Many credit card companies are willing to lend you money at 0% interest, so why not take this cash and save it yourself earning 6% interest on it. This is known as stoozing, it's legal and very profitable; yet it's only for the really financially savvy.
How much? If you get a 0% card with a 5,000 credit limit you should comfortably be able to earn 250 a year on it. The biggest reported stoozer was making 6,000 profit a year from stoozing.
How do I do it?
Get paid every time you spend.
Cashback credit cards pay you back a proportion of what you spend each time you use them. Therefore set up a Direct Debit to pay it off in full each month so there's no interest cost and you can earn. Just use the card for all your normal spending and you'll make money.
How much? The top cashback cards pay up to 4% cashback for a short period and then a standard 1%. So if you spend 10,000 a year you stand to make 200, just by paying with a different piece of plastic.
How do I do it?
Don't accept pitiful rates on your savings.
If you've got savings, ensure they're working well for you. Many people leave their savings in pitiful high street bank accounts where the money is actually shrinking. Even worse, you may have it in a current account earning just 0.1%. Stop this - five minutes work'll let you increase the interest massively but a very large percentage