No credit card required
Browse credit cards from a variety of issuers to see if there's a better card for you.
@JSS3 wrote:500 or below.
Anything someone else can rack up spending on and you don't panic too much. Not a lot of damage can be done with those limits. I'd also be ok giving a 16 yr old a $500 credit card but not a $1000 one.
I like your example with the 16yr old, but maybe a 10 year old would make more sense.
If you are comfortable giving the card to a child, then it would be a toy limit. Although, some kids are more responsable than others...haha
1,000 and under is a toy limit for me. But if the limit is say 1,500-2000+ then it I consider it useable. That and my monthly spending is quite erratic because of where I work, some months I have more tips and a bigger check so I spend more, whereas sometimes It's slow and I have a smaller amount of tips and a smaller check and therefore I have to cut my spending. It just depends really, but I use my Chase cards more since they offer me higher limits which in turn helps my UTL since I'm not a large spender.
@TheConductor wrote:This question comes up frequently, and I don't think it ever proves useful to discuss it. It might be an amusing thing to debate over coffee just to pass the time, but I don't see that having an established standard definition of "toy limit" is going to improve anyone's life or better their credit.
For what it's worth, I think the notion of a "toy limit" is very much a matter of relativity. For someone who spends $5000 in a typical month, anything less than that might feel like a toy limit. For someone who spends $500 a month, that more modest threshold might mark their definition of a toy limit.
But even then, it is also relative to where and how you are using the card. A $500 limit on a Starbucks card is is hardly a toy, because in that context you are mostly going to be making small everyday purchases under $10. Meanwhile, a $500 limit on an international airline card is almost a cruel joke, when the vast majority of the fares exceed the limit on the card.
Ultimately, I think all that we learn from threads of this sort is that:
a) some of us are wealthier than others and therefore have a different perspective on what is a truly usable limit, and
b) some of us have different spending habits- some make lots of large purchases, others mostly just spend on everday necessities every month
As with many things related to credit, there is no "one size fits all" answer.
+1000
To someone rebuilding, a $250 store card limit can be a big deal when you've been denied and denied. Yes, long ago, I sneered at my $500 AMEX Optima limit, so I cancelled and burned through my 5-digit limits with MBNA and Discover. I probably wouldn't have gone through BK if I just stuck with that $500 AMEX.
@SunriseEarth wrote:
@TheConductor wrote:This question comes up frequently, and I don't think it ever proves useful to discuss it. It might be an amusing thing to debate over coffee just to pass the time, but I don't see that having an established standard definition of "toy limit" is going to improve anyone's life or better their credit.
For what it's worth, I think the notion of a "toy limit" is very much a matter of relativity. For someone who spends $5000 in a typical month, anything less than that might feel like a toy limit. For someone who spends $500 a month, that more modest threshold might mark their definition of a toy limit.
But even then, it is also relative to where and how you are using the card. A $500 limit on a Starbucks card is is hardly a toy, because in that context you are mostly going to be making small everyday purchases under $10. Meanwhile, a $500 limit on an international airline card is almost a cruel joke, when the vast majority of the fares exceed the limit on the card.
Ultimately, I think all that we learn from threads of this sort is that:
a) some of us are wealthier than others and therefore have a different perspective on what is a truly usable limit, and
b) some of us have different spending habits- some make lots of large purchases, others mostly just spend on everday necessities every month
As with many things related to credit, there is no "one size fits all" answer.
+1000
To someone rebuilding, a $250 store card limit can be a big deal when you've been denied and denied. Yes, long ago, I sneered at my $500 AMEX Optima limit, so I cancelled and burned through my 5-digit limits with MBNA and Discover. I probably wouldn't have gone through BK if I just stuck with that $500 AMEX.
I also had less CC debt with lower limits.
@TheConductor wrote:This question comes up frequently, and I don't think it ever proves useful to discuss it.
+1 It's a subjective matter so there is no single bar for everyone. $500 to a builder/rebuilder isn't a toy limit. For me, even $5K is a toy limit as it wouldn't even accomodate my monthly spend with 100% utlization. My monthly spend is typically 10% utilization without any tinkering.
It really depends on one's credit, spend patterns, situation, needs, etc. My highest CL's ($25-30K) are toy limits for Centurion holders.
I remember a time when I thought the 1000 limit I had made me a king. Now, anything below 10,000 I would consider a useless card.
@takeshi74 wrote:
@TheConductor wrote:This question comes up frequently, and I don't think it ever proves useful to discuss it.
+1 It's a subjective matter so there is no single bar for everyone. $500 to a builder/rebuilder isn't a toy limit. For me, even $5K is a toy limit as it wouldn't even accomodate my monthly spend with 100% utlization. My monthly spend is typically 10% utilization without any tinkering.
It really depends on one's credit, spend patterns, situation, needs, etc. My highest CL's ($25-30K) are toy limits for Centurion holders.
I think you've worded it in a very fair way, takeshi
Some people think a $1500 CL is a joke. I haven't had that kind of limit since 2008 (the time of my last big credit mistakes). I'm just in the 3 digit club now, but I'm hoping a CLI from JCP puts me back in the 4 digit club. So my $250 VS limits at VS and Gold Violin might be toys for some, but I'm proud of my toys. And just as in real life, toys become collectibles, if you treat them well.
@TheConductor wrote:This question comes up frequently, and I don't think it ever proves useful to discuss it. It might be an amusing thing to debate over coffee just to pass the time, but I don't see that having an established standard definition of "toy limit" is going to improve anyone's life or better their credit.
What happens if you take it up a notch and think of credit limits as simply an example of space? Some need more space, while others, being orderly, need less.