You’re not behind, and you’re not alone: the typical American household carrying card debt is doing it on an utterly ordinary paycheck. The Census Bureau reported in September that 2025’s median household income was $87,460 — the highest on record, adjusted for inflation — and yet recent survey data shows the median household credit card …
You have credit card debt. You want it gone. Every personal finance voice on the internet agrees on the strategy — throw every spare dollar at it — and then immediately starts fighting about the order. The debt snowball says: pay off your smallest balance first, whatever the interest rate. Quick wins keep you motivated. …
Most people know credit card interest is expensive. Far fewer can explain how it actually accrues — which is exactly how banks like it. When the mechanics stay fuzzy, the minimum payment feels reasonable and the balance never quite shrinks. Let’s fix that with real numbers. Right now, the national average credit card interest rate …