Closing multiple credit cards at a young-ish age. Bad idea?
Hi! I have read on here that closing a credit card does hit your credit a bit, but that hit is usually small and not very impactful after a few months. Redditors have said that it's better to leave them open with a $0 balance, and the bank may not even close them after a period of inactivity.
But I have maybe a unique-ish situation so I'd love to hear if the advice is different.
Here is my circumstance:
- I was emancipated at a young age and opened many credit cards to survive (3 store cards, 5 bank cards). I got a lot of debt from that as I ended up continually maxing them out for years.
- I'm 30 now and I have paid off all 3 of the store cards, and paid off 3 of the bank cards.
- My score is finally pretty good I think - 750 range.
- Many of the older cards have APRs between 29%-35%. My newer cards are lower.
- I do have minor issues with spending. Once I pay off a card, I lock it and/or cut up the card to beat any impulse.
- I do have student loans on my credit report if that matters, along with a debt consolidation loan (almost paid off) and a car loan (almost paid off). No late payments in the last 3 years, or collections in the last 7 years.
- In my long term relationship, I'm the one with the better paying job and better credit, so financial responsibilities fall on me.
I want to close the remaining store cards, and some of the bank cards with the higher APRs both to reduce any risk of identity theft or data leaks / privacy breaches and for my peace of mind from impulse buying.
I'm worried that doing so will hurt my score because the higher APR cards and store cards are my oldest ones. So my age of credit would probably drop from 11 years to maybe 5 years. It would also drop the amount of my available credit pretty drastically.
I want to buy a house within the next 3-5 years so I want to pivot into saving money rather than just aggressively paying down the cards. I'm trying to be mindful about my next step.
- 30 feels young so I feel like my age of credit will be judged more harshly, but IDK if that's true. Should I be prioritizing the age of my credit so much?
- If it's worth it to close the older cards because of their high APR, would any hit my credit could take theoretically bounce back within the next 3-5 years?
- Is there anything else I'm not considering?
Posted Nov 14, 2025, 6:52 PM UTC