Why Most Millennials Don’t Have A Credit Card

Almost two-thirds of adults under age 30 currently have no credit cards at all, according to a new survey sponsored by Bankrate.com.

While only 35 percent of adults age 30 and older have no credit cards, 63 percent of under-30 Millennials have none, 23 percent have one and 8 percent have two or more credit cards. Some of those surveyed specifically said they preferred to use debit cards.

The survey also found that among under-30 credit-card users, only 40 percent pay their balances in full every month, compared with 53 percent for adults 30 and older. And according to the survey report, 3 percent of the credit-card using Millennials “admit to often missing payments completely.”

The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates in July and August 2014 and had a 3.3 percent margin of error.

While under-30 Americans are the most likely to avoid credit cards, recent polls that other age groups have also cut back on credit-card use since the start of the recession. It’s also more difficult for those under 21 to get credit cards because of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009, and many Millennials are struggling with student loans that make them more wary of debt, a Bankrate analyst said.