Many people talk bad on credit cards

But

Let me explain the pros of credit cards

(thread)

First off, I want to lead with this

Credit cards can be HORRIBLE for your finances

If you can’t control your spending

Or

You can’t delay gratification

Or

Pay them off each month in full

Then I don’t recommend spending on credit

18%-22% interest rates will haunt you

However,

I do want to explain so pros of credit cards

Because

If you can

1. Pay off in full each month

2. Control your spending

3. Delay gratification

Then credit cards can quite actually be good

I am going to break this down into 4 parts

1. Sign up bonus

2. Card rewards

3. Fraud protection

4. Ability to track spending and pay at once

Let’s get into it

1. Sign up bonus

Many credit cards offer a bonus when you sign up

They usually have stipulations attached to them

“You have to spend x amount in 3 months to receive y in rewards”

This is a great way to get a jump start on those sweet rewards the card offers

BUT...

NEVER increase your spending solely for a sign up bonus

Be smart about it!

When I was making the move to a new city after college, I knew I would incur extra expenses for furnishing a new apartment

So

I signed up for a travel card and easily hit the sign up bonus

2. Rewards

Whether the card offers

Cash back
Travel points
Hotel points

Or other rewards

Look at this as “free” rewards that come from your expenses you already have

Reminder; PAY OFF IN FULL EVERY MONTH

I have a few cards that offer different rewards

I have 2 that offer cash back

And 1 that offers travel points

I keep them for longevity of credit history... but I ALWAYS pay in full

I know @itsloganjones puts his flipping on credit cards and enjoys those rewards!!

3. Fraud protection

This is something that you don’t really think about

Until you need it

Debit cards, more than likely, don’t offer this type of protection

And to me, that’s a protection that I want

4. Track spending and pay at once

I like this feature because

1. I can see where my spending is allocated each month

2. I have the ability to see if there were any unnecessary charges on my card

And I know, every 15th of the month, my credit card bill is automatically paid!

Instead of the money being taken out at the time of the swipe

I can go back and make sure it all looks good

And

I can get those sweet rewards I talked about earlier

I want to reiterate

IF YOU CAN’T CONTROL YOUR SPENDING OR YOU CAN’T PAY YOUR CARD OFF IN FULL EACH MONTH

THEN YOU DO NOT NEED A CREDIT CARD

18%-22% INTEREST RATES WILL HAUNT YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE

And if you get a card, but see yourself spending more money, lose the card

I hope this thread enlightened you on the pros of credit cards

Again, please make sure you don’t get yourself into debt because of a credit card

Thanks for reading and if you think this message could be of help to to others, feel free to share it!

@DecadeInvestor