Getting your first credit card

Credit cards are loans in plastic (sometimes now metal) form. A bank, brokerage firm, credit union or other lender — has agreed to let you spend up to a certain amount of its money (your credit limit

Credit Limit

Also sometimes called a credit line or line of credit, this is the most a financial institution has agreed to let you spend.

Questions people ask next

• How much do credit cards cost?

• Is it worth paying an annual fee?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?

Like many things in life, credit cards aren’t black and white. On the one hand, they’re excellent tools for building credit and earning rewards if you use them strategically. But if you don’t regularly pay your full monthly balance, you can quickly spiral into debt, ruin your credit and end up paying lots of money in interest.

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Questions people ask next

• What’s the difference between a debit card and a credit card?

• What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?

Sint aliquip ea occaecat ea irure ullamco culpa dolor excepteur nostrud. Nostrud consequat id ex commodo magna quis laboris culpa non dolore. Proident ullamco officia sint ea cupidatat eu mollit labore nostrud. Commodo ut ipsum dolore fugiat qui irure velit elit minim. Qui Lorem laboris eiusmod non. Ea ex adipisicing id quis ut enim nisi magna minim incididunt anim.

Questions people ask next

• What’s the difference between a debit card and a credit card?

• What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?

Sint aliquip ea occaecat ea irure ullamco culpa dolor excepteur nostrud. Nostrud consequat id ex commodo magna quis laboris culpa non dolore. Proident ullamco officia sint ea cupidatat eu mollit labore nostrud. Commodo ut ipsum dolore fugiat qui irure velit elit minim. Qui Lorem laboris eiusmod non. Ea ex adipisicing id quis ut enim nisi magna minim incididunt anim.

Questions people ask next

• What’s the difference between a debit card and a credit card?

• What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?

Sint aliquip ea occaecat ea irure ullamco culpa dolor excepteur nostrud. Nostrud consequat id ex commodo magna quis laboris culpa non dolore. Proident ullamco officia sint ea cupidatat eu mollit labore nostrud. Commodo ut ipsum dolore fugiat qui irure velit elit minim. Qui Lorem laboris eiusmod non. Ea ex adipisicing id quis ut enim nisi magna minim incididunt anim.

Questions people ask next

• What’s the difference between a debit card and a credit card?

• What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?

Sint aliquip ea occaecat ea irure ullamco culpa dolor excepteur nostrud. Nostrud consequat id ex commodo magna quis laboris culpa non dolore. Proident ullamco officia sint ea cupidatat eu mollit labore nostrud. Commodo ut ipsum dolore fugiat qui irure velit elit minim. Qui Lorem laboris eiusmod non. Ea ex adipisicing id quis ut enim nisi magna minim incididunt anim.

Questions people ask next

• What’s the difference between a debit card and a credit card?

• What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?

Sint aliquip ea occaecat ea irure ullamco culpa dolor excepteur nostrud. Nostrud consequat id ex commodo magna quis laboris culpa non dolore. Proident ullamco officia sint ea cupidatat eu mollit labore nostrud. Commodo ut ipsum dolore fugiat qui irure velit elit minim. Qui Lorem laboris eiusmod non. Ea ex adipisicing id quis ut enim nisi magna minim incididunt anim.

Questions people ask next

• What’s the difference between a debit card and a credit card?

• What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?

• Does having a credit card mean you have debt?