Util on all cards vs one card

[axxy]

What if I have one card maxed out but my overall util on all cards is 1%?  Which is a bigger factor in my score?  The maxed card or the 1%?

In general, how much impact do maxed cards have relative to how much impact overall util has?

A typical reason for this to happen is if one card has a temporary bonus of 5% cash back, with a relatively low credit limit, and you have 30 other cards with higher limits but only use them enough to keep them active.  Even if you PIF all cards every month, the 5% card will sometimes report its balance being near its limit, if it reports before you PIF.

[OhioCPA]

Util apparently has two components, util on all cards as well as individual card util. Having one card over 9% will lower your score as will having overall util over 9%. Having one card maxed out will is another ding on your score. The best scenario is to have all cards below 9% so that you don't get the ding for individual card over 9% nor the ding for being maxed out. 

[Anonymous]

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@OhioCPA wrote:

Util apparently has two components, util on all cards as well as individual card util. Having one card over 9% will lower your score as will having overall util over 9%. Having one card maxed out will is another ding on your score. The best scenario is to have all cards below 9% so that you don't get the ding for individual card over 9% nor the ding for being maxed out. 

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+1

[Quips]

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@axxy wrote:

What if I have one card maxed out but my overall util on all cards is 1%?  Which is a bigger factor in my score?  The maxed card or the 1%?

In general, how much impact do maxed cards have relative to how much impact overall util has?

A typical reason for this to happen is if one card has a temporary bonus of 5% cash back, with a relatively low credit limit, and you have 30 other cards with higher limits but only use them enough to keep them active.  Even if you PIF all cards every month, the 5% card will sometimes report its balance being near its limit, if it reports before you PIF.

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One other thing to note - if you have balances reporting on 50% or more of your revolving credit, your FICO score will be lower.