Using a lot of your credit limit, but paying it off immediately?

Money_and_Travel

Clearscore says that using more than 70% of your available credit is a bad sign.

Does that still apply, if you pay it off immediately, ie. before the statement arrives?

kaMelo

Ignore what Clearscore says. Running a very high balance on a credit card for a long period of time may indicate to other lenders that you are in financial distress as you're unable to reduce your balance but, if this is a one off then no one will bat an eyelid.

If you intend to pay your balance off if full it makes no difference whether you wait for a statement to be produced or not.

born_again

Rule of thumb, ignore what CRA's say. All they are interested in is selling you something.

MEM62

Clearscore says that using more than 70% of your available credit is a bad sign.

The day they become lenders instead of data collectors their opinion might mean something.

dumpster_fire2025

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6683881/using-a-lot-of-your-credit-limit-but-paying-it-off-immediately

Your credit card balance is reported on the statement generation date, not before, not after.

If the balance is zero on statement date, they will report a zero balance. If you pay most of it off and leave £500, they will report a balance of £500.

You could put a billion pounds through it in a month (theoretically) but if the balance when they generate the statement is £0, that is what is reported to the CRAs.

Barkin

Hmmm…

My latest report shows one of my LBG cards with a balance of £11.

At no time in 2026 has that card had a statement balance of £11

HillStreetBlues

I just looked at my credit files for my Aqua, not one of the three reported on the statement date (15th). They were the 3rd, 6th & 30th

dumpster_fire2025

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82160877#Comment_82160877

Three different cards with Aqua? Perhaps these are anniversary dates of the card opening?

Barkin

One Aqua card - three CRA's, with none reported on the statement date.

dumpster_fire2025

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82164056#Comment_82164056

But are they reported on teh same date?

Barkin

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82165351#Comment_82165351

HillStreetBlues6 Oct 2026

I just looked at my credit files for my Aqua, not one of the three reported on the statement date (15th). They were the 3rd, 6th & 30th