A credit card balance is an outstanding balance on your credit card. This is the amount you've borrowed from your credit card company and have yet to pay back. Your credit card balance differs from your credit limit, which is the maximum amount of money you're allowed to borrow from your credit card company. If you make purchases with your credit card and don't pay off your entire balance each month, you'll carry a balance on your card. This means you'll be charged interest on the money you owe. The higher your credit card balance is, the more interest you'll be charged. Paying only the minimum payment each month will keep you in debt longer and cost you more interest charges. To avoid this, try to pay off as much of your credit card balance as possible each month. If you can't afford to pay off your entire balance, paying more than the minimum payment will help reduce your debt and save you money in interest charges.