for cash, but I focused my efforts on a little department store card and paid it off, since I thought I had nothing to lose instead of spending that money on something else I jumped on the snowball program and our debt slowly starting dropping.  All I had to do was give it a try, completely stop using all of my other other cards (it's best to cut them up, it really is), stick to our budget, and with each bill we paid off it became easier and we became more motivated. Now, there are some people who love to point out that mathematically it would be more effective to pay off your highest interest rate balance first (banks and credit unions often issue this advice), but, a Debt Snowball is not really about math it's about behavior modification.  It's about giving your significant others and yourself some confidence and momentum.  This is why, over time, the Debt Snowball method of debt payment has proven MORE effective and longer lasting than attacking your highest interest rate first. So if you have gotten your significant other on board with a monthly budget and you have *completely* stopped acquiring all other debt (no furniture, tires or storage containers on credit either), then you are ready for this next step.  After you have built up a small emergency fund ($1500 is a good goal), you will stop putting money into savings.  Stop investing, put your 401k contributions on hold, and pay the minimum