Fortunately, learning how to pay bills on time is often just a matter of getting organized and setting up a bill payment schedule. Try these tips and tricks to make missing bill due dates a thing of the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Take stock of all your monthly bills<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
First things first: You need to make a list of your bills for the month. Comb through your credit card and bank statements, and even your credit reports, to find typical payment amounts for your rent, utilities, loans, and credit cards. And don\u2019t forget to look for more irregularly scheduled bills, like car insurance or subscription renewals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Next, record the bills on a spreadsheet, in a budgeting app, or using any \u201cmethod that will keep you organized and <\/em>help you pay your bills on time,\u201d says Dan Herron, a CFP\u00ae<\/sup> and certified public accountant. Be sure to include payments that are automatically paid out of your checking account or billed to your credit card. For each bill, write down:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even if you\u2019re a budgeting whiz, there may come a day when you can\u2019t afford to pay all of your bills on time. That\u2019s why you should also organize monthly bills by payment priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Using the above list, sort your bills into two groups: higher and lower priority. High-priority bills are for basic needs like shelter, transportation to work, and health insurance, or those that generally must be paid in full. Lower-priority bills are those that are important but offer some flexibility\u2014for example, the ability to make a minimum payment (as is the case for a credit card) or to extend your payment due date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now you have a categorization system to help you make smart decisions about how to pay bills during times when you\u2019re short on money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you have a monthly bills checklist, you can create a bill payment schedule that turns a slew of payment due dates and methods into a more streamlined system for how to pay bills. Here\u2019s how to create one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many bills are due around the same time. Go through your monthly bills checklist and group them based on due date similarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some creditors allow you to change your regular bill due date. If you have many bills due at the beginning of the month, you may want to move some to the end of the month for better cash flow (for example, instead of paying a bill on Oct. 1, see if you can move it up to Sept. 30.) Update your bill payment schedule if you make any changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you have your bills organized by due date, add them to a digital calendar and set payment reminders for a week before each bill is due, Herron says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n Paying bills on time can mean avoiding late fees, higher interest rates, and dings to your credit score.<\/p>\n <\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n Staying organized is the best way to pay bills each month. What works best for you won\u2019t be exactly the same as for someone else, but there are guidelines for how to pay bills most efficiently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rather than tossing your paper bills onto an already teetering pile of mail, keep unpaid bills in a dedicated file folder or basket. For electronic bills, create a digital folder for unpaid bills in your email, on your desktop, or in a cloud storage system. Once you\u2019ve paid a bill, move it from the unpaid folder into a paid folder for that month or year, Herron says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Any bill pay feature on an account can make paying bills a snap. While automating all your bills comes with the risk of overdrawing your checking account\u2014be sure you have overdraft protection or a connected savings account, Herron says\u2014it removes the burden of having to remember your bill due dates. For many banks, overdraft protection is a link between deposit accounts that transfers funds to help avoid returned items and insufficient funds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Figure out how to pay bills that won\u2019t be automatically paid from your checking account. Will you pay them when they come due or on a specific day or two each month? For example, if you have a bunch of bills due on the 15th of the month, you might decide to pay them all on the 8th of the month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Good news: You don\u2019t have to rely solely on your memory or your organizational skills to pay your bills on time. Lean on technology for help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sign up for reminders from your bank and creditors when your bills are due. You can also receive notices of when payments or checks have cleared and when your checking account balance has dipped below a certain amount.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
Prioritize your bills<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nOptimize your payment schedules<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Group bills by due date<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Change your bill due dates<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Add due dates to a calendar<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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How to organize your bills<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Create a bill \u2018drop zone\u2019<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Automate as much as possible<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Decide when to pay your bills<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Take advantage of tech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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