I s it true that it's bad for your credit score to cancel credits cards (that have zero balance)?

I'm in a vicious argument over this question and no one seems to know the truth. Please tell me if you know and where you got your information. No guesses, please...

Also, the reason I'm asking is because we want to apply for another credit card, and were under the impression that if we had too much available credit, the new card we got would offer us a lower available credit line. Is this true?I would think the less credit you have, the more you'd be offered (based on your income, of course)

The Answer : Well , here's the answer to settle your "vicious argument".

1. Payment history- 35%

2. Total debt vs. available credit- 30%

3. Length of time establishing credit- 15%

4. Types of credit esrttablished- 10%

5. Inquiries and New accounts- 10%Having said that, when you cancel credit card accounts, especially the ones with a 0 balance, a couple of things happen that lower your score.

1. You shorten the payment history for a positive account that's opened.

2. If the cards have been opened for a while, cancelling the accounts shortens the average age of accounts giving the appearance that credit has been established in a shorter amount of time.

3. And most importantly, you decrease the cushion of available credit versus the total debt that you owe, making it look like you owe more than you're capable of borrowing.

If anything, request a line increase with the cards that you have before applying for another card. It looks better for your score that you have accounts opened for a long time with higher limits than a bunch of recent cards that have been recently opened. For example, it's better to have a card that's been opened up for a couple of years with a $3000 limit, than to apply for a couple of $500 limit cards.