Are Credit Cards Worth Saving?

“Modern credit cards will never be worth anything,” says the collector (or skeptic).

“I disagree,” is my reply. 

“Well, maybe in 20 years they might,” is the collector’s response.

Modern credit cards not worthless

Why do some collectors think modern credit cards will be worthless? After quizzing them, here’s what I’ve discovered. It’s based on the belief that tens of thousands of people are becoming aware of credit card collecting! Collectors are concerned that these people will become casual collectors.

A casual collector is someone who reads an article or advertisement about credit card collecting. Collecting doesn’t enter his mind again until his next card expires. Then he thinks, “I’ll just save this card. It might become valuable someday.”

The misconception about casual collectors

Collectors believe that these tens of thousands of casual collectors will, in a few years, accumulate a couple of dozen cards each. These casual collectors will save literally hundreds of thousands of cards! This will be enough cards so that there’ll be a large supply available for years. Thus the belief, modern cards will never be worth anything.

I agree with this line of thinking except that it stops short. The key to understanding this situation is knowing that the casual collectors are saving mostly used cards. The solution is to collect modern mint condition cards.

Collecting mint condition credit cards

When collecting modern mint condition specimens, there’s one major distinction between this hobby and most others. It’s that there’s no easy way to accumulate massive amounts of mint condition pieces.

Among other hobbies, modern mint specimens are easily available. The post office will sell as many unused stamps as people want. Grade one beer cans are available from grocery stores by cases.

Mint condition baseball cards are sold by the box. But with credit cards, I don’t know a way to get 50 or 100 mint condition pieces at a time. This will help keep mint condition cards scarce. Mint condition credit cards are one of the few mass produced items that has a true “limited edition” characteristic.

Limited number of serious credit card collectors

Serious credit card collectors are generally the only people willing to spend the time and effort necessary to accumulate mint condition cards. I would estimate that fewer than 5% of the cards saved today are mint. Of these, probably fewer than 10% are properly stored. 

That means, at best, one out of every 200 cards saved today is in pristine condition. This translates into an opportunity for any collector who becomes condition-conscious.

Quality is a must in collecting. Credit card collectors desire the best. They also realize the best is expensive, and are prepared to pay for it. That being the case, acquire multiples of mint condition cards. Future collectors will fiercely compete to acquire the few top quality cards that have been saved.

Collecting scarce credit cards

Many casual collectors, after saving their cards for years, will evolve into serious collectors. They’ll then want to enlarge and upgrade their collections. They’ll only be able to do this with the mint condition credit cards we’ve saved. So keep in mind that in every year, there’ll be hundreds if not thousands of new serious collectors created. It will just take time before their presence is felt.

The making of tens of thousands of new casual credit card collectors is, in fact, a tremendous opportunity. While planting the seeds necessary to form tomorrow’s collector base, we still have the opportunity to gather scarce credit cards. And they’ll be scarce because of their condition.

Copyright 1987 by Greg Tunks

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Frequently asked questions

You can find out the value of old credit cards by checking how much similar cards sell for. There are several ways to do this.

The simplest way to determine the value of old credit cards is to ask an experienced collector. If you submit an inquiry via our contact form, we can connect you with an expert who can assist you and point out if there is anything rare or unusual in your collection.

Alternatively, you can become a member of the American Credit Card Collectors Society. Membership in our credit card collecting club provides access to resources and knowledgeable members who can help. Benefits of membership include access to a gallery containing thousands of cards with historical pricing information, and access to our entire collection of newsletters, from 1994 through the present day.

You can look at recent sales on auction sites, however, there are some considerations to keep in mind when doing this. Firstly, it’s important to look at selling prices, rather than asking prices. Selling prices are the prices people actually paid, while asking prices can be very different. Secondly, historical sales on some sites are only saved for 3 months, so you may not find something that exactly matches what you have. Thirdly, it is sometimes possible to see rare or unusual cards sell for lower prices than they should have because people do not understand their worth, the ads don't do justice to the card, they're listed in the wrong category, or any combination thereof.

There are always people in our club who are actively buying cards. Collectors tend to focus on a niche, like gas cards or retail cards, or they might focus on a slightly broader area, like bank cards or travel and entertainment cards. Many of the rarest or most unusual cards will exchange hands in private sales. Please contact us if you are thinking of selling your collection.

You can also sell your old credit cards on online marketplaces. You will get the highest price if you sell each of your cards individually, although this approach requires the most effort. At the opposite end of the effort scale would be selling all cards as a job lot, an approach which typically results in the lowest price on a per-card basis. Halfway between these two approaches would be to group cards into different categories and to sell these individual groups, e.g., BankAmericard, Master Charge, oil and gas, retail, and so on.

To join the club, visit the membership section and complete the registration form. You can pay by check or PayPal. We offer annual or lifetime memberships. If you have any questions please contact us via the form on our website.

Credit cards are more worthwhile collecting if they are rare, in good condition, have historical significance, or are associated with famous personalities or events. Valuable modern cards might include those that are difficult to obtain, such as American Express Centurion (a.k.a. ‘black’) cards, while older credit cards might include early independent bank cards, American Express, Diners Club, or BankAmericard (Visa) cards from the 50s/early 60s, or Master Charge (MasterCard) cards from the late 60s. Rare or unusual cards can also be sought after, such as those issued in small numbers, like small independent department stores or gas stations, or cards with appealing aesthetics.

Consulting with other collectors or experts in the club can provide valuable insights. Contact us for more information via the form on our website.

We do not offer an appraisal service in a traditional sense (such services are normally a paid service) but we can connect you with an expert who should be able to assist for free and point out anything rare or unusual in your collection. The simplest way to do this is to submit an inquiry via our contact form.

The American Credit Card Collectors Society accepts donations and is most grateful for any we receive. When donations happen, we strive to find good homes for cards where they will be looked after, matching cards with collectors who will appreciate them. The club may charge members a nominal fee for donated cards, and the proceeds are offset against the running costs of our club. We are a non-profit organization. Running costs include expenses like our convention and website hosting. Donations are most popular for people getting out of the hobby, or when someone has inherited a collection and doesn’t know what to do with it.

If you wish to donate your collection, please contact us via the contact form above.

American Credit Card Collectors Society