What is the 15/3 Rule for Credit Cards?

The 15/3 rule has become a popular credit card payment strategy, especially among social media influencers. But what exactly is this method and does it really help you manage credit card debt or improve your credit? Let’s take a closer look at how the 15/3 rule works and whether it’s an effective approach.

What is the 15/3 Rule?

The 15/3 rule, also called the 15/3 hack, is a system for making credit card payments twice each month instead of just once.

Here’s how it works

15 days before your credit card bill is due, you pay at least half of the total amount due on your statement. Some versions say that at this point you should only pay the minimum amount that’s due.
Then, three days before your due date, you pay the rest of the bill in full. This covers any new charges made since your initial payment.

The idea is that making two payments helps keep your balance lower throughout the billing cycle. Supporters of the 15/3 method claim this can help improve your credit scores.

Does the 15/3 Hack Actually Work?

The short answer is: it depends. Here are some key things to understand about whether and how the 15/3 credit card payment approach works:

It won’t improve your payment history. If you paid on time every month, but not how many times, that’s what your credit report shows. Just remember to make the minimum payment by the due date every month. This will help you build a good payment history.
The timing matters most for your credit utilization rate. This compares your balance to your credit limit. Paying your balance down before your issuer reports your monthly info to the credit bureaus can lower your utilization. But the 15/3 timeline isn’t necessarily ideal for this.
You don’t need to make multiple payments. One payment per month is sufficient as long as you pay on time and keep your utilization rate low.
It can help you budget. Making semi-monthly payments from each paycheck may fit better with your cash flow. This can make it easier to avoid overspending.
It adds complexity. The more payments you’re tracking, the higher the chance of making a mistake or late payment, which damages your credit.

Overall, while the principles behind the 15/3 method are sound, the specific approach likely won’t provide significant credit score benefits for most people.

5 Steps to Follow the 15/3 Hack

If you do want to try the 15/3 approach, here are the basic steps:

Find your credit card’s due date on your statement or online account.
Subtract 15 days from your due date.
You can pay at least half of your bill that day, or just the minimum amount that’s due.
Subtract 3 days from your due date.
Pay the remaining balance, including new charges, on that day.

Be sure to note your due date each month, since it can vary. And double check your payment dates so no payments are late.

When the 15/3 Method May Help

While the 15/3 system won’t directly help your credit for most people, it could provide benefits in certain situations:

If you have a low credit limit compared to your monthly spending, making an extra payment could significantly lower your utilization rate.
When trying to pay off credit card debt, more frequent payments can help you pay it off faster by reducing the interest you pay.
If you’ve missed payments in the past, using the 15/3 method religiously could help you rebuild your payment history through on-time payments.
If you need to increase your credit score quickly to get approved for a loan or mortgage, the lower utilization rate could provide a small boost.

So while the 15/3 method itself doesn’t have any special powers, it can be a tool to help manage your specific credit situation or goals.

Pros and Cons of the 15/3 Credit Card Hack

Before implementing this system, consider both the potential advantages and disadvantages:

Pros

Helps keep credit card balances low
Can pay off debt faster
Easy to remember system if you struggle with tracking due dates
Forces you to monitor spending more closely when making multiple payments

Cons

Doesn’t improve payment history any more than single payments
Precise timing unlikely to help utilization rate for most people
More payments to track each month
Could backfire and increase late payments
Provides little benefit if already using credit responsibly

Should You Use the 15/3 Method?

At the end of the day, the 15/3 rule is simply one strategy you can use to make sure you’re paying your credit card bill regularly and keeping your balance as low as possible. It’s not a magic trick to boost your credit scores.

Before jumping into this system, make sure you have a solid understanding of how credit scores work and what factors impact them. Focus on using credit responsibly through on-time payments, low balances, and a mix of credit types.

If you want to optimize your credit, monitor your credit scores and reports to identify where you might have room for improvement. Addressing any errors or gaps in your history is likely to have a bigger impact than any specific payment method hack.

The 15/3 approach may help you stay organized and committed to lowering your debt. But don’t let it distract you from foundational credit best practices that will serve you well for the long-term.

The Bottom Line

The 15/3 rule for credit card payments involves making two payments per month instead of one. Supporters claim it helps improve your credit scores. But in reality, the timing of extra payments is unlikely to have a significant impact for most people.

What matters most is paying your statement balance on time and keeping your overall and individual credit card balances as low as possible, relative to your credit limit. Focus on those credit card basics. Consider the 15/3 method only if it happens to align well with your monthly cash flow or specific credit situation. Don’t let it complicate your finances unnecessarily.

what is the 15 3 rule

What’s the truth?

The grain of truth in the 15/3 hack is that credit utilization matters to credit scores.

Credit utilization is simply how much credit you’re using vs. how much credit you have. Scoring models award you a higher score if you have lots of available credit, but use very little of it.

Your credit score is a snapshot in time reflecting your creditworthiness. Purposefully lowering your utilization on a certain date is like applying lipstick before the photo is taken.

But your effort to pretty-up your utilization only lasts one month — until the next month when your creditors report your balances and limits again and you have a new utilization ratio. So unless you were going to apply for a loan or otherwise needed to show a handsome credit score on a specific date, your effort was wasted.

It’s like you put on a fine suit but sat home alone. Nobody saw it, or cared.

What the 15/3 credit hack claims

One YouTuber, for example, made a 20-minute video touting the 15/3 system, saying she was told it could elevate her credit score 100 points in three or four months. But thats just one among numerous blog posts and TikTok videos claiming 15/3 is a secret sure-fire method for elevating credit scores.

We weren’t able to identify the originator of the 15/3 credit card payment method, but this is generally how it is retold. Your credit scores will supposedly grow significantly if you:

Make half a payment 15 days before your credit card due date. If your payment is due on the 15th of the month, pay it on the 1st.
Pay the second half three days before the due date.

Some versions of the 15/3 rule swap in statement closing date for payment due date. The statement closing date comes about three weeks before the payment due date. Targeting the closing date could mean making three payments.

Make a payment 15 days before the statement closing date. (Not necessarily half because you don’t yet know what half is. You’re still using the card during the billing cycle.)
Make a payment three days before the statement closing date.
Pay off whatever is left after the statement closing date but before the due date so you don’t pay late fees or interest. This amount would be whatever you charged during the final three days of the billing cycle.

15/3 Trick : Is it the Best Day To Pay Credit Cards to Increase Credit Score or a worthless hack?

FAQ

What is the 15/3 rule?

The 15/3 rule or hack has a few variations, but the basic premise is that you can improve your credit scores by making two credit card payments each month. You’re told to pay your credit card bill 15 days before it’s due, which is how the hack got its name.