 TITLE: 5 Ways to Break Bad Credit Habits CONTENT: Keep Your Credit Utilization Low\n--------------------------------\nCredit utilization is the second most influential factor in your FICO® Score, making up 30% of the calculation. Your credit utilization rate is the percentage of your available credit that you're using at a given time. For example, a card with a $5,000 balance and a $10,000 credit limit has a 50% utilization rate.\nDuring the coronavirus pandemic, credit utilization rates dropped as spending went down. But the average rate is still 25%, which is high enough to be keeping credit scores down. A credit utilization in the single digits will go far toward helping your credit score.\nPaying your bills on time and in full is an excellent way to keep your utilization rate low. But even then, credit card issuers typically report information to the credit bureaus based on your statement balance, not the balance on your due date. So if you rack up a huge balance relative to your limit every month but pay it in full when it's due, your rate may still be high.\nTo ensure that your credit utilization stays low, try to keep credit card purchases to a minimum. If you pay your bill in full every month, that's excellent. But if your utilization rate is still high on your statement date, consider making multiple payments throughout the month to keep the balance low. END