Hot take: I thought paying off a credit card early was always dumb

For years, I kept a small balance on my card because I heard it helped your score. My score was stuck at 720. Last month, I paid the whole $1,200 off before the statement even closed, and my score jumped 40 points the next cycle. I guess showing zero usage can actually be better than carrying debt. Has anyone else seen their score go up after clearing everything out?

3 comments

3 Comments

simonp7611d ago

So @west.richard, does paying it off early like that always boost your score that much?

laura_schmidt8211d ago

Yeah it can backfire too. If you pay it off too early, the card might report a zero balance. Then it looks like you're not using credit at all. That can actually hurt your score a bit.

west.richard11d ago

Honestly that whole "carry a balance" thing is such a myth. It just costs you money in interest for no good reason. Paying it off to zero before the statement cuts is the real move. My score did the same thing when I finally stopped listening to that bad advice.