You are 'in debt' to the credit card company. They're 'in credit' to you. That's why they're called a 'credit' card company. When you spend your credit you're creating debt. When you pay your card off you're paying off debt.
I don't even think of myself as using debt. I see credit cards as a way to get an extra $50-70 a month in rewards[1] and increase my credit score. I have never paid a cent of interest.
[1] I have a card that gives me 5% cashback in gas, groceries, and books up to a limit that does not often surpass what I spend and some rotating 5% cash back cards, in addition to a 2% general spend. I do not pay any annual fees for using the cards.
Credit cards are more like a delayed bill than debt, if you pay off the amount in full every month (and I don't know why you wouldn't, credit cards are a poor way to borrow money).
I don't understand how credit card implies going into debt for many people. I pay mine off every month and all is good. It would never occur to me to leave a balance and pay 20% or whatever interest.
If you have the potential for debt (with a credit card you do, with cash or debit card you don't), then in a bad month you add on stuff that you need. Or in a stupid month you add on things that you don't. Then you have a balance you can't pay off. If you're using cash/debit, you can't spend money you don't have yet.
For many people the credit card is a way of buying things with next week's paycheck. Yes, they can normally pay it off, but not always. They're just against the edge of debt by living off future earnings.
You don't have to be in debt, paying your credit card in full each month is an excellent way to build credit, and you will never pay a cent in interest as long as you pay in full without fail.
I can see how it all appears to be a silly game if you never actually need credit, however there are material benefits (cash-back, rental car insurance, etc) of playing the game. In some cases the benefits you receive are nonsensical until you realize they are subsidized by irresponsible individuals paying huge sums of interest. There's a special kind of smug pleasure reserved for those who are financially responsible in America.
Using a credit card is not the same as going into debt to make your purchase. In the US, you can easily get 1% to 4% back from the credit card company by using your credit card, and so you actually save money by paying with your credit card. Whether or not you want to pay off the balance at the end of your credit card's billing cycle decides whether or not you are going into debt, but many, many people pay it off. It's also safer to use a credit card for purchases than a debit card, since your cash isn't touched and you can just call the credit card company to dispute a charge.
Just because you utilize a credit card doesn't mean you have debt. I pay my credit cards (including my Apple Card) off entirely every month. I use them for the rewards and the convenience not to pretend I have more money than I really do.
Better not to own a credit card in the first place, with so many people in so much debt you really should be questioning the notion that there's a 'responsible' way to use a credit card.
If you pay off your card every month, the credit card companies consider you to be a bad investment, and they even have names to describe customers like you -- "deadbeat", among others.
You are making an assumption that they are carrying the credit card debt. I pay for nearly everything with a credit card, but I haven't paid interest on a CC in close to a decade.
Sounds like the credit card companies are expecting a vanishing fraction of the people for whom credit card interest is relevant to actually pay them back...
(At least among my family, common knowledge is to treat credit cards like debit cards or charge cards - make the full payment, every time, and if you can't make the full payment you shouldn't have made the purchase)
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