Credit cards have gotten a very bad rep recently due to the fact that so many people are carrying far more credit card debt than they can really afford. Pulling out the plastic is just to easy when you've had a hard day and those Prada shoes are calling your name or you feel you've earned an evening out.

Using your credit cards this way once in a great while is not a problem. The problem is that people do it too often because it's so easy when you can even put a dinner from Wendy's or Mickey D's on a credit card these days. And this is just what the card companies are counting on, that their ease and our impulsiveness or busyness will force us into pulling out the old Visa or MasterCard. These are misuses of credit and we all know it, but what, if any, are good reasons or times to use the plastic?

If you keep your credit card balances at zero, then you have a feeling of security that you won't have in this world without them. Just think about all those frightened people fleeing the areas recently hit so hard by hurricanes that couldn't get their checks cashed because the banks were closed. Credit cards come in very handy during an emergency, so most financial experts recommend having one around, but they suggest you not carry it around with you. Keep it at home, in a safe place unless you're traveling, for use during an emergency situation.

You can also use a credit card to float yourself a loan. Say you need to buy groceries, but won't be paid till Friday. Using the plastic magic in this type of instance is a far better solution to a short-term financial crisis than perhaps a payday loan would be. Interest rates are much lower for one thing. Plus, you will have up to a month to pay the balance off. Always try to pay your balance off from month to month to keep those finance charges from mounting up.

Another good reason for using credit cards is to build credit. Many young adults just starting out have no credit rating that will help them get an auto loan or a home loan. Having a successful credit card history is one way to establish credit so that when it comes time to buy the big things a person has a credit history to show a lender that they are a good loan risk.

Too, credit cards often have lower interest rates than are possible to get on other types of loans. This can actually save you money on loan interest payments. It is vital, though, to be sure that the credit card rate is fixed and won't be going up on you in the future or that if the interest rate will be rising, that you will have paid the balance off well before the interest rate rises.

Credit cards are not, in themselves, bad. It's how they're used 's bad. Someone who's credit card-savvy and willing to use restraint when it comes to pulling out the plastic will be both more secure and perhaps even have more money in the long term than if they didn't have or use them at all.

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