Closing a card with a balance can also help you avoid paying the annual fee for a credit card you’re no longer using (if the card you’re closing charges one).

Believing these common credit card myths could drag down your score. Learn the truth and build your credit the smart way.

Your old credit card will remain open, even if the balance is zero after a balance transfer. Whether or not to close it depends on your personal habits and the potential impact to your credit score.

Closing a credit card you no longer need isn’t necessarily a bad idea, and there are many situations when you might decide that canceling a card makes sense. However, consider how closing a ...

You won’t owe interest if your credit card balance is zero at the end of your billing cycle. By comparison, let’s say you have a $10,000 balance at the end of your billing cycle; at 22.8% ...

Paying off your current credit card balance early (before the statement closing date) each month might help you here as that account would then be reported as showing a $0 balance, as long as you ...

Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and ...

When it comes to a credit card balance, a negative can really be a positive. A few conditions might cause a negative credit card balance, but it’s not a bad position to be in.

If you transfer a balance to an existing account, make sure it has a better interest rate than the card you’re transferring from. Promotional periods do expire, and you’ll be forced to pay the ...

Generally speaking, you should not close a credit card with a balance — or any credit card you’re not really using — if you want to keep your credit in good shape.

Credit card companies calculate your minimum repayment from the total statement balance. So, if your minimum repayment equals 2.5% of your statement balance, you owe $71.50 based on the above example.