The fastest way to pay off $10,000 in credit card debt

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What's the best way to pay down a credit card balance as quickly as possible, while paying the least in interest, and without hurting your credit? What follows is a powerful method recommended by the most astute personal finance experts* to achieve exactly those objectives. It's extremely effective, completely legal, and leverages programs created by credit card issuers to your advantage. Follow these steps and start to become credit card debt-free.

Step 1: Use a powerful tool to immediately stop paying interest on your balance

Think of someone carrying a credit card balance like a patient who enters an emergency room bleeding badly. The first thing a doctor will do is stop the bleeding. It's no different when attacking a credit card balance; the first thing you do is stop the interest charges.

There's a simple way to do this: Find a card offering a long "0% intro APR balance transfer" promotional offer, and transfer your balance to it. These cards offer new customers a long period of time during which the card charges no interest on balances transferred to it.

If you need more motivation, think of this: on a $10,000 balance, $150 of a $200 monthly payment would get vacuumed up by interest charges, leaving only $50 that actually reduces your balance. Use our reviews to find a card which offers the longest possible no-interest period while charging low, or even no fees.

Step 2: Power through your balance during the 0% period

Once you've transferred your balances and put a stop to the interest charges, capitalize on the interest-free period to really break free of the debt by continuing to make. Going back to the $10,000 example, if you transferred that balance to a card that offered 15 months of 0% intro APR with no transfer fee and maintained the same $200 monthly payment, you'd reduce your balance much faster.

Attempting to pay off your cards while paying high card interest rates is no way to manage your finances. Move your balances onto one of the cards below, stop getting crushed by interest, and start making real progress toward getting rid of your card debt.

Top 0% intro APR balance transfer card:

Chase Slate®

The Chase Slate® charges no fee for transferring your balance to it in the first two months, no annual fee, and no interest on balances transferred for a full 15-month 0% intro APR period. This makes it a phenomenal tool to gain control of your credit card debt, as you can make a costless balance transfer, then use the 15-month interest grace period to pay down your balance.

The cards with long 0% intro APR and cash rewards programs:

Chase Freedom UnlimitedSM

One of the strongest cards available to those with good (but not perfect) credit. The card combines industry leading cash back rates (1.5% on everything) with a strong 15 months of 0% intro APR interest on new purchases combined with a $150 cash bonus when you use the card to make $500 in spend in the first three months.

Capital One® Quicksilver® Cash Rewards Card

Capital One's Quicksilver card makes things simple: you earn 1.5% cash back on all your purchases, with no limit and no category restrictions. It offers 0% intro APR for nine months on all balances transferred, so you can use this card to avoid paying interest during the intro period and earn cash rewards.

Find out more about how to free yourself from credit card debt.

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