Will Grigg's penalty and a Bradley Johnson free-kick secured MK Dons a 2-0 victory at 10-man Charlton to end a run of five straight league defeats for Liam Manning's struggling side.
The visitors came into the game rooted at the foot of the the League One table while Charlton were unbeaten in five games.
But it was Manning's side who forced the lead in the 66th minute when Grigg took full advantage after Charlton defender Ryan Inniss was dismissed after collecting a second yellow card for bringing down Louie Barry inside the penalty area.
And Johnson doubled the lead with a superbly struck 78th minute free-kick from 20 yards out after Dawson Devoy had been fouled to wrap up a deserved win.
The Dons looked the most threatening of the two sides throughout and Grigg almost made the breakthrough shortly before the interval when his first time shot struck the bar.
Charlton struggled to break down the visitors' well organised defence with Jes Rak-Sakyi's long range shot their best effort on goal.