28% of Middle-Income Americans Are Reliant on Credit Cards Today. Here's How to Break That Cycle

The past few years have been challenging for U.S. consumers. First, there was a massive unemployment crisis fueled by the pandemic. Following that, there was a period of rampant inflation that still hasn't quite settled down.

All told, many consumers have been forced to rely on their credit cards to cover their expenses. And middle earners are no exception.

In a recent Primerica survey of middle-income households (defined as having incomes of $30,000 to $130,000), 28% of respondents said they've been using their credit cards more. But being dependent on credit cards to pay your bills is not a good financial situation to be in at all.

Carrying even a modest credit card balance long enough could cost you a lot of money in interest. And too much credit card debt could also damage your credit score, making it harder to borrow money when you need to. So if you've become credit card-dependent, it pays to take these steps to break that cycle.

1. Reduce your spending to build up savings

A big reason consumers are often forced to reach for a credit card is that they don't have money in a savings account to tap for unplanned larger expenses. If that sounds like you, it's important to establish some type of financial cushion -- even if it's just $500 or so in the bank to start.

Take a look at your spending and see where there's room to cut back. You don't have to commit to reduced spending forever. But you should try to reduce or eliminate non-essential expenses for now until you're sitting on more of an emergency fund.

Keep in mind that there may be some compromises you can make to reduce the sting of having to slash expenses. If skipping social plans to free up cash makes you unhappy, instead of sentencing yourself to weekends stuck at home by yourself, get creative and invite friends to join you for no-cost activities, like outings to local parks. 

2. Join the gig economy

Getting a second job is another great way to boost your income, build up savings, and become less reliant on credit cards. And as is the case with cutting your spending, working a side gig isn't something you have to commit to forever. You just need to do it for a long enough period to improve your financial situation. 

Plus, a lot of the gigs you'll find available allow you to work at your own pace and on your own schedule. So if you can't commit to preset hours, or if you don't want to, don't. Instead, do something like drive for a ride-hailing service, since that allows you to pick up passengers at times that work for you. 

It's not all that shocking to learn that a large chunk of middle earners are falling back on credit cards. But that's also not a great thing. So if you've gotten into the habit of charging more and more bills on your credit cards and carrying those balances forward, try to break that cycle as soon as possible -- before the damage really becomes severe.