Financial Feminist - 216. How to Use a Credit Card Without Going into Debt

Episode Date: February 27, 2025

Tori answers questions about all things credit cards –– including how to choose the right one for your lifestyle, how many credit cards you should have, how to use a credit card responsibly, and getting to know and utilize your rewards system. Resources mentioned: Our Credit Card Recomendations Episode: What Credit Card Companies Don’t Want You to Know with Vrinda Gupta  How to Build Credit Using Credit Cards Why You Need a Credit Score Read transcripts, learn more about our guests and sponsors, and get more resources at: https://herfirst100k.com/financial-feminist-show-notes/216-how-to-use-a-credit-card-without-going-into-debt/  Not sure where to start on your financial journey? Take our FREE money personality quiz: https://herfirst100k/quiz https://herfirst100k.com/quiz Looking for accountability, live coaching, and deeper financial education? Check out our exclusive community, The $100k Club: http://herfirst100k.com/100K-pod Special thanks to our sponsors: Squarespace Go to www.squarespace.com/FFPOD to save 10% off your first website or domain purchase. Rocket Money Stop wasting money on things you don’t use. Cancel your unwanted subscriptions by going to RocketMoney.com/FFPOD. Quince Get cozy in Quince's high-quality wardrobe essentials. Go to Quince.com/FFPOD for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Netsuite Download the CFO’s Guide to AI and Machine Learning at NetSuite.com/FFPOD. Gusto Run your first payroll with Gusto and get three months free at gusto.com/ffpod. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode, we are talking all about credit cards, what they are, how to use them responsibly, how to find the one that's right for you. And yeah, I talked some shit about Dave Ramsey. Let's go. Hello, financial feminists. Welcome back to the show. I'm excited to see you as always. I hope you're doing well. We are talking all about credit cards today on the show. And if you have been following us for a while, you know that I'm a big fan of credit cards. In fact, I think they're one of the best financial tools at our disposal to build our credit, make sure that we are setting ourselves up well in our financial lives, but also because you can get free shit with them. And who doesn't like some free shit?

Now, a lot of people here, Tori, you're a financial expert. Why do you recommend credit cards? I've been listening to people like you, who must not be named, Dave Ramsey, or I have just heard that credit cards are really, really bad, that they're going to get me into debt, they're going to prevent me from being able to progress financially in my life, and they're really, really dangerous, right? And maybe you've grown up with parents or family that has viewed credit cards in this way, that they are dangerous, they are slippery slopes, and you should never touch them under any circumstances. But I have to tell you, as a multimillionaire, as a personal finance expert, I love credit cards.

And while the advice that, you know, credit cards are dangerous and bad, it's well-meaning, right? It's trying to prevent you from going into debt. It does not treat you like an adult. Dave Ramsey comes on and talks about how credit cards and credit scores are I love debt scores. And that is completely bullshit advice. He basically tells us that we don't need a credit score, that

we shouldn't bother trying to build it. And I don't know what reality he lives in because you need a credit score to do almost anything. You want to buy a house? You need a credit score. You want to get a new car? You need a credit score. Sometimes you even just try to get a new apartment or even sometimes a job. They're going to need a credit score. You want to get a new car, you need a credit score. Sometimes you even just try to get a new apartment or even sometimes a job, they're going to check your credit score. The problem with not actually investing in increasing our credit score

is we are not setting ourselves up for success long-term. And a credit card is the best tool to build your credit as long as you use it responsibly. I believe I say this in the episode and I'm going to say it again right now. Credit cards are like a knife, right? You can cut yourself if you mishandle a knife. You can also make yourself dinner, right?

Knives are a necessary part of our life and our existence. And it's the same thing with credit cards. I am your personal finance expert that's not just a regular mom, but is a cool mom, and is going to tell you that credit cards are an incredibly powerful tool to build your credit, to level up your financial life, but to also protect yourself. We just had an incredible episode with Brian Kelly who runs The Points Guy and we talked about how credit cards can almost be used as a secondary emergency fund. So we talk

about emergency funds a lot on the show, right? Putting money in a high-yield savings account as your primary first financial goal to protect yourself should things happen. Having a credit card that gives you additional travel insurance or car insurance or when your cell phone gets stolen, cell phone insurance, or even enough points to get you out of the situation, right? Giving you the ability to fly home should a family member get sick

or should something happen where you need to leave the place you're in and go home. Credit cards are almost a secondary emergency fund. And this is what Dave Ramsey won't tell you. He won't tell you that credit cards are an incredibly powerful tool to build your credit, but also to even further protect yourself from financial emergencies. Some personal finance advice is not going to be for you, right?

We talk about on the show a lot, personal finance is personal. For example, if you're someone who uses credit cards, but has a hard time not overspending or not abusing them, yeah, you might not want to use credit cards for a bit. Or you might want to find the root of that financial trauma to understand what's actually going on. Why are you overspending? Why do you feel like you have to fill a void with how much money you spend, right?

And that's why when I wrote my book, for example, we start the whole first chapter, which is the longest chapter, by the way, about the emotions of money, about the psychology of money. Because I can't teach you how to use a credit card responsibly, I can't teach you how to budget or pay off debt or invest or do the rest of the things that I teach you how to do if you don't understand your financial triggers and you don't understand why you might have

the tendency to self-sabotage. So in general, the best thing you can do is understand these tools and how to use them so that when you are ready, you have the knowledge that you need. Which is why we're sharing this incredible episode answering our most commonly asked questions about credit cards. When should you get one? What one is right for you? How to use them responsibly? And the ones I recommend. And if you do want the link immediately as you're listening to the episode to the ones that I use and recommend, whether you're a student, whether you're a frequent traveler, you want to travel more for free, as you're listening to the episode to the ones that I use and recommend. Whether you're a student, whether you're a frequent traveler, you want to travel more

for free, whether you're a business owner, you can go to herfirsthundredk.com slash tools or the link that we've posted down below in the description. So let's get into the episode. But first a word from our sponsors. This episode of Financial Feminist is sponsored in part by Squarespace, Quince, Gusto, Rocket But first, a word from our sponsors. business owners or individuals building a website. Go to squarespace.com slash ffpod to save 10% off your first website or domain purchase. Treat yourself to everyday luxury at an affordable price with Quince. I just bought myself a new winter coat from Quince and not even with a gift card with my own hard earned money

because that's how much I love him. Go to quince.com slash ffpod for 365 day returns plus free shipping on your order. Did you start a subscription during the holidays to watch that one TV show or movie that you just couldn't find anywhere else and then you just got the bill because you forgot to cancel? Well, Rocket Money's got your back. Cancel your unwanted subscriptions by going to rocketmoney.com.ffpod. Take the headache out of payroll with Gusto.

Get three months free when you run your first payroll at gusto.com.ffpod. Fund your account in minutes at public.com slash FF pod and get up to $10,000 for transferring your old portfolio. Download the CFO's guide to AI and machine learning at netsuite.com slash FF pod. Warning. I've got this condition where I don't feel pain. You're a superhero.

This is how intense Novocaine sounds. Oh wow. Imagine how it looks. Yeah, big time. Hello, financial feminists. My name is Tori Dunlap. Okay. We are talking about one of the most common questions we get, which is what credit card is right for me? Do I need a credit card? What are the credit card options and benefits? And we're going to give you basically the complete guide to credit cards today. I have mentioned on a whole previous episode how I am not a debit card girly.

I am exclusively a credit card girly, meaning that I put everything I am not a debit card girly. I am exclusively a credit card girly, meaning that I put everything I can on a credit card to earn my maximum points, my maximum cash back, and also to limit my potential for fraud. Yeah, I just love fucking with some credit cards. So I'm going to tell you everything I wish I knew, everything that I know now, and all of the ways I'm able to use credit everything I wish I knew, everything that I know now, and all of the ways I'm able to use credit cards to literally get free shit, to travel for free, to get lounge access, to get just a shit ton of benefits, and how you can do it too. And no, it's not just for like the straight white guys who like travel all the time for

work. So first off, why do I need a credit card? Okay, you need a credit card to build credit. I know that sounds like a no duh. Credit card used responsibly is one of the easiest ways to start building your credit so that you can have a great credit score. We have talked again on multiple previous episodes. We'll link them down below about how to increase your credit score, about what a credit score

is, but easiest way to increase your credit score in order to give you all of the good things in life is to use a credit card responsibly. Responsibly being you're paying your bills on time and in full. Literally, so we just had a quick aside. Our podcast producer, Kristin, just told me that she had just moved, which is amazing, and they wanted to check her credit in order to get her utilities. And if they didn't check her credit or if she didn't have credit, they were going to charge her $250. You need credit to exist in this world. Now, credit's like a kind of bullshit thing.

We've talked about this before. But the current system that exists, you need good credit. The way to get good credit is to use credit responsibly. Easiest way to do that, use a credit card. Okay, how do I choose the best credit card? Now, the best is subjective to you, right? Personal finances, personal life, said it a million times.

But if, for example, you sign up for a Southwest Airlines credit card, but you never fly Southwest Airlines, that's not a good credit card for you. Right? If you sign up for a card at a store, but you never go to that store or you did it as like an impulse in order to get the 15% off whatever, probably not your best option for a credit card. So I need you to look at your financial situation and research cards based on that. Right. If you are a student, there's only so many cards you can qualify for right now

because you don't have a lot of established credit. If you are a frequent traveler, it might be beneficial to get a frequent travel card. If you are just looking for a good everyday card that checks all the boxes, that is secure, and that isn't anything fancy, I would recommend a cashback card. Cashback cards are simply you're putting purchases on a credit card. You're still paying them off in full, right? But you get points or cash back really, every time you make a purchase. Some of these cards are like one and a half percent cashback, which doesn't sound like a lot, but if you go and make a hundred dollar purchase, well, okay,

you just earned a little bit of money, right? That can either go towards a gift card or towards actually paying your statement balance. I'll say this multiple times in this episode, but we have all of our recommendations for things like a student card, a cash back card, our travel cards, all linked in our bio. You can also go to herfirsthundredk.com slash tools to see all the ones we recommend. Okay. How many credit cards should I have? A lot of people think, oh my God, I can't have a bunch of credit cards, or I have this one credit card and I'm scared to open another. Here's the thing. I have, hold on, I'm scared to open another. Here's the thing.

I have, hold on, I'm going to count in my head. One, two, three, four. I have like eight credit cards. But I only use two or three on a daily basis. Now, did I open eight credit cards when I was 18? No, I did not. Would that have been a bad decision? Yes, it would have been.

We are slowly opening up credit cards as our needs start to change. Again, when I was 18 and trying to open my first credit card, I could not qualify for one of the big fancy credit cards that's like metal and you hear it go thwack when you put it on a table, which is my credit card now and is such a flex and it's so fun. But when I was 18, I couldn't qualify for the Amex Platinum or the Chase Sapphire Reserve. I could qualify for a Discover card that looks like a cassette tape. I still have it. I still use it because I want my credit to stay high.

I want my credit score to stay high. One of the factors of credit is how long your credit's been around for, your credit history. So with that credit card that I opened when I was 18, that is not my everyday card anymore. But I opened it and keep it open with a purchase every once in a while. And as I started growing in my financial life, as I started making more money and I started traveling more and my needs started to change, I would upgrade my credit card about once a year or maybe once every other year. I went for my Discover card, then I went to a cash back card because

I could qualify for that. Then I went to an Alaska Airlines card because I was flying them all the time. Then I got further and further to the point where I could qualify for the bigger cards. Now, again, we are using our credit cards responsibly, right? So I'm not putting anything on any of these cards that I can't afford. I'm not putting anything on any of these cards that I can't afford to pay off. So the answer to how many credit cards you should have is really as many as you want and can manage. But you don't need 10. You don't need 20. You don't need a bunch of cards to like crazy travel hack. For some people that's their hobby. They literally have like a portfolio of credit cards. That's not me. I need you to not open them all at once. Because

what happens when you apply for a credit card is they do what's called a hard credit check. Anytime you do like a big life event, maybe that is, you know, purchasing a house, purchasing a car, yes, opening a credit card, they are checking your credit. A credit check is not a bad thing, but if you're getting your credit checked all the time, doing the hard credit check, not just like looking at your credit score and credit karma, but if you're getting a hard credit check, like multiple times a year, all the time, that can look like you're irresponsible. So don't just go on a crazy, like opening up a credit card frenzy. Be intentional about when and how you open the cards.

Remember that new credit cards might lower your score temporarily. So it's best to not open them before a big purchase, like a mortgage, right? Getting a mortgage for a house. like a mortgage, right? Getting a mortgage for a house. But I will also say that opening up a new credit card is great for a bigger, small purchase, if that makes sense, like a $2,000 purchase. Because many credit cards will have an introductory bonus. They will say, hey, if you spend, let's say $3,000 during these first three months, you get more points. You get a bigger cash back balance. One of the things you can do to earn that is to strategically wait to open up your credit card before you know you're about to buy something. If I'm

about to go to Europe and I'm about to spend $1,500 on a flight, great time to potentially open a credit card. And if you're that person who did just open a credit card or is thinking about opening one and you're like, how do I get that bonus? Think strategically, right? Set aside your big purchases for that time, pay for dinner and ask people to Venmo you, maybe even buy gift cards that you can use later with your credit card, again, as long as you can afford it, so that you can hit that bonus. I'm about to go to New York for a bunch of exciting things, one of which is so even exciting, I can't tell you. But it is so cold, guys.

I'm checking the weather literally right now, and it's supposed to be like 12 degrees. And luckily, I bought a big old coat from Quince, and it's the warmest thing I've ever put on my body. Quince is my go-to for luxury essentials at affordable prices. They're offering cashmere sweaters for $50 and it's incredible quality but they're cutting out the middleman and so that's how they're able to get you all of these great things at great prices. They only work with factories that use safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing practices,

so you know you're doing good while also getting real cute. Give yourself the luxury you deserve with Quince. Go to quince.com slash ffpod for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash ffpod to get free shipping and 365 day returns quince dot com slash ff pod. One of the reasons people avoid growing or starting their own business is because they're

nervous about how they're going to do payroll. They're like this seems super complicated and I don't want to do it myself and I don't want the pressure of it. But you don't have to have that excuse anymore because Gusto's here. I have used Gusto as both a business owner, we have used Gusto for years now, way before they were sponsoring the show, and I've also used it as a employee.

I was getting paid through Gusto at my previous job, and I would be saying this regardless of whether they were sponsoring the show or not, it is the best payroll platform available, especially for small businesses. Nine out of 10 businesses, including mine, are likely to recommend Gusto. And 82% of customers say Gusto makes running payroll easier.

Gusto was built for small businesses from the start and it works with you. So it's unlimited payroll, including off-cycle payrolls. You're not paying like every time you run payroll, it's just included in the price. And they also integrate with your favorite tools like QuickBooks, Google, and more. Try Gusto out for three months free at gusto.com slash FF pod. That's gusto.com slash FF pod. All right. We have a lovely question from a guest about breaking up and dealing with

shared credit cards. First of all, congratulations. Also, sorry for breaking up. I never know what to say. I'm either like, yay, good for you. Congratulations. Or also, this is sad. Second, it depends on a couple things. And literally, this is the I'm actually going to let you listen to this. I am going to Google it because I'm curious actually how this affects credit. You can hear my little clickety clack. I'm literally Googling shared credit cards removing user because what you might want to do is if you want to keep one of you on the card, remove one of you. But I don't know if you have a balance if you can do that. I don't think you can. Oh, see, there you go. See, I didn't know

this. Removing a name from the account. Unlike a credit card with an authorized user, which is just like, you know, one person, me, you generally cannot simply remove one name from a joint credit card. Most issuers will require you to close the account. And then it says, some places will allow you to remove one person. But, oh, however, the amount cannot be changed or usually the account cannot be changed until the balance is paid off. Okay. So if you pay your bills on time and in full, this is going to be very easy. You probably just close the card, right? You just close the card, you call it good. If you do have a balance though, this is where it gets a little spicy, is you have to kind of decide who's paying what? Is one person paying all of it? If it was joint expenses, maybe you're splitting

that in half or you're splitting that equitably, but that's where things start to get a little spicy, right? So if you don't have a balance, I would say just close the account, call it good, unless here's the thing. See, this is why I had to Google it. Because if this is your longest line of credit, that could potentially hurt your credit score. But I would say that this is one of those exceptions where I just want you to get out. I just want you to be done with it.

It's worth the temporary credit hits if it means that, okay, you're done with this person financially and you don't have to deal with that anymore. Closing a joint credit card is not going to remove it from your credit report. If you close the account in good standing, meaning that you don't have a balance on it, your credit score is not going to take that much of a hit. My answer, do it clean if you can. If you do have a balance, that needs to be a conversation about who is responsible for what, how are we going to pay off this credit card. And if you were the person that got saddled with all of this credit card debt, that's a different story.

And I'm really fucking sorry, because that's not fair to you. A couple other questions about credit cards. We talked about this before, but I really want to highlight it. What does it mean to use a credit card responsibly? Paying it off in full and on time. So if you have $1,000 that you were putting on a credit card and your $1,000 payment is due on the 10th of the month, this means that by the 10th of the month, you have sent in a thousand dollars to them. You can typically set this up on autopilot from your bank account.

You can literally say, okay, hello, Capital One or Chase or whomever. I would like you to make sure that I'm paying my credit card off fully. So take the full balance of the bill out of my account every month. This is what I do. If you wait, if you're either late or you pay part of it, you are now in debt or you're getting charged a late fee, really and or potentially. So credit cards are not bad.

They're actually great tools. We talk about this in my book, Financial Feminists. They're kind of like knives. Knives can hurt you. They're also a great tool to cut things like vegetables, right? You need to use them responsibly and smartly. Credit cards are not the devil. Dave Ramsey wants you to believe that. They're not. They're really actually helpful

as long as you use them responsibly. We've talked about this in previous episodes as well. So I'm going to give you the like quick hit and if this still doesn't make sense to you go back and listen. You also want to keep your credit utilization under 30% if possible, meaning you're utilizing less than 30% of your total credit in order to boost your credit score. in order to boost your credit score. When you're a business owner, it requires you to try to predict the future, but that's really hard to do.

I can't do that, no one can do that. And if you ask nine experts on what the future holds, you're gonna get 10 answers. If I had a crystal ball, I would ask it if I'm gonna actually marry Timothee Chalamet. I would also ask it what the future is for my business. So until we invent a crystal ball, over 41,000 businesses have future-proofed their business if I'm gonna actually marry Timothy Chalamet. I would also ask it what the future is for my business. So until we invent a crystal ball,

over 41,000 businesses have future proofed their business with NetSuite by Oracle, the number one cloud ERP, bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, HR into all one fluid platform. They have real-time insights and forecasting, so you're peering into the future with actionable data. And when you close your books in days, not weeks, you are spending less time looking backward and more time on what's next. Whether your company is earning millions or even hundreds of millions,

NetSuite is the way you respond to immediate challenges and seize your biggest opportunities. Speaking of opportunity, you can download the CFO's guide to AI and machine learning at netsuite.com slash ffpod. The guide is free to you at netsuite.com slash FF pod, netsuite.com slash FF pod. When you're a business owner, it requires you to try to predict the future, but that's really hard to do. I can't do that, no one can do that.

And if you ask nine experts on what the future holds, you're gonna get 10 answers. If I had a crystal ball, I would ask it if I'm gonna going to marry Timothy Chalamet. I would also ask it what the future is for my business. So until we invent a crystal ball, over 41,000 businesses have future-proofed their business with NetSuite by Oracle, the number one cloud ERP, bringing accounting, financial management, inventory, HR into all one fluid platform.

They have real-time insights and forecasting, so you're peering into the future with actionable data. And when you close your books in days, not weeks, you are spending less time looking backward and more time on what's next. Whether your company is earning millions or even hundreds of millions, NetSuite is the way you respond to immediate challenges and seize your biggest opportunities.

Speaking of opportunity, you can download the CFO's guide to AI and machine learning at netsuite.com slash ffpod. The guide is free to you at netsuite.com slash ffpod, netsuite.com slash ffpod. All right, my favorites. What are some perks that credit cards offer? My favorite part, let's talk about perks. Two most common perks are rewards points and cash back. Rewards points and cash back can be redeemed for discounts on flights, hotels, or car rentals,

hotel room upgrades, cash back or statement credit, gift cards, tickets to events, physical products and a lot more. I have used points that I have gotten to fly, literally points that I racked up with airline miles, got me to New Zealand with Christine. Like no money. It was like I paid for the fees for the flight. That normally from Seattle to New Zealand, we did Seattle to Fiji, Fiji to Sydney, Sydney to New Zealand, is usually a $2500 flight. Got it for free. We love it. We love to see it. I have literally gotten thousands of dollars over the past, let's say, six years in cashback and rewards. So you can redeem your rewards points in cash back for all those options.

My other favorite part is all of the other things credit cards can get you. I have a laundry list. Here we go. First, some credit cards, and again, we have the ones that offer this linked at herfirsthundredk.com slash tools or linked in our bio. Some credit cards offer airline lounge access.

There is no better feeling than waltzing into a lounge in any airport in the world, getting a full gourmet meal plus alcohol for free and the ability to curl up in a comfy chair. I have saved so much money avoiding the overpriced airport food and during these long layovers, I've been able to reserve literally a napping room or a bathroom with a shower. Christine and I flew in 2019 to London. We flew all night. I woke up at 7 a.m. London time, completely gross. I had been on a plane. We checked into the lounge. We got a full English breakfast. We got coffee and we got an hour reserved in a bathroom with a shower. That paid for itself. That

felt so good. I got to change out of my gross underwear. I got to wash my hair. It was like, ugh, it was so good. You don't have to be someone like me who's traveling every other week either. Maybe you just go on vacation once or twice a year, but you're like, I don't want to buy the $40 airport chicken sandwich that tastes like shoes. It's so good guys. Airport lounge access, worth the weight in gold. Another flight perk, TSA pre-check. Pre-check is expedited screening throughout your checkpoints. You don't have to take off your belt. You don't have to take off your shoes. I get through the airport in like two seconds. Clear is also a potential benefit. I get with my cards TSA pre-check for free, which is $75, and clear for free, which is $189. I have not waited in an airport line longer than 10 minutes.

I literally cannot tell you the last time. Global entry is also a potential perk for free. It is Global entry is also a potential perk for free. It is basically like you get access into countries or really back into your home country for way less time. You avoid the lines. This is where this came in handy. I'm realizing the majority of this episode is just going to be telling you stories about how amazing these things are and I'm not mad about it. I was coming back from Vancouver, Canada, back into the United States.

I went for my birthday last year. We roll up this line to get our car back into the States was three hours long, at least. You know what wasn't three hours long? A full separate line for global entry. We literally just drove up. We were through that line in 30 seconds. Incredible. Paid for itself. Okay. Seat upgrades, potential perk. Priority boarding, potential perk. Food and beverage credits. Flight delay protection. This one is so crucial. I didn't realize how hyped I was going to get this episode, but truly, if you get delayed, if your flight gets canceled, if you have to stay overnight in a hotel, your credit card will pay for it. Your credit card will pay for it. So you don't have to worry

about it. Also, sometimes they'll pay for trip insurance, right? That little thing at the end when you're booking a flight and it's like, do you want to pay for travel insurance? And you're like, no, I'm not paying extra money. Sometimes your credit card will have that for you. Sometimes they'll do baggage delay insurance. There's also lost luggage reimbursement. If your just luggage never shows up, they will reimburse you for it. Okay. Hotel perks. This is also available with some credit cards. My credit cards that I love also give me early check-in or late check-out. I have some cards that'll let me check out at 4 p.m. If I got a late flight, nothing better than sleeping in bed till 4 p.m. Sometimes they'll do food and beverage credits,

or they'll do check-in gifts. I checked into a hotel two years ago to go to Disneyland. We got unlimited bottled water and some snacks. Doesn't sound like a lot, but it was nice. It was lovely. Didn't have to worry about it. Sometimes there's spa and some snacks. Doesn't sound like a lot, but it was nice. It was lovely. Didn't have to worry about it. Sometimes there's spa and retail credit. There's room upgrades. Christine and I last year were in New Orleans for my birthday. This was two years ago.

Credit cards got us a free upgrade to an executive suite. This hotel room had two bathrooms. In the room, there were two bathrooms. Never experienced that before. And an amazing view in the room. There were two bathrooms. Never experienced that before. And an amazing view of the city. Free parking, upgraded Wi-Fi, concierge services. Okay, couple of the other things that are really amazing. Car rental insurance. For most credit cards, you get car rental insurance, meaning again, that you are covered as long as you put the cost of that car rental on that credit card. They

often will get you at like Hertz or budget. They'll go, oh, do you want your own insurance? And if you don't, you're liable. You don't have to pay them because it's already included as a benefit. Priority access to events. There's credit for streaming services. I get peacock for free. I need to watch the office constantly. It's great. No foreign transaction fees is huge. Meaning that if you go abroad and you use your credit card, you're not charged extra for using it abroad. And one of the things you don't realize until you need it is some cards will also cover emergency medical or dental deposits or costs when you're traveling. If you have to go to urgent care, if something happens and you need medical assistance, they will comp that for you. Again, depends on the card.

A lot of these more robust benefits are available for these higher ticket cards. A lot of credit cards have an annual fee. The annual fee is sometimes like 50 bucks. Sometimes for something like the Amex Platinum that I have, it is $700. Now, is that a lot? Yes. But does it pay for itself? 100% yes. When you consider, okay, TSA pre-check $75, I get a $250 travel credit every year. I get airport lounge access and I'm not paying for food, right? It very easily pays for itself.

Okay, this is the like TLDR to credit cards. Obviously, I'm a huge proponent of signing up for a credit card, starting to build credit, and getting free shit. There's very few moments in life where you get to have free shit that makes you feel fancy. So start building credit. If you don't have a credit card, if you're ready to upgrade your credit card, we have our recommendations linked. Get on it. I truly cannot say enough good things, but please make sure you're using them responsibly. You're paying them off on time and in full. Don't let the knife cut you. Use it to make a yummy veggie stir fry. As always, Financial Feminist, we appreciate you being here. We appreciate your support. If you like this episode about credit cards,

please feel free to share it. And if you want to see more episodes where we're answering your frequently asked questions, send us a voicemail. We'll talk to you soon. Thanks for being here. Thank you for listening to Financial Feminist, a Her First 100k podcast. Financial Feminist is hosted by me, Tori Dunlap, produced by Kristen Fields and Tamesha Grant. Research by Sarah Shortino. Audio and video engineering by Alyssa Medcalf. Marketing and operations by Carina Patel and Amanda LeFeue. Special thanks to our team at Her First 100k. Kailin Sprinkle, Masha Bakhmakiyeva, Taylor Chou, Sasha Bonar, Ray Wong, Elizabeth McCumber, Claire Karonen, Darrell Ann Ingman, and Megan Walker.

Promotional graphics by Mary Stratton, photography by Sarah Wolf, and theme music by Jonah Cohen Sound. A huge thanks to the entire Her First 100k community for supporting the show. For more information about Financial Feminist, Her First 100k, our guests, and episode show notes, visit financialfeministpodcast.com. If you're confused about your personal finances and you're wondering where to start, go to herfirst100k.com slash quiz for a free personalized money plan.