<prompt> Human: This seems like the best place to ask this. What is the best way to raise my credit with my first credit card? It has a 500 limit, and Ive had it for about a year. I had 0 credit before I had this card and my dad had to cosign for it. Im not sure if I should try and use it each month and maintain a balance on it, while paying at least 4X the amount of the minimum payment. Or if its better to use it each month, and then pay off the balance completely. Am I hurting my newly established credit by having a monthly balance after my payment of 250-350500 on it? Any help is greatly appreciated!  <response>: Always pay off the entire statement balance on your credit card. That way you will not pay any interest, while still getting all the benefits of using a credit card. 