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Legally, credit card statements have to contain certain information about your credit card and your credit usage. It’s important to review your credit card statement carefully each month to check for errors and to understand what fees or interest you’re paying.
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By law, credit card statements have to contain certain information that can help you manage your credit card usage.
Statement designs have become more reader-friendly in recent years to help credit cardholders easily find important information on their monthly statements – namely, when payments are due, the amount owed, the consequences of making late payments and how much they are paying in fees and interest on different types of accounts. Another feature warns consumers about the cost of making only minimum payments each month.
Each credit card bill also has a box that states how long (in months or years) it will take to pay off the entire balance if the cardholder makes the minimum payment compared with how long it might take to pay it off when making higher payments. The box also states the total dollar amount cardholders would pay when both interest and principal is factored in – information that has certainly been eye-opening for some borrowers.
To help you better understand some of some of the currently required statements’ features, we’re going to look at a statement sample based on the Federal Reserve Board’s samples.
While your statement may not look exactly like the one below – as each credit card issuer has its own version – the following sample can give you an idea of what to expect.
Account Number XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX
February 21, 2022, to March 22, 2022
The dates listed at the top of your credit card statement will alert you to when the charges occurred. This can be helpful when you sit down to review your statement and make sure all of your recent charges are accurate.
The summary of account activity covers a wide variety of important factors worth noting, such as what your previous balance was, if you took any cash advances (which can accidentally happen when you buy a gift card) and what your new balance is. Review the section below carefully to make sure you’re up to date on your current credit card happenings and that no mistakes occurred.
One of the main reasons that credit card statements are so helpful is because they outline what your new balance is, what your minimum required payment is and by what date you need to make your payment. This section should also include warnings about what will happen if your payment is late and what it means to make a minimum payment instead of paying off your balance in full.
If you have any questions about your newest statement or your credit card in general, there will be a section that points you in the right direction of how to contact the support line. There should also be contact information that you can use if your credit card is lost or stolen.
These changes will impact your account as follows:
Transactions made on or after 4/9/22: As of 5/10/22, changes to APRs described below will apply to these transactions.
Transactions made before 4/9/22: Current APRs will continue to apply to these transactions.
If any changes are being made to your account terms, you will be alerted of them on your credit card statement. This is another reason that reading your statement closely each month is a good credit card habit to build.
To be crystal clear on what your current APR and late payment fee is, double check the revised terms section of your credit card statement.
The transactions section of your credit card statement will show each purchase you made during that statement period. You can see the date the purchase was made, what the merchant was and how much the charge was for.
Again – carefully review this section to make sure you made all of the charges and all amounts are correct. Any unauthorized charges may be a sign of identity theft. This section will also outline any fees you paid (such as late fees or balance transfer fees) and how much interest you were charged during the statement period.
| Interest charge calculation | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Your Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is the annual interest rate on your account | |||
| Type of balance | Annual Percentage Rate (APR) | Balance Subject to Interest Rate | Interest charge |
| Purchases Cash advances Balance transfers(v) = Variable rate | 14.99% (v) 21.99% (v) 0.00% | $512.14 $253.50 $637.50 | $6.31 $4.58 $0.00 |
To better understand how much you’re paying to use your credit card annually based on your current credit habits, you can review the interest charge calculation section of the statement. It will share how much you have paid in interest charges for purchases, balance transfers and cash advances.
Please detach this portion and return with your payment to ensure credit. Retain upper portion for your records.
| Please indicate address change and additional cardholder requests on the reverse side. XXX Bank P.O. Box XXXX Anytown, Anystate XXXXX | Account number: New balance: Minimum payment due Payment due date AMOUNT ENCLOSED: | XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX $1,784.53 $53.00 4/20/22 | |
Source: Federal Reserve Board
If you make your credit card payment via mail, you’ll need to detach the final portion of the statement (which should be outlined clearly) and include it with your payment. You will keep the rest of the statement for your own records.
While reviewing a credit card statement isn’t a fun activity, it’s an important one that should be a part of your monthly routine. Reviewing your statement carefully gives you a chance to check for errors or signs of identity fraud. Doing so will also give you a better understanding of what you are paying to use your credit card or carry a balance.
You can also take advantage of reviewing recent purchases to make sure you’re happy with your current spending habits. Spending 15 minutes a month reviewing your credit card statement can really pay off in the long run.
The editorial content on this page is based solely on the objective assessment of our writers and is not driven by advertising dollars. It has not been provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. However, we may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners.
Jacqueline DeMarco Jacqueline is a personal finance writer for CreditCards.com and has worked with more than a dozen financial brands, including LendingTree, Credit Karma, Fundera, Chime, MagnifyMoney, Student Loan Hero, ValuePenguin, SoFi and Northwestern Mutual, providing thoughtful content to give readers insight into complex topics that they likely didn’t learn in school. You can learn more about her work and connect with her on LinkedIn or at JacquelineDeMarco.com. Sometimes she’s even interviewed about her career and running a freelance writing business.
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