We’re not saying you shouldn’t have a credit card, and we’re not saying you shouldn’t use your credit card. We are saying it’s not a good idea to run up debt on it. There are two reasons for this:

1. Many credit cards tend to have very high interest rates.
2. The debts we run up on credit cards tend to be unplanned and, therefore, not in the budget.

Here’s the problem: It’s easy, really easy, to see use your credit card to buy things you hadn’t planned on buying. You see something you suddenly can’t live without, you plunk the plastic down, and you’re on your merry way, promising yourself you’ll figure out how to pay the bill later. Odds are, though, that if you didn’t know it existed yesterday, and if you didn’t walk into the store planning to buy it, you don’t need it. You might want it, but you probably don’t need it. Here’s the real question: do you want it more than the things you have been saving for and planning to spend your money on? Will you still want it that much tomorrow? Impulse buying will kill your budget - and credit cards make it very easy to buy on impulse.

How to avoid credit card debt?