Welcome to CREDIT CARD SMARTS!

Let's face it, in today's world your name is only as good as your credit. Maintaining your credit should be one of the most important things in your life. By browsing "Credit Card Smarts" you will learn beneficial credit tips that will help you build your credit score. Enjoy all of the information that you can obtain from this site.

If you have never had credit before and are finally ready to start building a credit history, this site can help you.

If you have had credit in the past and basically "screwed it up," you may need to re-establish your credit. Let "Credit Card Smarts" help you.

If you have good or excellent credit, we can still help you by sharing the most valuable credit card tips that you can find online. No matter what your situation is, you will greatly benefit from this site.

What Credit Card Numbers Mean

Have you ever wondered what all those numbers on your credit card mean? Although phone companies, gas companies and department stores have their own numbering systems, ANSI Standard X4.13-1983 is the system used by most national credit-card systems.

The front of your credit card has a lot of numbers -- here's an example of what they might mean.

Here are what some of the numbers stand for:

* The first digit in your credit-card number signifies the system:
o 3 - travel/entertainment cards (such as American Express and Diners Club)
o 4 - Visa
o 5 - MasterCard
o 6 - Discover Card

The structure of the card number varies by system. For example, American Express card numbers start with 37; Carte Blanche and Diners Club with 38.

American Express - Digits three and four are type and currency, digits five through 11 are the account number, digits 12 through 14 are the card number within the account and digit 15 is a check digit.

Visa - Digits two through six are the bank number, digits seven through 12 or seven through 15 are the account number and digit 13 or 16 is a check digit.

MasterCard - Digits two and three, two through four, two through five or two through six are the bank number (depending on whether digit two is a 1, 2, 3 or other). The digits after the bank number up through digit 15 are the account number, and digit 16 is a check digit.


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