Okay, so how many / what types do you have? If you aren't of the age to have any yourself, what about your parents or what you plan on having? Please note, for safety's sake don't be an idiot and give away any security information about whatever cards you do have!

My husband and I each have separate Discover cards, and that's all we have. Our credit rating is excellent, but we see no reason to have more cards. They are paid off every month as they arrive, so we don't deal with the interest charges at all anyway, and the cashback bonus is nice; granted, it's not a lot, but hey, even $20 helps. My cashback has been very generous this year, but that's because I paid for our new car with my card (a special exemption we worked out with the dealer because we were paying for the car outright, not financing -- at $12K that's a pretty rare thing). We don't have gas or department store cards, and won't, but we do use our credit cards for most of our purchases -- gas, groceries, etc., but hey, since they're paid off anyway it's no big deal. I'm just curious -- I heard that the average American has like 16 credit cards (including all the types listed in the poll) and an average monthly debt of $6K on them (not including like a mortgage, car payments, student loans -- those aren't on credit cards) so I thought I'd see how TN measured up.

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Walk Beyond...

My parents each have a Master Card which they always pay in full when the bill comes and my mom has all of those "Old Navy" and "Gap" cards just because when you sign up they give you 15% off. (But she never really uses them.)

My mom also has Wild Cards, Extra Care Cards, and Wegmans Cards etc. but you can't charge them so I don't think they count.

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I must be the odd man out for some, as I don't have a credit card and pay cash for everything. I'm thinking about getting one, perhaps one of those Visa Check Cards that draws from ones checking account, but I've not decided just yet.

I have a visa, I try not to use it too much though, you can get urself in debt really quick with one

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Go Reds!!!!!

I have a Mastercard that my dad got for me a few years ago. Exactly why he got it I don't know, since I haven't used it, but I'm not complaining. As for my parents, they've got Visas and my dad has a Mastercard, as far as I know, but they only use those cards for trips and such. They've also got some store credit cards for places like Sears and Robinsons, which they use whenever we go shopping at those places, which is every now and then.

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Aaron Cedoras: Thrillnetwork Story Editor
"Dead men tell no tales..."

I had a Visa but cancelled it when I got into some bad debt. I've been credit card free for about 1 year now. If I don't have the cash, I write a check, but I still try to limit spending.

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My parents have American Express cards, and I think they might have some of the store credit cards too. I imagine I'll also probably get an American Express card when I am able to.

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"Cedar Point has a wide variety of wooden coasters" - Discovery Channel

My Dad has a Visa card. He really only uses it for business trips and vamily vacations though.

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TV/Event Guide Editor

the bank offered me one (probably visa or Mc) but i didn't take it i didn't want to be tempted to spend money i don't really have.

My parents have loads of Credit Cards, not sure why. As for me, I really don't want one. Just the fact of me being able to buy proabobly anything I want, when I really don't have the money, really does haunt me. Because when that bill comes, I'll proabobly be scrambling for money.

But, I suppose I will try to manage myself when I do get a credit card.

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Thornton to Heatley all day, every day.

I've got a Discover card, a Mastercard, and (if this counts) a Visa check card (which comes out of my checking). I am so bad. Oh, and I have an Old Navy card too. I don't use the Mastercard anymore, and I use the Discover if I need something expensive, and don't have the reserve cash. For instance, when my fridge broke, I used the Discover.

As for the Old Navy card, well, I have a nephew and a neice, both who I LOVE to keep clothed in cute stuff, and you know how fast kids grow! Lucky for me, baby and toddler clothes are reasonably priced, (in my opinion anyway), and they are wicked cute.

I try to over-pay the minimum balance each month, and so far it's going well.

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Finally got to ride Nitro on Sept. 6, 2003!

I have a Discover (closed, being paid off) and a Visa. That's it.

Word of advice, don't get in credit card debt! It took me years to pay mine off. It's a rip off. You'll be paying for whatever you bought years after it's in the trash can.

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Intimidator Coming in 2010 to Carowinds!

I have a Platinum Visa with a $5K balance on it now, but there's a reason.

When I was looking to buy a car last year I was looking through all of my paperwork on my last car, I realized that I had a 12.9% APR on my car loan. So I grabbed up the next credit card app with an APR lower than 12.99% as a permanent rate. Then I got this one, got an 8.9% APR until the balance is paid, and I'll save about $500 over the life of the balance. Go figure.

As a finance major, I'll give you two bits advice, be careful of debt in general. It's no worse to have a high credit card balance than it is to finance a car that you can't afford. Second, don't dismiss credit cards as the work of the devil. They have their place and their use.

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"It's just gonna be goin' on...like Donkey Kong...144,000 strong."
I still BRAKE for Kraken.

I have a Visa, but I only put my DSL payment on it each month, and then I pay it off in full. I am just establishing some credit.

I don't have any, but my Dad has Mastercard, Visa, and Amercian Express.

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Internet, internet how do you do, I want to sing and type with you
J-I-M-M-Y...Its ALIVE

Diesel really has good advice there. The most I've ever put on my Discover card (platinum, the only one I have) is about $9K this past December, but that was purchasing a car and it was paid with no finance charges when the bill came. But you really can get into a pain with credit if you're not careful. If you are careful, however, they're very useful -- I buy groceries and gas on it, and our ISP, and a lot of other things -- it's convenient, and we don't purchase more than we can afford to pay when the bill comes in.

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Walk Beyond...

Yeah Diesel rocks on this one Good advice...

Credit Cards are like anything, if you go overboard it's unhealthy.

You do have to have one in this world though. If you want to rent a car, you have to have one, etc.

Also, Bank of America has a cool program called BUXX for those 18 and under, your parents load it with whatever your balance is, then when you spend all the money, it stops letting you purchase on it. Looks and acts just like a Visa. It's a good learning tool, just thought I'd mention that, not trying to promote my employer, just a bit of advice...

I use my check card now, that way it's just like using a credit card, except it comes out of my checking account. It's great for me.

Sorry to get off topic, but this is something that I'm really concerned about for the "next generation". Don't screw up like I did!

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Intimidator Coming in 2010 to Carowinds!

I have two credit cards. Visa and Costco American Express. I have excellent credit. Hence, it was the only way I could get a loan for my new condo. I can't understand why anyone would pay interest rates on credit cards. Just don't buy stuff you can't afford; it's that simple.

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"Back to the 602; It's a 105 in the shade and I'm sippin' on a lemonade. Phoenix, Arizona puts the heat up on ya; I should warn ya the girls is fine as California." - Sir Mix Alot

However sometimes simplicity is blurred. You might lose your job and be in a financial bind. It happened to me. I had rent, insurance, a computer bill and a few other thigs sneak up on me. I'm slowly rebuilding credit though as I pay off my car though.

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Good point. However, if you have the money to do so, everyone should have an "emergency" fund of around $3000 or so. This way if you loose your job, get in a car wreck, or something else, you can afford to get yourself out of the mess. This only applies if you have an extra 3 g's to set aside. I know many people that don't have that kind of money due to education debt and other necessary expenses.

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"Back to the 602; It's a 105 in the shade and I'm sippin' on a lemonade. Phoenix, Arizona puts the heat up on ya; I should warn ya the girls is fine as California." - Sir Mix Alot

I have my student loans (though getting paid off well in advance), yet still manage to have far more than $3K in reserve. It's a case of lifestyle, in many cases, and people simply spending more than they earn. People think some bills are necessary, but they aren't always -- you don't have to have all the movie channels (or even cable for that matter), you don't always need to have a cell phone and a regular phone, you don't need to go out to dinner (even just fast food) at all, etcetera. It's amazing how much adding little things up can save.

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Walk Beyond...

You can also do what I did. Use your Debit card as a credit card. As long as you keep track of your expenses, you'll be just fine, and you'll build credit!

Bought a lot with my debit card...Truck, lap top, pay cell phone bill, bills, groceries, etc...

Debit cards, are a good thing. And stay away from credit cards as long as you can; heck I've never had a credit card. And I'm doing just fine.

I try to use my debit card when at all possible.

When I do use credit, I use my Citibank Visa. I have it hooked to my bank account, so I can tranfer payments right in!

For the younger folk out there considering credit cards, department store credit cards have exhorbitant interest rates. Stay away from them. You can use bank credit cards that usually are anywhere from 8 to 10 interest points lower.

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Nothing like a big woodie first thing in the morning and before going to bed at night.

True, but the "younger folk" don't have the established credit needed to get an 8% to 10%.

There's nothing wrong with the stores credit cards, they're easy to get, just don't let the balances get out of hand.

Once you buy a house, all the companies come from nowhere to give you the best rate.

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"It's just gonna be goin' on...like Donkey Kong...144,000 strong."
I still BRAKE for Kraken.

I got my first credit card when I was 19, stuck with one, and have it even now. Honestly, I don't know what my APR rate is, and frankly, it doesn't matter to me because I do NOT charge anything that cannot be paid when the bill comes anyway. Regardless of the card, so long as you don't let it get out of hand (or out of pocket), it's a help no matter what the rate.

Another thing to beware of -- cash advances with a credit card. They typically charge fees for those right away, even if you pay it off when the bill comes, so you're still getting nixed on that one.

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Walk Beyond...