Type in your debts, add whatever extra you can put toward them each month (even $10 counts), and see how the debt snowball (smallest balance first) and the debt avalanche (highest interest rate first) compare. The math runs in your browser, and the numbers you type are never sent or saved.
1. Your debts
| Name | Balance ($) | APR (%) | Minimum payment ($/mo) |
|---|
How the math works: each month, interest is added at your APR divided by 12, every minimum is paid, and the extra goes to the target debt. When a debt is paid off, its minimum “rolls” into the next one. It assumes fixed minimums, no new charges and no fees, so real statements will differ a bit. It’s an estimate for learning, not financial advice. Not sure what your APR is? Our guide to reading your credit card statement shows where to find it.
How to use this debt payoff calculator
- Grab your latest statements. For each debt, note the balance, the APR (the yearly interest rate) and the minimum payment. Our one-page debt list and the free printable worksheets make this quick.
- Type each debt into a row. Add as many rows as you need.
- Enter what you could add each month on top of the minimums. Try a few amounts: seeing what an extra $25 does can be motivating.
- Compare. The avalanche usually costs less interest; the snowball usually gives you a paid-off debt sooner. Pick the one you’ll keep doing.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes these same two approaches, the highest interest rate method and the snowball method, and suggests choosing the one that fits what motivates you. We checked this calculator against the worked example in the St. Louis Fed’s “What Is the Best Strategy for Paying Off Credit Card Debt?”, and it lands on the same payoff times and interest totals (within a dollar of rounding).
If the minimums alone don’t fit your budget right now, start with the hardship call script before anything else. Want to share this tool? See the section for counselors, HR teams and librarians below.