 TITLE: How to Change Your Budget in a Financial Emergency CONTENT: Look at How You'll Cover Your Debts\n-----------------------------------\nDuring a financial emergency, you'll want to stay on top of debt payments as much as possible, including your credit card bills.\nOne way to keep up with your credit card bills is to prioritize your debts. The avalanche method or snowball method of paying off your debt might work for you. The avalanche method can save you the most money because it targets credit card bills with higher interest rates. But the snowball method could be best for you if you're hoping to reduce the number of bills you have to pay every month. Even if you're not in the midst of a financial emergency, the avalanche and snowball methods can be smart strategies for chipping away at your debts.\nHere are the main steps of the avalanche method:\n1.  List all of your credit card debts.\n2.  Rank the debts from the highest interest rate to the lowest interest rate.\n3.  Allocate as much money as you can toward the debt that carries the highest interest rate after making the minimum monthly payments on all your other debts.\n4.  After you've knocked out the debt with the highest interest rate, repeat the avalanche process with the debt carrying the next highest interest rate.\n5.  Continue the avalanche method until you've wiped out all of your debts.\nHere are the main steps of the snowball method:\n1.  List all of your credit card debts.\n2.  Rank the debts from the smallest balance to the biggest balance.\n3.  Allocate as much money as you can toward the card with the smallest balance while still making the minimum monthly payments on all your other debts.\n4.  After you've knocked out the debt with the smallest balance, repeat the snowball process with the debt that carries the next smallest balance.\n5.  Continue the snowball method until you've wiped out all of your debts.\nThe avalanche and snowball methods can also be applied to other debts, such as auto loans and student loans.\nIf money is especially tight, you might consider making minimum payments on your credit card bills until the financial emergency has passed. This approach could cost more money, since your balance will take longer to pay off and the amount of interest you owe will rise. But if you need to make room in your budget for essential expenses, paying at least the minimums—and ensuring all payments are made on time—can help keep your credit in good shape through a difficult time. END