How Many Numbers are on a Credit Card?

Credit cards are nearly indispensable for your modern financial transactions. However, understanding their intricacies, such as the number of digits and their significance, can help you.

Follow this comprehensive guide to learn how many numbers are on a credit card and what they mean.

What Do the Numbers on My Credit Card Mean?

Out of the 15 or 16 digits of your credit card number -

• Major Industry Identifier (MII)

The first one is the MII, and here is how you can identify the card company by just looking at the digit -

• 5 is for Mastercard
• 4 is for Visa cards
• 3 is for American Express cards

• Issuer Identification Number (IIN)

The next 5 digits refer to the bank that has issued the credit card. These numbers are important for the exchange of information required for every transaction. 

• Account Number 

The remaining numbers indicate your account number. This helps the issuer to uniquely identify the cardholder’s account.

• Check Digit

The last digit of the card number is used to verify the validity of the credit card. This number is generated using the Luhn algorithm. It helps check for accidental errors, and financial institutions use it to differentiate between mistyped credit card numbers and legitimate ones.

What Other Numbers are on My Credit Card?

Apart from the credit card number, there are some more numbers on the card that are needed to complete a transaction. Let’s look at them -

• CVV

The CVV stands for Card Verification Value, however it is also referred to as -

• Card Validation Code 2 (CVC2)
• Card Security Code (CSC)
• Card Identification Number/Digit (CID)

Visa and Mastercard has a unique 3-digit CVV, whereas American Express cards have a 4-digit CVV. It appears on the back of your credit card and provides an extra layer of security for online and phone-based transactions. 

You need to enter your CVV while completing an online transaction. You should not share your CVV with any website or person that you don’t trust. This prevents unauthorized transactions even if your card number is available with suspicious entities. 

• Expiration Date

The expiration date is mostly printed on the back of your credit card, but this may vary on the design of your card. It is a second layer of security and is printed in the MM/YY format. Your card will only be valid till the month of that particular year printed. 

You also need to enter your card’s expiration date while completing an online transaction.

How to Protect Your Credit Card Number?

Now that you know what the meaning of your credit card number is, you must take the following preventive measures to protect your credit card number. 

• Use a VPN: Use a VPN during online credit card transactions to protect your sensitive information like your credit card number. If a hacker intercepts that transaction session, they will only find a random stream of numbers, which is useless for them.

• Use a Virtual Credit Card: Virtual credit cards are temporary and disposable strings on numbers generated by your credit card issuer. These give you more security and anonymity. 

• Browse Securely: Since hackers usually target unsafe and malicious sites, secure browsing on platforms with HTTPS will help your cause.

• Avoid Clicking on Suspicious Links: Hackers use phishing, vishing, and smishing techniques to steal your credit card information. This is only possible when you click on suspicious links, thus, refrain from doing so.

• Hide Your Credit Card Number in Public: If you are using your credit card in public like a PoS machine, hide it properly while entering the PIN.