Option #3. Hit the bank: If your card issuer doesn’t offer convenience checks or a balance-transfer feature (very unusual now) you can always use the old-fashioned method: a regular cash advance. Simply go to any bank sporting the Visa or MasterCard logo in the window and request a cash advance. Immediately purchase a cashier’s check or money order for the amount of the balance you are paying off, and make it out to your other card issuer.

Of course, it can’t be that easy (is anything?). There are a couple of pitfalls you’ll want to watch out for:

Nickel and dinning us… Some issuers charge fees for balance transfers or purchases made with convenience checks. If that’s the case, call your card issuer, explain that you are using the checks to pay off other credit cards, and ask them to waive the fee. Many will be willing to obligeespecially since they will be getting an instant outstanding balance!

Another tip: Don’t let the location or the size of the credit card company deter you from switching. People have told me they are afraid to take out a card with a bank across the country because they are worried that the card may not be accepted by local merchants. Credit cards are not like personal checks. Every merchant that accepts Visa or MasterCard must accept every Visa or MasterCard, regardless of the issuer.

Or maybe you want to stick with a local bank because you like the comfort of knowing your bank is right around the corner in case of a billing problem. Just keep in mind that federal law requires you put your billing disputes in writing to the card issuer whether they’re five miles away or five hundred.

How much can you really save by switching to a cheaper credit card?

Suppose you have a balance of $1,000 on a credit card that carries a 19.8 percent interest rate, a full grace period, and a $20 annual fee. If you make only the minimum monthly payment of 3 percent per month, you will pay a little over $165 in interest over the course of one year. If you continue making only minimum monthly payments for the rest of the loan, it will take you eight years and three months to pay it off, and you will have paid $843 in interest over that period of time! Plus, you will pay eight annual fees that total $180.

Now suppose you carry a credit card with an interest rate of 14 percent and a $12 annual fee. If you make only the minimum monthly payment of 3 percent per month, it will take you six years and six months to pay off the balance, and you will pay $455 in interest over that period of time. Your annual fees will total $84.

Your net savings by switching from the high-rate card to the lower-rate one would be $483.96!