Credit Card Use, 1992-2004

Updated August 5, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

General-purpose credit cards include Mastercard, Visa, Optima, and Discover. All dollar figures are given in constant 1998 dollars based on consumer price index data as published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Percent of cardholding families who:
Age of family
head and family
income1
Percent having a
general-purpose
credit card
Percent having
a balance after
last month's bills
Median
balance2
Almost always
pay off
the balance
Sometimes
pay off
the balance
Hardly ever
pay off
the balance
1992 total 62.4% 52.6% $1,200 53.0% 19.6% 27.4%
1995 total 66.5 52.6 1,700 52.4 20.1 27.5
1998 total 67.5 54.7 2,000 53.8 19.3 26.9
2001 total 72.7 53.7 1,800 55.3 19.0 25.6
2004 total 71.5 56.2 2,100 55.7 20.3 24.0
Under 35 years old 60.6 66.1 1,500 49.0 20.4 30.6
35-44 years old 73.3 70.8 2,400 41.6 26.2 32.2
45-54 years old 77.5 61.2 3,000 49.3 23.9 26.6
55-64 years old 78.2 46.1 2,500 66.8 16.8 16.5
65-74 years old 75.5 37.7 2,300 70.7 13.4 15.9
75 years old and over 65.4 32.2 1,100 77.5 12.9 9.7
Less than $10,000 31.5 59.4 1,200 50.9 17.3 31.9
$10,000-$24,999 48.6 59.7 1,200 49.9 17.0 33.1
$25,000-$49,999 71.2 64.3 2,000 46.9 20.3 32.8
$50,000-$99,999 88.2 56.1 2,800 56.1 22.0 21.8
$100,000 and more 96.6 42.8 3,400 71.1 20.2 8.7
1. Families include one-person units. 2. Among families having a balance.
Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, unpublished data. From Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2008.

Per Capita Consumption of Principal Foods U.S. Economy and the Federal Budget Personal Consumption Expenditures
U.S. Economy and the Federal Budget
Sources +