How Soon Do You Use a Card

[Anonymous]

I checked USPS daily for cards to arrive in my mailbox so I knew when they would come. I acvtivated my Uber card immediately because it fits my daily spend. I used my DC maybe a day or two later at the local walmart.

As many have said here, I think it's important to establish a spending pattern.

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

---

@UncleB wrote:

@Brian_Earl_Spilner, do what makes you most comfortable.  If the 'slow and easy' method fits your needs, there's nothing wrong with that.  Don't feel that you have to, though.

When I got my NFCU Go Rewards back in July, my first charge was for car insurance (online) just to make sure the card was activated.  Once I saw that the card worked, later that day I took care of a charge for just under $1k... my thought was if there was a problem, I wanted to get it worked out sooner than later.  (There were no issues at all.)

FWIW my experience with Synchrony was similar; when I got my Sam's Club MasterCard I still had a few baddies that were reporting, but I still used my card without concern from day one and Synch had no problems with that (they even rewarded me with auto-CLIs). 

Do what makes you most comfortable, but most likely there's no need to handle them with kid gloves.

---

Eh, I'd rather not take a chance. Despite lack of a manual review, I feel like I was borderline getting in with them, don't want to rock the boat. If anything, I may pay my cable and storage bills with it and pay it off as soon as it posts. Then, maybe, buy the phone.

[AverageJoesCredit]

 wrote:
I will use a card the same day as activation especially if it has a SUB.

This summer has been crazy with new cards and SUB’s. Since the end of June my fiancé and I have meet 18.5K in SUB spend organically. Although 1700 was rent.

I need lenders to get used to my spending pattern ASAP. Amex has been great for that. It’s quite common for me to run 5-7K a month through my charge cards.
 
i wholeheartedly agree.  I routinely  run $5-$7 bucks a month through my cards. Sheesh, no wonder Amex and Citi dont want to raise my limits🤯

[AverageJoesCredit]

---

@Brian_Earl_Spilner wrote:

Interesting that people want to establish their spend with the bank so quickly. I figure that will happen sooner or later. Also surprised so many people would use it immediately. I always felt like it would flag you as desperate to get the card. For example, I need a new phone, and it would make perfect sense to put it on my new PayPal card as I will probably buy it from eBay, and I was gonna buy it anyways. But I won't, because I don't know what sync will think about such a large purchase on the first day. My normal use is large purchases and paying off before the statement, but they don't know that yet. So how would they take it? Would they wait until I establish a pattern, or would they put me on their watch list? That question is why I usually wait a but before using a new card and I start with small purchase.

Is that wrong to think?

---

If your limit supports what your buying , do it. Just be sure to pay on  time. I cant buy alot on $300 but i charge and when the charge posts i pay. They dont like it , tuff i try to maintain pif when i can and with Sync, i want to maintain 0 on accounts in case Blue ever finds I'm his boy

[Pikaboo-icu]

---

@AverageJoesCredit wrote:
@ wrote:
I will use a card the same day as activation especially if it has a SUB.

This summer has been crazy with new cards and SUB’s. Since the end of June my fiancé and I have meet 18.5K in SUB spend organically. Although 1700 was rent.

I need lenders to get used to my spending pattern ASAP. Amex has been great for that. It’s quite common for me to run 5-7K a month through my charge cards.
 
i wholeheartedly agree.  I routinely  run $5-$7 bucks a month through my cards. Sheesh, no wonder Amex and Citi dont want to raise my limits🤯

---

Hey hey!!  Congratulations! 

[Anonymous]

I usually charge right away depending on how the card fits my spending habits. Most of the time I will activte it and then charge something to make sure it works correctly.

[pinkandgrey]

I’m with you. I use it quickly to test the waters. 

[OmarR]

The same day I got my Amex BCP, I met the SUB ($1,000 spend) within 30 mins.

I don't care what they think of me.

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

---

@OmarR wrote:

The same day I got my Amex BCP, I met the SUB ($1,000 spend) within 30 mins.

I don't care what they think of me.

---

I like your attitude

[RicHowe]

Usually a new card has the statement close within 2 weeks so I usually wait until the first statement closes with a zero balance. Helps when the new tradeline posts to the CRAs with zero balance. Less impact to scores.