Before you make a decision, double-check the pros and cons. Robert Farrington, the founder of financial education website The College Investor, points out that there can be advantages to using a credit card – but you have to be careful.

Carefully review whether you can handle the payments and whether the benefits outweigh the costs, Farrington says. In many cases, using a credit card to pay student loans might not be worth it.

• Earn more rewards for making your payments
• Get a 0% APR if you have a promotional credit card
• Potentially pay off your debt faster if you can take advantage of the 0% APR

• Not every lender accepts credit card payments
• You could be charged steep fees for using a credit card
• Credit card interest rates are usually much higher and could cost you more if you can’t pay off the balance before a 0% APR ends
• Lose federal student loan protections in some cases
• Interest you pay may no longer be tax-deductible

How is your credit score impacted?

Don’t forget to think about your credit score. As you add student loan payments to your credit card, you could run into issues with your credit utilization. Credit utilization accounts for 30 percent of your FICO credit score, so you could see a negative impact even if you make your payments on time.

Be careful about how you make your payments, and be sure to keep paying on your credit card as you use it, says Farrington. Read More >