Ask Your Advocate: Charge, Credit, Debit—What’s The Diff?

A charge card differs from a credit card because you’re required to pay the balance in full each month. In addition, there is no periodic or annual percentage rate since balances are not carried from one billing cycle to the next. (However, some charge cards offer the option to carry over a portion of the debt. Finance charges usually come with this feature.) These cards also do not have a preset spending limit. The traditional American Express card is one example of a charge card.