Paying bills with credit cards?

[Linea_Norway]

Hi.

I read on this forum that some of you pay bills with their credit card, like their electricity bill.
My credit cards let me pay interest from the moment a bill is paid. Normally, if I pay with my credit card in a shop, the interest only starts from next month and by that time I have paid the bill already.

But how do you pay a normal bill in the internet bank with credit card without paying interest? Do you first fill up the credit card account with enough money?

[NotJen]

My credit cards [in the US] have a grace period for interest when used as a credit card (this is not true for cash advances, so I don't do cash advances) - no interest if I pay the bill in full each month.  The bills that I pay with a credit card go through as regular credit charges.  No difference if I pay a utility bill, cell phone bill, or my final bill at a grocery store or restaurant.

My personal utility company does charge a fee to pay with a credit card - a $2.50 flat fee.  I am allowed to pay $1,000 at a time (which for me is many months worth of electricity and water).  So, I charge $1,000 on a card to help earn a lucrative sign-up bonus, and only pay $2.50 (or 0.25%).  I'm still ahead even if I'm just earning 1% cash back.

[AMandM]

My car insurance will let me may with a credit card at no extra cost, and it counts as a purchase to the CC company (so, like NotJen, I am charged no interest till after the next statement, which I always pay in full).  My other bills charge a fee, usually about 3%, to pay with a credit card, so I don't.