Mounting credit card debt is one of the major financial issues that plagues households across the United States. You’ve probably heard statistics about how it could take decades to pay off your debt if you’re only making the minimum payment, so it’s much better to take the payment plan into your own hands. One of the best strategies you can use is to pay bi weekly to help you be debt free sooner.

Credit Card Debt Can Be Expensive

Unlike mortgage debt, which can have a very low interest rate of under 4% these days, credit card debt comes with an extremely high interest rate. A rate of 12% is considered excellent, and many people have an APR of 15% or more, even up to 30% if you are paying a penalty rate. Therefore, you’ll be paying much more interest on credit card debt than on other types of debt. This is why it’s so important to use a repayment calculator to investigate money-saving strategies like bi weekly payments.

Top Reasons to Make Bi Weekly Payments on a Credit Card

1. You’ll make two extra half payments each year when you’re on a bi weekly schedule. These payments are going entirely toward paying off the balance on your card, not to interest because that’s already covered for the month. 2. You probably get your paychecks every two weeks, so it makes sense to pay bi weekly on your credit card, too. It will be easier to budget for the month if you know you have a fixed credit card payment coming out of each of your paychecks. 3. Your payment amount will remain the same even when your credit card balance goes down. Paying a fixed amount each time rather than a decreasing minimum payment helps you pay off your debt much faster because you’re paying more principal each month. However, remember that your payments will go up if you increase the balance on your card and have a higher minimum payment, so it’s best to stop using the card when you’re trying to pay it off.

Using a Repayment Calculator

Now that you know why it’s so advantageous to pay bi weekly on your credit card, it’s time to find out how much you can save. Check out our repayment calculator to get some hard numbers for your situation. Although you’ll start with your minimum payments as a baseline, remember that you can always add more to each of your bi weekly payments. In fact, the more you add, the faster you’ll be able to get out of debt and have more money available for spending now!