Enter your debt balance, interest rate, and monthly payment to find out your debt-free date and total interest paid. Add an extra monthly payment to see how much faster you can eliminate your debt and how much interest you'll save.
Months to Pay Off
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Total Amount Paid
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Total Interest Paid
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Interest Saved with Extra Payment
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Estimated Debt-Free Date
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The debt avalanche method involves paying off debts in order from the highest interest rate to the lowest, regardless of balance. You make minimum payments on all debts and put any extra money toward the highest-rate debt first. This approach minimizes the total interest you pay over time, making it the most cost-efficient payoff strategy.
The debt snowball method focuses on paying off debts from the smallest balance to the largest, regardless of interest rate. Once you eliminate the smallest debt, you roll that payment into the next smallest. While it may cost more in interest than the avalanche method, the psychological wins from clearing debts quickly can keep you motivated.
The time it takes depends on your balance, interest rate, and monthly payment amount. For example, an $8,500 balance at 19% APR with $250/month takes roughly 48 months to pay off. Adding even a small extra payment each month can shave months or years off your timeline and save significant interest.
Credit card interest is typically calculated using your daily periodic rate (APR ÷ 365) multiplied by your average daily balance and the number of days in the billing cycle. For a $5,000 balance at 20% APR, you'd pay roughly $83 in interest the first month. This calculator uses monthly compounding (APR ÷ 12) for simplicity.
Your minimum payment is usually the greater of a flat fee (e.g. $25) or a percentage of your outstanding balance (typically 1–3%). However, paying only the minimum means most of your payment goes toward interest. This calculator lets you input any monthly payment amount so you can see exactly how different payment levels affect your payoff timeline.
The most effective tactics are: (1) add any extra money — even $50/month — directly to principal; (2) use the debt avalanche to target high-interest balances first; (3) consider a balance transfer to a 0% APR card to pause interest accrual; and (4) look for ways to increase income or cut expenses to free up more cash for debt payments.
Yes — significantly. On an $8,500 debt at 19% APR with $250/month payments, adding just $50 extra per month can reduce your payoff time by over 6 months and save hundreds of dollars in interest. The earlier in the loan you make extra payments, the greater the impact since more of each early payment goes toward interest.
Debt consolidation combines multiple debts into a single loan, ideally at a lower interest rate, simplifying your payments. Debt payoff planning — what this calculator does — focuses on the optimal payment strategy for your current debts without changing their structure. Both approaches can be used together for maximum effect.