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Debt Payoff Calculator

Find out when you'll be debt-free and how much interest you'll pay. Enter your balance, interest rate, and monthly payment to see your payoff timeline — or find the payment needed to be debt-free by a target date.

Part of our Finance Calculators collection.

Debt Payoff Calculator

Free online calculator

$
%

Find this on your statement — average credit card APR is ~21%

$

How much you plan to pay each month

Results update automatically as you type

How to Use This Calculator

  1. 1

    Enter your current debt balance.

  2. 2

    Enter the annual interest rate (APR) — find this on your statement or online account.

  3. 3

    Enter your planned monthly payment amount.

  4. 4

    See your payoff date, total interest paid, and the interest you save versus minimum payments.

How Debt Payoff is Calculated

Months to Payoff = −log(1 − (r × Balance / Payment)) / log(1 + r)

Where r = monthly rate (APR / 12). Each month, interest accrues on the remaining balance, and your payment reduces both interest and principal.

Example Calculation

Example: $8,500 credit card at 21.5% APR, paying $300/month

Inputs

balance: 8500interestRate: 21.5monthlyPayment: 300

Result

37 months to payoff | $2,616 in interest

Paying $300/month on an $8,500 balance at 21.5% APR takes 37 months (about 3 years) and costs $2,616 in interest — for a total repayment of $11,116.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the minimum payment trap?
Credit card minimum payments (typically 2–3% of balance) are designed to keep you in debt as long as possible. On an $8,500 balance at 21.5%, paying only minimums takes over 20 years and costs more in interest than the original balance.
What's the debt avalanche vs debt snowball method?
Avalanche: pay minimums on all debts, throw extra money at the highest-rate debt first (saves the most interest). Snowball: pay off the smallest balance first for psychological wins (motivates people to stick with it). Mathematically, avalanche is better; psychologically, snowball has a higher success rate.
How much does paying extra each month save?
Even $50 extra per month makes a major difference. On our example ($8,500 at 21.5%), adding $50/month cuts 8 months off and saves over $600 in interest.

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