5 Ways Credit Cards Make Our Lives Easier

We live busy lives these days. Between work, going to the supermarket and chauffeuring our kids around town, sometimes it can be tough to catch your breath. A lot of people don’t realize it, but credit cards help save us time. From not having to carry a wallet full of cash to consumer protection, credit cards make our lives easier in many ways.

Consumer Protection

Credit cards offer protection you wouldn’t get when paying with good old fashioned cash. When you pay with cash, your money is often as good as gone. Many credit cards offer extended warrantees beyond the manufacturer’s warrantee. This comes in handy when buying electronics like computers and TVs. When paying for services, your credit card has you covered as well. If you pay for an event in advance and it’s cancelled without a refund, if you paid by credit card, you can ask for a chargeback.

Contactless Payments

Why waste time counting bills and coins when you don’t have to? Contactless payment makes paying for goods and services easier than ever. With MasterCard PayPass and Visa payWave, making small purchases is as easy as tapping your credit card. This makes last minute trips to the supermarket for bread, eggs and milk a lot easier.

Budgeting

Budgeting and tracking your spending are a lot easier with a credit card. If you’re paying in cash, it can be a hassle to keep all your receipts (not to mention they can get lost). When you pay with your credit card, tracking your spending is as easy as reviewing your credit card statement. You can tally up all your spending and see if you’re under or over budget for the month. It doesn’t get any easier than that!

Path to Homeownership

By using your credit card responsibly, you can help build yourself a good credit score. Without a solid history of managing credit responsibly, it can be very difficult to obtain a loan. Plus, having no credit history can sometimes be as bad as having a poor credit history. By paying off your credit card in full each month, it can go a long way to getting approved for a mortgage later on.

Lightening Your Wallet

Money is heavy. Have you ever tried carrying a wallet full of cash and coins? It’s not a pretty sight! Not only are credit cards lighter, they’re safer, too. When you’re walking the streets alone at night, what do you feel safer with, a wad of cash or credit cards? I’m willing to bet the latter. With credit cards you have the added bonus of zero liability – if your wallet is lost or stolen, in most cases you aren’t responsible for purchases made by someone else.

The Bottom Line

These are just five of the ways credit cards make our lives easier. Remember to use your credit card responsibly – only buy what you can afford to pay off in full once your credit card statement comes due. It’ll go a long way to building a good credit score.