Do You Have Too Many Credit Cards? Here's How to Tell

Having several different credit cards is not a bad thing, as different cards have their own unique rewards programs and cardholder perks. But you can definitely have too much of a good thing.

How can you tell if the number of credit cards has gotten out of control? Watch for these key signs that you have too many cards in your wallet, so you can take action.

1. You can't keep up with payments

Not being able to keep up with payments is an immediate red flag that you have too many credit cards. If this happens, you could miss a payment by mistake, which could do serious damage to your credit as even a single late payment could reduce your score by more than 100 points.

If you are having a hard time monitoring your spending to stay on budget and you end up carrying a balance on your cards, you could also end up paying a fortune in interest charges.

So, be sure you keep your cards to a manageable number. It'll help you keep track of your balances so you can pay them in full, and ensure that you know when every payment is due and can pay them on time out of your checking account.

2. You lose track of cardholder benefits, perks, and rewards offers

One of the main purposes of having multiple credit cards is to take advantage of different rewards programs and cardholder perks. For example, you might have one great travel credit card that provides you with airline lounge access and that you use to book all your trips to get bonus points and miles. And you might have another card you use for gas and groceries because you get more cash back for these purchases with that card.

It makes sense to have a couple of cards to take advantage of the special features and bonus rewards that each one offers. But at some point, you may end up with so many cards that you can't remember which to use for each purpose or what rewards each one even offers.

If you'd need to consult a list to decide which card to use when, if you regularly use the wrong card, or if you have tons of redundant perks on cards and can't possibly use all of them, this is a good indicator that it's time to simplify your financial system.

3. You aren't getting enough rewards on any one card to make them worth redeeming

Finally, if you have so many cards you don't end up accruing enough points on any one to be able to redeem your rewards, then you should cut down the number you have.

Say, for example, that you have a travel card that earns miles and you need around 100 miles on the card for each $1 of flight cost. So, to book a $300 flight, you'd need 30,000 miles. If you have so many cards you barely use your travel card, you may never build up enough miles for it to make sense to redeem.

For many people, it's a good idea to have a few cards -- maybe three to five, depending on how varied your spending is and how interested you are in maximizing your rewards. But the important thing is to keep the number manageable for you, so you can actually redeem your rewards, know which card to use when, and make your payments in full on time every time. If you can't do that, stop using some of your cards ASAP to get things back under control.