These cities have the most credit cards in 2026, data suggests

Americans may be swiping more than they realize: The average person now carries more than five credit cards — and in some cities, nearly seven — as new WalletHub data shows credit card ownership climbing across the country.

Methodology:

To identify the cities with the most credit cards, WalletHub analyzed 100 of the largest U.S. cities across two main categories: the total number of cards held and the growth in credit card ownership.

The analysis was based on four metrics — including the average number of cards per person and the increase in new cards opened — each graded on a 100-point scale and weighted accordingly. Researchers then calculated a weighted average for each city to produce an overall score and rank the cities from highest to lowest.

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What they're saying:

"There isn’t a magic number of credit cards you should have in your wallet," said John Kiernan, editor at WalletHub. "It’s good to own multiple cards if you can manage them well by paying on time, keeping your credit utilization low and waiting at least six months between applications. However, if you’re opening new cards simply to spend beyond your means, you’ll quickly find many cards hard to manage."

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Cities with the most credit cards

Dig deeper:

Henderson, Nev.

Henderson ranks first as residents carry a high number of cards and are opening new ones. In Q4 2025, they opened an average of 1.4 cards per person — up nearly 19% year over year — the second-highest rate in the country. Residents hold 6.2 cards on average, up 1.8% from a year earlier, higher than most cities and above Nevada’s statewide average (15th nationally).

St. Louis, MO

St. Louis ranks second, with residents opening more than 1.4 new cards per person in Q4 2025 — the highest increase nationwide at nearly 22% from a year earlier. Residents hold 5.3 cards on average, up 1.1% year over year, exceeding Missouri’s statewide ranking of 18th.

Garland, Texas

Garland places third, driven by strong growth in new accounts. Residents opened about 1.4 cards per person in Q4 2025, up more than 10% from a year earlier. They hold an average of 5.7 cards — a 2.5% annual increase — above the Texas statewide average.

Tips for managing multiple credit cards

What you can do:

• Tackle high-interest balances first: Avoid carrying a balance if possible. If you have debt on multiple cards, pay down the one with the highest interest rate first while making minimum payments on the others to reduce overall interest costs.
• Use automatic payments: Setting up autopay can help you avoid missed due dates and late fees, provided you have enough funds in your account.
• Keep credit utilization low: Try to use less than 30% of your available credit on each card and across all cards combined to protect your credit score.
• Space out applications: Wait at least six months between credit card applications to limit the impact of hard inquiries and improve your chances of approval.
• Don’t overspend: Opening new cards to finance spending beyond your means can lead to costly interest charges and potential credit score damage.