Do you know how much of your hard-earned money goes toward credit card debt interest each month? With most credit card companies charging anywhere from 21 to 30 percent in interest you may be surprised by how much you are actually wasting in credit card interest.

The interest payment on a credit card with a $2,000 balance and a 29 percent APR is almost $50 per month. And that's only for $2,000 worth of debt. The average American carries nearly $10,000 in unsecured debt and can only make their minimum payments each month. Over time, the amount of money paid in interest could be in the thousands.

The basic solution to avoiding all of these unnecessary interest charges is to pay off your unsecured debt. Of course, this is easier said than done. Most are finding it difficult to stay afloat financially and just do not have the extra money to dedicate to paying off their unsecured debt.

If this sounds like you, there is a solution that can pay off those debts and save you a ton of money in interest charges.

Debt Consolidation Basics:

Debt consolidation works by combining all of your high-interest debt into one payment with a smaller interest rate. Your credit cards will be paid off and you can pay off your consolidated debts gradually.

Using consolidation helps save you money in two ways. First, it dramatically lowers the interest that you are paying on your debt balances. A lower interest rate of just 10 points less than what you are currently paying could save you $1,000 per year if you have $10,000 worth of unsecured debt. Next, a consolidating saves you money each month by lowering your payments. Instead of paying hundreds of dollars to several different creditors, you can make just one lower payment.