Here's Why You Never Want to Cancel a Credit Card in the First Year

There's no long-term commitment when you open a credit card. You have the right to cancel it at any time. If you realize a card isn't a good fit, or you find something better, you could call your card issuer to close it.

But if it's been less than a year since you got the card, you may want to wait. When you cancel a credit card in the first year, there can be costly consequences.

You could lose the welcome offer

Lots of credit cards have welcome offers for new cardholders. For example, there are cash back cards that offer $200 or more in bonus cash back after you meet a spending minimum. Card issuers have these to attract new customers.

But they're looking for long-term customers. They generally frown on people who open one of their cards, earn the welcome offer, and then cancel it. Some card issuers will even claw back your bonus rewards if you cancel within the first year. A clawback is when the card issuer deducts rewards from your account.

American Express is one of the card issuers known for doing this. It explains in the terms and conditions for some of its cards that it may take away rewards you've earned if you downgrade or cancel your card within the first year.

Losing a welcome offer is a big deal, because this is one of the most valuable perks. If you're looking for a big bonus opportunity, click here to see our picks for the best credit card welcome offers, including some worth over $500!

It could affect your relationship with the card issuer

Short-term customers usually aren't profitable for credit card companies. If you close a card within the first year, the card issuer may decide it doesn't want to do business with you in the future. It could:

• Decide you're ineligible for welcome offers going forward.
• Decline any future credit card applications you submit.
• Close any other cards you have with it.

These aren't guaranteed to happen, but it's not worth the risk. That card issuer may have a card you really want to get in the future. If you've burned that bridge by closing a card too early, you'll miss out.

What to do instead of canceling your credit card

Try to always keep credit cards for at least one year before canceling or downgrading them. If you don't want a card, wait until after the first year to cancel it. You'll avoid problems with the card issuer this way.

What if the card has an annual fee? Some card issuers will refund your annual fee if you cancel or downgrade the card within a certain period. Normally, it's within 30 days.

Online reports indicate that American Express, Capital One, Chase, and Citi will do this, among other card issuers. If you're concerned about not getting the annual fee back, that's one situation where it could make sense to cancel a card during the first year.

The best option is to choose a card you like and that you want to keep long term. For help with that, check out our curated list of the top credit cards. Whether you're looking for a card with cash back, travel rewards, a 0% intro APR, or something different, you'll find plenty of options.