People who are new to online bill paying often ask if it is better to pay their bills using the website of each company – say, by paying bills separately – or by using their bank's online bill paying service.

For convenience, nothing beats using a single source. You'll save a lot of time and hassle by using one website to pay all your bills. You can pay almost anyone by using an online check, and you can set bills up to be paid automatically.

Occasionally paying directly to a company's online service makes sense, especially if a bill is due within a day or less. Making your electric bill payment directly on the electric utility's website should allow the payment to be credited more or less immediately. But as long as you stay a day or two ahead, using a single-source will be a lot easier – and will save a lot of time and help you keep all your financial records straight.