When it comes to Massachusetts credit card use, how do WE rank nationwide?
Are we the state with residents using the highest number of credit cards? How many offers did you get this week? This week, one of my credit card companies actually sent me a CHECK, which of course is simply one of those dastardly cash advances. The introductory letter said: “Need some extra cash?” Not at 25% interest I don’t. Despite the stories of rising costs, inflation, less job opportunities, we stills see the malls packed around the holidays. Many are rocking the plastic, with the spend now, pay later attitude.
Which State Uses The MOST Credit Cards?
Just in time for the bills to arrive just a few weeks, Wallethub shares their report showing the states with the MOST credit cards.
Before we see where Massachusetts ranks, let’s see some tips from Wallethub:
Never open a card to spend beyond your means
When you open a new credit card, you should strive to only charge what you can pay in full each month – or at the very least, what you can afford to make monthly payments on. The exception is cards with long 0% introductory APRs, which you can use for financing big purchases that you can’t afford all at once. It’s best to only use them if you can pay most or all of the balance off during the promotional period, though.
Wait at least six months between applications
Did you know this? Every time you apply for a credit card, it triggers a hard pull of your credit report, which causes a slight drop in your credit score (usually around 5-10 points). Applying for multiple cards in a short period of time can compound this damage and make it take longer for your score to bounce back.
Set up automatic payments
I use this tip ALOT! The more credit cards you have, the easier it becomes to forget to send a monthly payment. Setting up automatic payments from a checking account eliminates that problem, as long as you keep enough money in the account.
For more great tips, visit the Wallethub study.
Which state has the most credit cards? How does Massachusetts credit card use rank?
1-ALASKA
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According to Wallethub, Alaska ROCKS the plastic:
Alaska residents increased their average number of cards owned by over 8.5% compared to last year, more than in any other state. Alaskans also opened 5.44% more new cards in Q3 2023 compared to Q3 2022, while residents in most states decreased the number of new cards opened,” said Cassandra Happe, an analyst at WalletHub. “The good news is that Alaskans seem to be able to handle their new credit cards. Although Alaska residents have a high average credit card debt, they also have good credit, on average, and they don’t have high levels of financial distress.”
2-New Jersey
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New Jersey residents actually own more credit cards per person (nearly 6) than people in any other state. However, New Jerseyans have slowed down on opening cards, and they opened 4% fewer new cards during Q3 compared to Q3 2022. This could potentially be because many residents have already opened as many cards as they can handle.
3-Massachusetts
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Out of 50 states, Massachusetts ranks at #23. In the study, we are about half better than others, or half worse, depending on how you look at it.
