Payoff completely or maintain a low balance?

[Bonaccan]

I've been paying down all of my credit cards with my bonus this year.

Question: Do I payoff completely or maintain a low balance on each, like $500?

Which one has a high positive impact on credit score?

[Jnbmom]

Finance over FICO always. I would pay them all of and let one report like 20.00 . No need to carry balances on them all.

[tortoise_credit]

You should first restore the grace period on all the cards by paying the statement balance off in full for two consecutive months. Then look into the AZEO method where you let only one card post a balance each month.

[dragontears]

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@Bonaccan wrote:

I've been paying down all of my credit cards with my bonus this year.

Question: Do I payoff completely or maintain a low balance on each, like $500?

Which one has a high positive impact on credit score?

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The highest possible positive impact on scores is AZEO, i.e. all zero except one.

It is never beneficial to scores to carry a balance on a credit card. Note: there is a score drop if all cards report $0 and you don't need to carry a balance to have one report. 

[SouthJamaica]

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@Bonaccan wrote:

I've been paying down all of my credit cards with my bonus this year.

Question: Do I payoff completely or maintain a low balance on each, like $500?

Which one has a high positive impact on credit score?

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I agree with @tortoise_credit that your first priority should be to pay them all off to restore your grace periods.

Then, the most optimal FICO-scoring combination would be to have all but one of your cards report a zero balance, while one bank card reports a small balance before being paid off.  Generally, the more zero balances the better, except that all zero gets you the 'all zero penalty'.

[ridgebackpilot]

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@tortoise_credit wrote:

You should first restore the grace period on all the cards by paying the statement balance off in full for two consecutive months. Then look into the AZEO method where you let only one card post a balance each month.

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 Why do we assume that OP has no grace periods on his card accounts? I don't understand what you mean by a "grace period" here?

I thought that most credit card accounts have a 30-day grace period before they report a late payment to the credit bureaus. But perhaps you're referring to a different kind of grace period?

[SouthJamaica]

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@ridgebackpilot wrote:

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@tortoise_credit wrote:

You should first restore the grace period on all the cards by paying the statement balance off in full for two consecutive months. Then look into the AZEO method where you let only one card post a balance each month.

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 Why do we assume that OP has no grace periods on his card accounts? I don't understand what you mean by a "grace period" here?

I thought that most credit card accounts have a 30-day grace period before they report a late payment to the credit bureaus. But perhaps you're referring to a different kind of grace period?

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Grace period refers to the time between the statement date and the due date.  If one pays off one's bill during that period one does not pay interest on the purchases. People who "carry" balances on their card have lost their grace period.

[Bonaccan]

Thank you all for the responses! I have what I needed on which approach to take!!