Credit card debt is often one of the most insidious kinds of debt. If you currently have a significant amount of credit card debt, you might be wondering how you may be able to reduce it. The good news is that there are ways you can reduce credit card debt, although not all of them are easy. If your family is currently struggling with credit card debt, here are four options you might want to consider.

1. Reduce Credit Card Purchasing in General

The first step is to take steps so you can reduce your credit card purchasing. Credit card purchasing is one type of purchasing that can easily get out of hand because it doesn’t seem to impact you until the next billing statement rolls around. If you find that you regularly over-spend with credit cards, consider switching exclusively to debit cards or even prepaid cards, as these options only allow you to spend as much money as you actually have.

2. Consider a Personal Loan

A personal loan may be an option for especially high-interest credit card debt, especially if you can get a personal loan at a fairly low percentage. The way this works is that you take out a loan for the amount of credit card debt you have. Then, use that money to pay your credit cards off. You’ll still be paying off a loan, but the loan may be lower-percentage than your credit card debt.

3. Put as Much Spending Money as Possible Toward Credit Card Debt

The main reason that credit card debt gets so out of hand is the extremely high interest rate, making it so that you’re often not paying off much of the principal every time you make a payment. Instead of just sticking to minimum payments, it’s a good idea to strive for at least twice the minimum payment every billing cycle, so you’re paying off more of the actual debt and getting less interest.

4. Transfer Your Credit Card Debt to a Balance Transfer Card

A balance transfer card is made especially for people with credit card debt. With a card like the Citi Simplicity card, you pay a specific balance transfer fee – 5% with this specific card – and then you can take advantage of a low introductory APR as you pay off the balance. The Citi Simplicity card gives you an incredible 21 months of 0% APR to pay off your credit card debt, which can give you a much-needed breather.

Conclusion

Many families struggle with credit card debt, and it’s common for all sorts of people to have issues with this problem over time. However, if you’re looking for a way to reduce credit card debt, there are many options available for you. A balance transfer card may be one of the best ways to reduce your credit card interest rates, making it possible for you to pay off the actual debt rather than just paying off interest every month.