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How to get out of debt faster: Credit card debt reaches all time high for Americans

We have over $1 trillion in credit card debt
Posted at 3:36 PM, Aug 14, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-03 13:44:00-04

Americans now owe more credit card debt than at any other time in history. According to new data released by the Federal Reserve, we've racked up more than $1 trillion in credit debt.

If you're among the many with debt we have some good news...there are credit cards that will help you bring the balance back to zero faster.

Get out of debt guru Dave Ramsey preaches the snowball step in his popular Total Money Makeover.

Step two in Ramsey's 7 step debt free plan involves paying down debt starting with the smallest balance. The debt snowball lists debts smallest to largest regardless of the interest rate. After making the list your goal is attacking the smallest one and when that is paid for you attack the next one. By paying off smallest debts first people see they can move their debt meter and it builds motivation.

We found credit cards that will speed up your debt snowball by offering zero percent interest for as long as 21 months. CompareCards.com ranks the City Diamond preferred card as its balance transfer champion. Any payment you make during the first 21 months will go to paying down debt instead of interest.

Here's what that looks like in terms of a $10,000 credit card bill. If you make payments of $200 a month on that balance on a zero APR card you'll have the balance down to $7,000 in 16 months. But you'll only pay down the bottom line to about $9,000 in the same period on a card with a typical interest rate of around 13 percent.

Compare Cards ranks Bank of America's Master Card credit card as a great debt buster. With other cards there's a 3 to 5 percent fee to transfer your balance but not with the Bank of America card. There is a zero percent APR for 15 months and no annual fee. You can track your progress with access to your fico score for free with this card. As with most balance transfer deals you'll need to have a good to excellent credit score.