Hello! 22yo , 697 credit score. Just got my first credit card today with 5k limit (approved for 18k but I'm scared) working full time salary $27 an hour. I have a lease on a car 5 years approx $550/month have leased it since oct '25 .
No missed payments on anything, did get a co-sign on my car as I didn't have any credit history at the time. What are the best ways to continue to build my credit?
Thank you!!
How to increase my credit score
byu/maymatv inpersonalfinance
Posted by maymatv
7 Comments
Credit Building: https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/credit_building
Credit Card Basics: https://www.reddit.com/r/CreditCards/wiki/credit_cards_basics
>>> Just got my first credit card today with 5k balance
How come you have a card balance when you only got it today?
The best way to build your credit is to make payments on time. The best way to use a credit card is to always pay off the balance in full we’ve month so you don’t pay interest.
When I got my first credit card , 3k balance, I paid it off 7-10 days later. Basically I only used it for gas, no big purchases and I made sure I had the money in my bank account first.
At 22 with a 697 you’re doing well. Auto drafting your bills prevents late payments and payment history is the biggest factor when determining your score. It also takes care of itself and make life much easier. If you are able to maintain discipline with the limit you have on the card and are comfortable with it, later you could ask for an increase and sit on it. This will lower your overall utilization and that is another large factor. The co-sign on the car isn’t a problem as long as payments stay on time. Once you’ve built some history you can likely refinance in your name alone.
The most important factors are time, length of your oldest account, payment history, number of accounts
As you learn to manage this card and pay the statement balance in full every month, you can feel comfortable opening new cards and not using them (outside of a monthly bill you put on autopay so that the account is active), but just keeping them open so that you have more accounts to build a stronger credit base
It will take time, but as long as you build a strong foundation and stick to the plan, in a few years, you’ll have an 800 credit score
Back in 2015 I had a 520 credit score and Capital One was the only one that would give me a card and it took me about seven years. I believe to hit 800 through responsible management of credit cards.
I can’t stress enough that if you can’t pay it all in full every month credit cards will never be worth using
3rd most important factor is time, so nothing you can do about that. Just continue making payments on car and the card (set up auto pay for the full balance).
I assume you are still living at home, as paying rent and a $500 car payment on that salary is gonna stretch you thin (unless you have a roommate or two).
You should have taken the full $18k.
Regardless if that first credit card hits your credit reports with a low balance relative to the limit (say below $500) you should easily see a 50 point boost.
Don’t stress the balance too much but it’s just an interesting tidbit to know. Since you’re scared you can just take it slow, use the card for 1 or 2 small purchases, and pay once you get the bill. No need to rush to put all your spending on the card.