Best Debt Management Plans of 2023

Money Management International was founded in 1958 and is a nonprofit credit counseling agency that provides DMPs in all 50 states. A search for recent legal actions against the company didn’t reveal any issues.

It’s a member of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), is approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide housing counseling and is approved by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Executive Office for U.S Trustees (EOUST) to provide bankruptcy counseling.

The company offers various services, including credit, housing and bankruptcy counseling. Plus, it offers a DMP with relatively low average fees of $33 to enroll and $25 a month after that. These low average fees set it apart from many of its peers.

If you enroll in a DMP with Money Management International, you can expect to repay all your enrolled debts in an average of 48 months and in no more than 60 months. You don’t need to meet a debt minimum to enroll, which is a nice feature.

GreenPath Financial Wellness is a nonprofit credit counseling agency that was founded in 1961 and offers DMPs in all 50 states. An online search didn’t reveal any recent legal actions against the company, and it’s a member of the NFCC and the Homeownership Preservation Foundation (a nonprofit with a mission to help homeowners).

One thing that sets GreenPath apart from its peers is its level of customer service. You get customer service support every day of the week except Sunday. Plus, you may be able to book an in-person appointment, and you can view its website and resources in Spanish.

If you enroll in its DMP, you’ll be able to fully repay your enrolled debts in no more than three to five years. You’ll pay a one-time enrollment fee of $0 to $50 and a monthly fee of $0 to $75. It doesn’t specify if you need a minimum level of debt to enroll.

Founded in 1955, Apprisen is a nonprofit credit counseling agency that offers DMPs in all 50 states. A search for recent legal actions didn’t uncover any issues, and it’s a member of the NFCC.

You’ll often be able to use the DMP offered by Apprisen if you have as little as $100 to $250 in unsecured debt, which sets it apart from many of its peers. Plus, its one-time enrollment and monthly fees are low, at a maximum of $45 each. If you can’t afford to pay the fees, Apprisen won’t deny you services.

You’ll repay all the debt you enroll in no more than 36 to 60 months.

Founded in 1997, InCharge Debt Solutions is a nonprofit entity that offers credit counseling and DMPs in 16 states, including Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont and Virginia.

A search for recent legal actions against the company did not reveal any issues, and it’s a member of the NFCC, a HUD-approved housing counselor and an EOUST-approved bankruptcy counselor.

Besides traditional credit counseling services and DMPs, InCharge Debt Solutions offers a variety of financial literacy resources to military members and veterans, which sets it apart from its peers. These resources are targeted to the unique needs and situations these people face, such as preparing for deployment, using the GI Bill for your education and getting a VA loan to purchase a home.

If you enroll in a DMP with InCharge Debt Solutions, you’ll need at least $1,000 in eligible debt, like credit cards and personal loans. You can expect it to take three to five years to repay your debt entirely. It’ll cost you no more than $75 to enroll (paid one time) and $33 a month, on average, for the duration of the program.

Founded in 1999, Debt Management Credit Counseling Corp. (DMCC) is a nonprofit that’s a member of the Financial Counseling Association of America (FCAA), has adopted the National Industry Standards for Homeownership and Counseling and encourages its credit counselors to obtain and maintain certification from the National Association of Certified Credit Counselors (NACCC), a well-known credentialing organization.

When you work with a certified credit counselor, you know they underwent training to get the certification and also complete ongoing training to maintain their certification. A search for legal actions did not uncover any recent issues.

Besides offering credit counseling and DMPs, DMCC offers extra services that set it apart from its peers. For instance, DMCC has a payday loan assistance program. If you sign up for this program, you might be able to fully repay your payday loans in six to 12 months with no fees and 0% interest. Payday loans typically carry extremely high costs, so the savings you realize through this program could be significant.

You’ll need at least $5,000 in eligible debt to enroll in a DMP with DMCC, which you can expect to fully repay in no more than 60 months. Although DMCC doesn’t disclose its enrollment or monthly fees, the maximums are set by state law and are typically no more than $0 to $75 (one time to enroll and monthly until the plan ends).

Consumer Education Services, Inc. (CESI) was founded in 1998 and is a nonprofit credit counseling company offering a DMP in all 50 states. A search for recent legal actions didn’t reveal any issues and the company is a member of the NFCC and the FCAA.

You can use the DMP offered by CESI to get help with many unsecured debts, including credit cards, department store cards, personal loans, collections, medical bills and repossessions. However, secured loans and payday loans aren’t eligible.

To enroll in the DMP offered by CESI, you’ll likely need at least $1,500 in eligible debts. You can expect to fully repay your enrolled debt in no more than three to five years.

On average, you’ll pay an average one-time enrollment fee of $37 and a monthly fee of $25. While the fee you’ll need to pay varies by state, each fee won’t exceed $75.

A debt management plan (DMP) is a type of debt relief offered by credit counseling agencies. You’ll repay your entire debt balance at a potentially reduced interest rate or payment amount. You can enroll most types of unsecured debt in a DMP (excluding federal student loans), and it usually takes three to five years to complete.

Since you’ll make timely payments to repay everything you owe with a DMP, your credit score will typically improve over time. In contrast, debt settlement plans will often lower your credit score as you may be asked to make late payments (or stop making payments) and forgiven debt is reflected negatively on your credit report, potentially for many years.

» MORE: What affects your credit score?

DMPs are designed to help you repay all your enrolled debts over a relatively short period of no more than five years. You’ll work with a credit counselor and you can enroll most unsecured debts, like credit cards, personal loans, private student loans and medical bills.

If you sign up for a DMP, this is how it typically works:

1. Get a free financial consultation. You’ll meet with a credit counselor, who will review your finances and offer advice. If you have a lot of unsecured debt, a DMP may be recommended. To sign up, you may need to pay a one-time fee of up to $75.
2. Choose which debts to enroll. You’ll benefit the most by enrolling debt with high interest rates or without structured repayment plans, like credit cards. You can’t enroll secured debt like mortgages and car loans, or federal student loans.
3. Start making payments. Once you’ve enrolled, you’ll begin making a single monthly payment to your credit counseling agency for all your enrolled debts. The agency will take its monthly fee out of your payment and distribute the rest to your creditors.
4. Possibly improve your rates and terms. The credit counseling agency may work with your creditors to negotiate lower monthly payments, reduced interest rates or fee waivers. This can allow you to put more money toward your principal.
5. Pay off everything in full. DMPs typically take three to five years to complete, assuming you make all payments on time and as agreed. If you don’t think you can make the payments, you’re better off not signing up, as the benefits negotiated on your behalf will be voided.

Once you’ve signed up for a DMP, you can often get ongoing support and advice from your credit counselor so you can manage your finances more effectively in the future.

“The credit counselor will continue to work with you over time to monitor your progress and make adjustments to your plan as needed,” said Levon L. Galstyan, a certified public accountant at Oak View Law Group.

If you’re not sure a DMP is right for you, there are alternatives.

Note that you shouldn’t use your 401(k) or other retirement accounts as an alternative. Not only might you have to pay a tax penalty to access these funds, but you may set yourself back from your retirement plans.

Also, you might turn to a debt settlement plan in a worst-case scenario. However, this type of plan is risky because the goal is to settle your debt for less than you owe. While in some cases, debt settlement may be a good alternative to bankruptcy, it’s important to carefully evaluate other alternatives before considering debt settlement.

When choosing a DMP, the first step is to find a credible credit counseling agency. Read reviews, search for any recent legal actions against it and note the certifications held by it or its agents, such as designation as a certified credit counselor.

Also, consider how much you’ll pay in fees, when you pay the fees and the types of services you can receive. You should never be asked to pay for an initial consultation with a credit counselor; this first consultation should be free.

Once you agree to sign up for a DMP, you’ll pay a small enrollment fee of up to $75 and an ongoing monthly fee (also up to $75). State law often dictates the maximum fees these agencies can charge, which your credit counselor should disclose to you.

If the company is unwilling to provide you with disclosures or pressures you to sign up, these could be signs the company isn’t legitimate. You should be given time to consider your options, and the company should be readily able and willing to answer your questions.

ounseling agency is operating a scam or engaging in fraudulent practices, you can file a complaint with either the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

To make our top picks for best debt management plans, we collected 24 individual data points from 17 well-known companies. We then compared them on features including:

• Types of debt serviced: We considered the types of debts a credit counseling company works with, and gave higher consideration to those that work with more than credit card debts (e.g., medical debt, payday loans, personal loans).
• Rates and fees: We gave preference to companies with clear rates and easy-to-access information about fees and policies, including money-back guarantees and cancellation policies.
• Accreditations: Since industry accreditations are crucial to a company’s legitimacy, we only considered companies with at least one professional accreditation, and more weight was given to those companies with more than one.
• Availability: Companies that are available to customers in all 50 states were given more consideration for top picks, but we did not exclude those with limited availability (based on other criteria).
• Additional services: We looked at other services a credit counseling company provided, including bankruptcy, housing and/or student loan counseling, veteran and military debt relief, and credit report reviews. Higher weight was given to companies that offer a variety of services, but we did not exclude from consideration companies that only provide credit counseling.
• Debt minimums: More preference was given to companies that had lower debt minimum requirements ($5,000 and below), but we did not exclude companies requiring a higher minimum if they excelled in other areas.

Since customer feedback is a critical indicator when evaluating companies, this was an important consideration when selecting our top picks. However, for those companies on our list with no ratings on ConsumerAffairs, there were other variables that made them stand out as good options for debt relief, and we factored those into our decisions.