reward cards so I earn frequent flier miles. I pay the entire monthly amount every month.

[Pansori]

I use my credit cards for almost everything. I still purchase gas using my debit card, but that is about it. I only have 2 cards, so net purchases go on one low limit card, regular everyday purchases goes on my CU card that has some cash back rewards attached to it. I do PIF every month because I like seeing the 0 in interest paid YTD. Plus it makes me uncomfortable to carry a balance.

I appreciate Zim's honesty about why he doesn't use cc. I look at hundreds of credit card accounts a day, and a LOT of people need to step away from the cards.

[JoshuaHeckathorn]

Originally Posted by kork13

!!!TANGENT ALERT!!! (sorry...)

Why is that? Why do credit cards fundamentally offer greater protections? My only thought might be that it's a difference between who is providing the funds to cover the card purchase. Visa and Mastercard and other CC companies have extremely large vats of operating funds, so they can better afford to offer more advantageous coverages than smaller, individual banks which issue debit cards directly, and must cover charges directly.

No idea... It just strikes me as strange that two nearly identical methods of swiping a card to buy something has such vastly dissimilar customer protections.

(If this topic needs to go to a separate thread, we can do that easy... I just didn't bother doing it right now. )

Debit cards provide thieves with direct access to your bank accounts. If compromised, someone could make purchases directly from your account and you might never be able to recover the funds.

On the other hand, credit cards aren't linked directly to your bank accounts and most credit issuers offer a 0 liability policy for unauthorized charges. If your card is ever stolen, the cash in your bank accounts will remain safe and available.

Of course, purchase protection, which protects you from receiving a faulty product or no product at all, is a nice added benefit of credit cards as well.

[SteveBlissLaw]

I am probably in the minority, but I never use credit cards. My parents got in debt so bad that it just scared me away from them for life I guess

[KiwiJo09]

After we finish paying off our debt, we have plans to use just one credit card to buy gas and paying it off at the end of every month.

We still have quite a ways to go though.

[BudgetMath.com]

Originally Posted by cooliemae

My wife and I use our Discover cards for almost every day purchases, which provides us with somewhere around $400-$500 a year in cashback. We also use our other cards when they offer zero percent options to finance larger purchases, which allows us to keep the money in the back earning interest.

cooliemae: What percentage cash back are you getting on your Discover cards?

I have a Bank of America Platinum Plus card which only gives us 1% cash back.. So we've been looking to switch to a card with a higher cash back percentage.

[jerrycates]

I think about 90% of the global population has used or are using the credit card. May it be for needful use or wants. I just stay away from it.

[JoshuaHeckathorn]

Originally Posted by BudgetMath.com

cooliemae: What percentage cash back are you getting on your Discover cards?

I have a Bank of America Platinum Plus card which only gives us 1% cash back.. So we've been looking to switch to a card with a higher cash back percentage.

There are a lot of better cash back cards out there- I would definitely move on from the BofA card. The Discover More card offers up to 5% cash back, but only for certain categories and they rotate (ie travel, gas, groceries, restaurants). You'll always get at least 1%.

If you're a Costco member, you might want to check out the True Earnings Amex card too. Your Costco membership covers the annual fee and you'll earn 3% back for gas and restaurants, 2% for travel, and 1% for everything else. You don't have to worry about any rotating categories. I use this card myself and love it. I actually use the business version so I get 4% cash back on gas...very nice :-).

[smoothsailingfs]

I stay away from credit cards. I have been there and done that and it casued a lot of problems and cost us a lot of money. If I cant afford it with my income, I save or do without. Never been happier.

Tyson

[crazyskunk82]

I agree with Tyson. Credit cards can reward you if you don't have problems with impulse purchases and can guarantee you pay it back when the statement comes. But stuff happens, and sometimes you might not be able to make the payment in full. If you can great, but I've found that sticking to cash is the best way to go.

[maat55]

We use one card for specific uses. We do so only for the rewards cash which we put into our car fund.

[rob62521]

I use my Discover card for most things...safety and ease being two good reasons. I figure I can use their money free and then I pay them off each month.

[krantcents]

I use a credit card that earns frequent flier miles. I earn enough that my wife and I can travel to Europe first or business class every other year.

[landon.bruno]

The one who has enough balance in his bank account and is willing to pay interest on money that he has overspent.

[thesmartnickel]

Credit cards are a great money making tool as long as you pay them off in full each month. By just treating them like cash, I get around 3% back on my spending each year. I have a few credit cards which I manage, taking advantage of the 5% cash back in revolving categories for Chase Freedom and Discover and some others which give >1% in specific categories all year round. I hardly use cash anywhere where credit cards are accepted.

[danieldroga]

Yeah. many uses credit cards to get a good points and save them up to make a good impression on my loan application.