Paying in full but still carrying a balance

Y23A

Can someone please help me.

I have a couple of credit cards; I've been using to boost my credit score. I spend below 50% of my limit on each card and always clear my balance every month.

However having checked my online statements, a couple of times it seems I've paid some interest and even carried a balance from one month to the next without realising it, this is despite always clearing my balances before the end of the month.

Card 1; says the payment must reach them by the 6th and it appears statements come out on the 11th of each month.

Card 2; appears to require a payment by the 13th and new statements come out on the 18th.

I feel like I've gotten confused and can't figure out when I need to not use the cards to ensure I'm never carrying a balance. I don't want to feel like I can never use the cards, as I find them useful and I only pay for what I can afford; but don't want to be paying any interest or reducing any benefit to my credit score by carrying a balance I didn't intend to from month to month.

If someone could help me understand where I'm going wrong, I would really appreciate it.

Thank you

eco_warrior

You can use cards at all points in the month. Key thing is to pay in full before the due dates. If you miss by even a day you’ll be charged some interest and over two months at least.

Maybe set up a DD for full payment and you’ll be fine that way?

Lastly, some transactions are treated as cash and so interest can accrue immediately so if you’ve made any like this you cannot avoid interest. So cash withdrawals, gambling etc.

Y23A

I'm aware of the negatives around using credit cards as cash and avoid using them as such.

Mostly; I just can't figure out when I should be making payments; until this evening I thought I never carried a balance as my cards are always cleared days before the end of the month and I don't start using them again until the 2nd week of the month, so I was really sure I had this worked out.

[Deleted User]

You simply need to clear the statemented balance in full by the due date each month.

If you are already carrying an interest bearing balance, you will need to clear two statements in full to stop trailing interest.

Y23A

Deleted_User wrote: »

You simply need to clear the statemented balance in full by the due date each month.

If you are already carrying an interest bearing balance, you will need to clear two statements in full to stop trailing interest.

So ref; my OP with Card 1, if I clear the balance by the 6th (or would I have to do it 5 days before that date?), would I not need to clear the card again until into the next month when the 6th comes round again?

Sorry if I'm labouring a point; I just really want to understand, and make sure I avoid making mistakes in the future.

eco_warrior

The due dates should be on your statements on your online banking?

Mind sometimes payments don’t clear immediately but this should be explained in the T&Cs so you can pay earlier if need be.

[Deleted User]

Y23A wrote: »

So ref; my OP with Card 1, if I clear the balance by the 6th (or would I have to do it 5 days before that date?), would I not need to clear the card again until into the next month when the 6th comes round again?

You pay by the due date. That may or may not be the 6th. It is very likely to vary each month.

Check your statements.

[Deleted User]

So long as you clear in full after the statement you won’t pay interest.

And don’t try and boost an imaginary score

redux

Some cards move due date slightly to fall on certain days, but some have the same date each month.

If you're paying by standing order, allow for weekends and bank holidays.

Dobbibill

OP - I would consider a DD to pay in full.
The DD will take the amount shown on the statement at the right time.

Y23A

Dobbibill wrote: »

OP - I would consider a DD to pay in full.
The DD will take the amount shown on the statement at the right time.

I was a bit nervous to do a DD for some reason; perhaps because sometimes I like the flexibility of paying my CC bill from different sources.

However; I'm not happy with having recurring balances and feeling worried about making mistakes so I've now setup a DD for each credit card to pay the full balance each month.

Thank you everyone for your replies.