The amount of money a person owes to a credit card company. The debt is incurred by using a credit card to purchase goods and services – and then not paying the credit card company the total amount spent within 30 days. The card issuer charges interest on any amount that is unpaid, and the interest is added to next months’ balance. This is how credit card debt quickly increases. Because credit card interest rates are much higher than rates charged by other loans, financial advisors recommend that you pay off credit card balances in full each month. See Adjustable Expense, Amortization