Calculate the best way to pay off credit card debt

Flickr user 401(K) 2012

(MoneyWatch) The average American household now has about $6,700 in credit card debt. And while the last six months saw a slight decrease in those obligations, it didn't make up for 2011, when people piled on an additional $46.7 billion in debt.

If you are one of those average Americans looking for a way out of the debt cycle, check out these credit card calculators from CardHub.

Calculators that tell you how long it will take to pay off your debts have been around almost as long as there have been spreadsheets and computers. What is new is that CardHub, a provider of credit card information, links your debt situation with credit card offers that may be able to help you climb out of the hole.

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Consider that average American, for example. Plug $6,700 -- the typical household credit card debt -- into the Payoff calculator and indicate an average rate on your existing card of 20 percent. If you want to pay it off in 12 months, you'll need to pay $621 a month, for a total of $754 in interest charges.

CardHub's calculator also recommends a number of credit cards you could switch to -- The Slate Card, from JPMorgan Chase (JPM), for example, has a zero percent introductory rate that would save you $754 in annual interest. The MidFlorida card has a similar intro rate, but its 1 percent transfer fee means you'd save a little less -- $687.

CardHub offers several calculators. They're all free, of course -- check them out today if you need to find a way to save money or pay off your credit cards more quickly.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user 401 (K) 2012

[wjss75606]

The best way to pay it off is to borrow ever increasing amounts. That's what the government is doing so it must be the correct way to get out of debt. Borrow as much and as often as you can and use every avaiable source. Then spend it as quickly as possible for overpriced items or just give it away. Leave all unpaid balances to your estate so your grandchildren and great grandchildren can continue to pay on the balance.

[twmat311]

Careful about jumping over to zero-introductory cards; once might be ok, but too many times in a short timeframe could ding your credit rating. Watch for seasonal deals on short term fixed-rate home equity loans (if you're a homeowner); they tend to enforce some discipline, but lock away the card till you're paid off.