--- title: Dumb Money: What Do I Do if I Have a Lot of Credit Card Debt? | TIME description: MONEY's Taylor Tepper explains why you need not panic. canonical: https://time.com/video/0QO7VUVD/ og:title: Dumb Money: What Do I Do if I Have a Lot of Credit Card Debt? og:description: MONEY's Taylor Tepper explains why you need not panic. og:url: https://time.com/video/0QO7VUVD/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/0QO7VUVD/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Dumb Money: What Do I Do if I Have a Lot of Credit Card Debt? twitter:description: MONEY's Taylor Tepper explains why you need not panic. twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/0QO7VUVD/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # Dumb Money: What Do I Do if I Have a Lot of Credit Card Debt? > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: Dumb Money: What Do I Do if I Have a Lot of Credit Card Debt? [Watch (HLS stream): Dumb Money: What Do I Do if I Have a Lot of Credit Card Debt?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0QO7VUVD.m3u8) (1:56)  _Published 2016-09-28. MONEY's Taylor Tepper explains why you need not panic._ --- Jul 27, 2023 8:52 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [How Do Credit Card Companies Make Money?](/video/fplVqUym/) ### How Do Credit Card Companies Make Money? [5 Simple Strategies to Eliminate Credit Card Debt MONEY](/video/pwXBQfri/) ### 5 Simple Strategies to Eliminate Credit Card Debt MONEY [Dumb Money: Why Do Companies Have 401\(k\)s?](/video/vrqRyDV0/) ### Dumb Money: Why Do Companies Have 401(k)s? --- ## Transcript Today on Dumb Money what do I do if I have a lot of credit card debt? I'm here to answer the money questions you think are too silly, stupid, or scary to ask. I'm Taylor Tepper, and this is Dumb Money. [ SOUND ] Cry, panic, beg for mercy. Credit card debt often treated like a moral failing, and that's helpful for anyone. People go into debt for all kinds of reasons and getting out of debt is just a financial hurdle that you're gonna have to deal with. Don't add guilt to the mix, there's nothing wrong with you personally Still, carrying lots of IOUs isnt good for your health. financial or physical. So, here's what you gotta do. The first step is stop taking on water. If you are in debt because you cant control your spending, look over your past few statements to see what you can cut out. Set up weekly spending limits. You have to be brutal on yourself. If you find yourself in hole, stop digging. That means not using your credit card. Put it in the bottom of a desk drawer at home. Put it up high on a shelf. If you need plastic, use your debit card, so you're only spending money that you actually have, not money that you wish you had. Then you've gotta deal with your debt burden. Just for context, the average debt among households that carry debt is nine grand, and richer indebted households are more than poor ones, so again, you're not alone. The bad thing about credit card debt is that the interest rate is so high. Buy yourself some time by moving your balance to a credit card with a long interest free window. Lots of cards will charge you three percent for the honor, but the Chase Slate is free if you make the transfer within two months of signing up. You'll then get 15 months interest free. If you've already gone through a balance transfer card, consider a personal loan. The average APR is much much lower than wheat your paying with your credit card. The key with either step is to set up a repayment plan and stick To it. Otherwise, you're just a gerbil running around in an expensive wheel. 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