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Debt Payoff Planner

List your debts, set what you can pay each month, and see the payoff order that costs you the least.

Your debts

Strategy

Minimums only

April 2040

$17,047 interest

Debt Avalanche

Highest rate first — the cheapest path

Debt-free in 3 yrs, 3 mo — 10 yrs, 5 mo sooner than minimums only.

  1. 1Credit cardpaid off September 2028 · $1,730 interest
  2. 2Personal loanpaid off November 2028 · $273 interest
  3. 3Auto loanpaid off November 2029 · $1,690 interest

Each paid-off debt's minimum rolls into the next target, so your total monthly payment stays the same until you're done.

$5,591$11,183$16,774$22,365TodayApril 2028November 2029

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Building a Debt Payoff Plan

When you owe money in several places, the order you attack your debts changes what they cost you. This planner takes your full debt picture — every balance, rate, and minimum payment — plus whatever extra you can put toward debt each month, and simulates the two classic strategies side by side. The avalanche targets the highest interest rate first and is mathematically the cheapest path. The snowball targets the smallest balance first and delivers the earliest wins. Both roll each paid-off debt's minimum into the next target, so your total monthly effort never shrinks — it compounds. Compare both against what minimum payments alone would do, and pick the plan you'll actually stick with.

Term Definitions

Minimum Payment

The minimum payment is the smallest amount your lender requires each month to keep the account in good standing. On installment loans it is your fixed monthly payment; on credit cards it is usually a small percentage of the balance. Paying only minimums keeps every debt alive as long as possible — a payoff plan works by paying more than the minimums somewhere.

Interest Rate

The interest rate is the percentage of the principal that a lender charges for borrowing money. It is typically expressed as an annual rate. A lower interest rate will result in lower monthly payments and less total interest paid over the life of the loan.

Extra Monthly Budget

Your extra monthly budget is whatever you can pay toward debt each month beyond the sum of your minimum payments. The payoff planner keeps this total budget constant: as each debt is paid off, its freed-up minimum joins the extra and accelerates the next target. Even a modest extra amount, applied consistently and rolled over, can cut years and thousands of dollars from a payoff.

Debt Avalanche

The debt avalanche strategy directs all extra money at the debt with the highest interest rate while paying minimums on the rest. When that debt is gone, its payment rolls into the next-highest rate. Mathematically this is the cheapest possible order — no other sequence pays less total interest — though the first payoff can take longer to arrive than with the snowball.

Debt Snowball

The debt snowball strategy directs all extra money at the smallest balance while paying minimums on the rest. Small debts disappear quickly, and each cleared payment "snowballs" into the next one. It usually costs somewhat more interest than the avalanche, but the early wins are real: many people stick with a plan they can see working. The best strategy is the one you actually follow.