<prompt> Human: Hey yall, so with my final student benefited tax return Im going to be putting 1000 towards dept. I currently have 3 credit cards total, and all of them are pretty much maxed out. Ive just graduated and have a big boy job Just got an offer yesterday at my internship starting at 70k! so Im trying to be smarter with money starting at the side bar. The best time I should start doing that was when I first started college but the second best time is now and all that jazz. Card 1: 989.791000 w 10.4 APR Card 2: 990.091000 w 23.49 APR Card 3: 1,983.092000 w 25.74 APR So I planned on paying off card 1 regularly because it obviously has the lowest APR. What Im trying to figure out is if I should just pay off card 2 in total and rip it up, or pay off half of card 3? Does it even matter in the long run? I think increasing my credit score is my biggest goal, if thats even possible with my options though I guess thatll happen naturally over time as long as I keep paying off my debts. If I go with card 2, Ive been told that its better to leave the account open and rip up the card, rather than close the account, is this true?To add some other potential options to send the money, in case it might be more valuable: I also have a personal bank loan w 1300 left at an 11.95 APR, a car loan w 6169 left at 9.25 APR, and a personal family loan w 1000 left that Im paying back 0 interest at 100month maybe more now that Im going to start getting paid more. I think I want to focus on paying towards my credit cards but if yall think it might be better put towards one of these Id be open to feedback in that area as well. edit: Totally agree with the comments here. Ill go ahead and put 1000 towards card 3. I was mainly confused as to whether paying one card off completely would be better for my credit score more than putting the same amount towards another. After a little research it looks like it doesnt matter which card the money goes towards, it will have the same effect, but paying card 3 will lower my total APR payments the most.  <response>: one with highest interest always, no two ways about it. costs you more in the long run every time to not pay it off 