Turn what you buy online into free airline miles

You can use credit card points to help you earn free travel miles, but that's not the only way to rack them up.

"Another thing we do in our family to earn miles is go to an airline shopping portal online. We earn tens of thousands of free miles this way. Before placing an order at Home Depot, Gap or where ever you shop online, first go through an airline or cash back portal," said Summer Hull, owner of mommypoints.com.

By going to cashbackmonitor.com and typing in the retailer where you're about to make a purchase, the website will tell you who is giving the most miles per dollar.

If you're like a lot of people, and you have big balances on your credit cards, this is probably the easiest thing you can do to help pay them down.

Call your creditor to negotiate a lower rate.

Debt.com says creditors are more likely to do it under these three circumstances:

1. You've been a loyal customer who pays on time consistently over many years.

2. Your credit score is higher now than when you applied for the card.

3. Your balance is current right now.

It's also a good idea to know current average credit card interest rates for each card you have.

This gives you a starting point to negotiate.