<prompt> Human: I recently received a monetary windfall that enabled me to pay off around 2,500 in credit card debt across four accounts. One had been closed years ago just before my divorce it was an account my ex opened and since he was unemployed at the time of our divorce, and he opened it in my name, I was made to pay it off even though I didnt know it existed. The other three are active credit cards, and I would like to close one to reduce the possibility of me racking up additional debt. There is one I cannot close as it is tied to my checking account and its existence makes said account free. Here are my options:1 Close the higher risk, more predatory account with a higher limit, which I opened 6 years ago when my credit was in the toilet. 2 Close the lower risk, more mainstream card with a limit roughly half as much as the other card, that I opened four years ago when regular use of the first card bumped my credit score. 3 Leave both of them open because maybe having a few active credit accounts open is good for my credit score. Caveats: my health plan sucks balls and has no copay and a 3,000 deductible. My kid has a medical condition that requires semi-annual specialist visits and may require an expensive surgery in the next few years. The higher-limit credit card could be useful in helping us out with those payments, which will be easier to pay off over time while still helping us towards our deductible. I am also now making enough money with a new job that we no longer require the use of credit cards for day to day expenses, and we are still pretty frugal in general, so we do not have plans to use them for anything other than medical needs that we cant cover out of pocket and emergencies. I dont know what will help my credit score the most while still best enabling us to take care of occasional medical expenses. Help!  <response>: Do not close any of them, unless one has an annual fee you dont want. Keep them open to keep your credit age. Just use the cards for small purchases, like gas or a subscription like Netflix, and then pay it off every month. This will help you so much more than just closing them. 