Best way to split £3k to pay off credit cards

Debtdipped

Hi, I have a £3k work bonus (after tax) coming my way in Dec. What is the best way to use these funds to pay off my debts below? All the APRs are similar. My plan was to pay off card 1 and close the card, and then reduce overdraft down to £500. Or should I consider another plan? Thank you.

• Credit card 1 = £2,000, minimum payment £100
• Credit card 2 = £2,000, minimum payment £100
• Credit card 3 = £1,250, minimum payment £65
• Credit card 4 = £1,200, minimum payment £60
• Bank overdraft = £1,500

fatbelly

The overdraft is likely to be the highest apr ( you should check) so clear that first

And stay out of it

Then pay off the credit card with the highest apr 

If you can BT the other balances to 0% you can then concentrate on clearing your debt by overpaying the minimum payments

Emmia

I'd pay off the overdraft and either go no overdraft (close the facility) or reduce it to the level of a tiny buffer £100.

Then put the rest on the highest APR.

Brie

You should also think why you have these amounts needing paying off.  If it was an emergency/one-off, then fine, things happen.  But if it's a constant struggle you need to look at your overall spending and making your budget fit your normal income.  Bonuses are great (saved my financial backside a few times!) but not having to depend on them to solve problems isn't the best way to get on.  

If you want to look at your normal budget you could try filling in the statement of accounts (SOA, see the link below) and use a couple of months of bank/card statements to fill it out accurately.  If you want some help on trimming it down to size you could post a copy back here and people will make suggestions.  

Keep_pedalling

Assuming all those cards charge more or less the same interest, I would clear the overdraft, clear and close one of the smaller CC debts, keep the rest as an emergency fund then work to clear the remaining debt starting by looking at your current expenditure as per Brie’s post above.