Debt Payoff Calculator
Calculate credit card payments, payoff timelines, and interest costs.
Debt Information
Payoff Strategy
Pay minimum on all debts, put extra money toward highest interest rate first
Additional Payment
Additional amount to put toward debt payoff
Your Debts
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Debt Payoff Plan
Debt-Free Date
11/13/2029
41 months
Total Interest
$4,256
Interest paid
Interest Saved
$5,495
vs minimum payments
Total Paid
$20,256
Principal + Interest
Monthly Savings After
$575
Available after debt-free
Principal vs Interest
Debt Summary
Total Debt:$16,000
Total Interest:$4,256
Total Minimum Payments:$375
Extra Payment:$200
Total Monthly Payment:$575
Debt Payoff Tips
- • Make all minimum payments to avoid late fees and credit damage
- • Put any windfalls (tax refunds, bonuses) toward debt
- • Consider consolidating high-interest debt if you qualify for lower rates
- • Cut expenses temporarily to maximize extra payments
- • Build a small emergency fund to avoid new debt
How it works
When you have several debts, this calculator pools your total monthly payment, covers every minimum, then throws the extra at one target debt until it's gone — rolling that freed-up payment onto the next. Two ordering strategies decide the target: avalanche (highest interest rate first) and snowball (smallest balance first).
Each debt amortizes the same way
Monthly interest = Balance · (APR ÷ 12) Extra payment → applied to the target debt's principal
- Avalanche
- order debts by APR, highest first → least total interest
- Snowball
- order debts by balance, smallest first → fastest first “win”
Worked example
- Card A: $2,000 at 24% APR
- Card B: $6,000 at 12% APR
- You can pay $400/month total
- Avalanche targets Card A first (24% > 12%) → least interest paid
- Snowball also targets Card A first here (it's also the smallest)
Either way you clear both faster than paying minimums, and avalanche minimizes the total interest.
Good to know
- Avalanche is mathematically optimal (least interest); snowball wins on psychology — an early payoff keeps people going.
- The single biggest lever is the extra amount above the minimums; the ordering matters far less than consistently overpaying.
- Stop adding new debt while you pay down — otherwise you're refilling the bucket faster than you empty it.