Wheee! I paid off my credit card today. Have you ever paid "interest" on a credit card?
By The Horse
@TheHorse (235703)
Walnut Creek, California
January 14, 2026 12:42pm CST
I understand that credit card companies make money by charging their customers "interest" if they do not pay off their credit card bill every month. They are basically loaning people money at a pretty high interest rate.
I have no idea what "interest rates" on credit cards are right now, as I pay off my credit card every month.
Do you use a credit card? I use a credit card for most of my purchases, because I get "cash back" on those purchases. I have mine set so I get 3 per cent back on gas station purchases,and 2 per cent back on grocery purchases. It's not much, but I'll take it.
I am not interested in "rewards" that I'll never use.
Do you use credit cards for some of your purchases? Do you get "rewards" of some kind or another? Do you payoff your credit card every month? If you do not (and even if you do), do you know what interest rate your card charges for outstanding balances?
17 people like this
19 responses
@DaddyEvil (170157)
• United States
14 Jan
No, we don't have credit cards. Pretty has never had one and I haven't had one since she was a teenager. (I was trapped paying off credit cards her mom had while we were married and didn't enjoy it.) I have a credit account with PayPal but have never used it.
I either pay cash for stuff, use my PayPal debit card or write checks. (Yes, I still have a checkbook/account.)
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (495649)
• Italy
15 Jan
I should know how much the interest is, because they send a notice, but I never paid interests because I always pay off my credit card every month.
I get a "cash back" on my credit card, it's not a lot but something like $ 5 a month.
I think that the interest rate my card charges is 9.5%, but I am not sure.
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (131222)
• Marion, Ohio
14 Jan
I almost always pay it off. I earn Amazon rewards with mine
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (131222)
• Marion, Ohio
15 Jan
@TheHorse I do so signed up for their card. The year I bought my truck my rewards were then enough to do all of my Christmas shopping.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (235703)
• Walnut Creek, California
15 Jan
@wolfgirl569 How much were you able to put on your card?
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (49983)
• Staten Island, New York
15 Jan
I have two credit cards that have balances on them. One is for a mattress I bought and the other is for living room furniture. I am paying them off monthly but only because they have 0% interest for 36 months on them. If that wasn’t the case, I would’ve paid them off in full right away. Makes no sense to throw money away in interest unless not enough money to pay them off right away.
I prefer to use credit cards when making purchases, even for small amounts, to get cash back. Plus, it makes for a faster checkout and it’s easier to keep track of the spending.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (49983)
• Staten Island, New York
16 Jan
@TheHorse Some stores have a $5 minimum to use a card. Some have an even higher minimum.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (235703)
• Walnut Creek, California
16 Jan
@lovebuglena I rarely buy anything that costs less than $5.00.
1 person likes this
@Ineeddentures (22344)
•
16 Jan
I ain't ever had a credit card.
I have never had an overdraft or a loan
I have a debit card.
I wouldn't want to be borrowing and paying interest on the amount I borrowed.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (235703)
• Walnut Creek, California
16 Jan
@Ineeddentures Some people look at money differently.
1 person likes this
@Ineeddentures (22344)
•
16 Jan
@TheHorse
So many people don't , always thought you were sensible with money. Same as me
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (186784)
• Boise, Idaho
14 Jan
I usually pay the complete balance each month. But there are times I can't, so I pay interest on a small portion from time to time. The one card I use has what is called a 'Thank you' amount monthly that I can get in cash, a gift card or whatever. I use it only in an emergency and it is a nice amount I like to keep on the back burner in case I need it.
1 person likes this
@velvet53 (24419)
• Palisade, Colorado
15 Jan
I was paying it off every month until I got into a bind. Then it started adding up. I was tired of paying their interest. So I was talking to my oldest son one day about it and he said "Hey mom I will loan you the money to pay it off then you won't have anymore interest". I took him up on it. What I thought would take me 12 to 15 months to pay it off only took me a little over 10 months. I am going to gicve him a little extra cause he saved me a lot of money.
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (95365)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
14 Jan
I gave up all my credit cards when I left for Latvia in 1994 and since then have only used debit cards,
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (95365)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
15 Jan
@TheHorse nope but I would probably wind up homeless if I got into credit card debt,
@Traceyjayne (8985)
• United Kingdom
16 Jan
I use a credit card and Mom has one linked to my account too. I pay it off every month so never pay interest. I had the card originally to get vouchers for a local store. I make the card work for me ….not the other way round.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (216559)
• United States
15 Jan
I use my credit cards whenever possible and pay them off each month. I love the cash back. The interest rates are double digit...I don't remember how much. Wait. I will look. 17% on one with 23% on cash advances. I would never pay that.
1 person likes this
@Melanie_Marie (2447)
• St. Clair, Michigan
15 Jan
I have two (secured) credit cards, and I pay them off in full every month. The credit union is helping me get my credit up, and the 2 secured credit cards are all part of the plan.
It’s working. 
1 person likes this
@Melanie_Marie (2447)
• St. Clair, Michigan
22 Jan
@TheHorse It means I had to put my own money on the credit cards, and that amount is my credit limit. So basically I’m just spending and re-spending my own money on these cards, but paying back every dollar I spend each month. This gives you more revolving credit and shows you are paying everything back in full, on time, and can be trusted to do so.
All of this raises your credit little by little. It’s a very boring process, but it sure does work.
@chiyosan (30186)
• Philippines
14 Jan
I have had my share of paying credit card interest when i was just starting out and life was difficult then. Thank God we got over those years of cc debt.
Now i pay my monthly card bill in full and have not paid any interest not even annual membership fees! Yay! Its so much better not worrying about those finance charges.
I always think about the credit card as a debit card so i only spend what i can pay come due date.
1 person likes this
@BarBaraPrz (51517)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
14 Jan
I tried to answer earlier this afternoon but I kept getting error messages. Anyway, I use my card for just about all my purchases. I get points that can be used as money at a few stores.
1 person likes this
@kaylachan (83569)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
15 Jan
I try not to hold a balance, but I think discover charges around 24 percent or something like that. I do know they make the rate viewable I just don't want to look it up.
1 person likes this
@FourWalls (84052)
• United States
14 Jan
Oh there was a time when I paid interest out the wazoo. Thank God those days are over. I have a hotel rewards card, so I get points for free nights by using my card...then I pay it off every month.
1 person likes this
@Marilynda1225 (89244)
• United States
14 Jan
I have one card that I pay off each month and another that unfortunately I'm paying interest on. That one should be paid off soon. Interest rates are crazy high
1 person likes this
