What does available credit mean, as opposed to current balance on a credit card statement?

On my statement it says





Balance - $200.00 (as an example) then


Available Credit. $290.00





I want to but something for $400 on my credit card, is that possible? Or can I only spend $290?





Sorry if this seems really silly, I just havent had a credit card before!





THANK YOU!|||you can only spend what you have available.


balance: how much you owe.


actual credit: how much credit you ACTUALLY have BEFORE all your most recent transactions have gone through.


available credit: how much credit you WILL have left AFTER all your most recent transactions have gone through.





hope this helps.|||In your example:





$200 + $290 = $490.





You have a credit limit of $490


You have used $200 (you need to pay this back).


You can borrow $290 until you reach your credit limit.





No, you can not borrow $400 at this time. Pay back the $200 or have them raise your credit limit and you may,