In most cases, online credit card payments will take between one and three business days to post to your account, and your balance should be updated about the same time.
If you make a payment in your online credit card account before the end of the business day, your payment may be posted as early as the next business day—and, in some cases, the same business day. However, payments made in the evening could take an additional day to post.
If you use a different payment method, it may take longer for your payment to post to your account. For example, a payment made via mail, over the phone or in person at a branch could take longer.
Do Credit Card Payments Post Immediately?
In most cases, your credit card payment won’t post to your account immediately. While the payment must be credited to your account the same day you make the payment, it can take several days for the payment to be posted.
However, there may be situations where the payment posts right away or at least on the same business day. For example, suppose you have your checking account and credit card with the same bank and through the same online account. Depending on the bank, your payment may post more quickly than it would if you were paying from a third-party bank.
Why Hasn’t My Credit Card Payment Posted?
If your credit card payment hasn’t been posted yet but you think it should have, there are a few steps you can take.
First, check to make sure you were actually credited for the payment. While a payment can take a few days to process, and your balance won’t update until that happens, credit card companies are required to credit you for the payment the same day. If that hasn’t happened and it’s been a day or two since you made the payment, contact your credit card issuer immediately.
If you’ve been credited for the payment, but your balance hasn’t changed, consider what might be holding it up. First, remember that payments can take a few business days to process, meaning weekends and holidays don’t count.
In most cases, you should be notified if your payment method was declined or if there was an error processing your payment. However, if more than a few days have passed and you’re concerned, you can reach out to your credit card company for information.
