# What is my debt payoff date?

Computes the months to be debt-free, the total interest, and the payoff order for up to ten debts paid with a fixed monthly budget by the avalanche (highest APR first) or snowball (smallest balance first) method.

- Page: https://www.acalculator.org/finance/debt-payoff-calculator
- JSON spec: https://www.acalculator.org/finance/debt-payoff-calculator.json
- Version: 008c865ec150

## Default answer

Example with the default inputs (Your debts [Name Credit card, Balance $7,500.00, APR 24.9%, Minimum payment $225.00; Name Medical bill, Balance $900.00, APR 0%, Minimum payment $50.00; Name Car loan, Balance $11,000.00, APR 6.9%, Minimum payment $310.00; Name Personal loan, Balance $3,200.00, APR 13.5%, Minimum payment $110.00], Extra each month $200.00, Pay off first Highest APR (avalanche), Start date September 30, 2026) on the example date Wednesday, September 30, 2026: Paying $895.00 a month, you are debt-free in 30 months and pay $3,733.53 in interest.

## Inputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| debts | Your debts | One row per debt: a name, what you owe, the yearly interest rate (APR), and the monthly payment. |
| extra | Extra each month | An amount paid every month on top of all the minimum payments, to the debt the method picks. |
| method | Pay off first | Avalanche pays the highest APR first, which saves the most interest; snowball pays the smallest balance first, for quick wins. |
| start | Start date | The day you start the plan. The first payment is one month later. |

## Outputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| months | Months to be debt-free | How many months of payments clear every debt. |
| budget | Paid each month | All the monthly payments plus the extra: the same every month until the last one. |
| interest | Total interest | All the interest paid on all the debts. |
| paid | Total paid | What you owe today plus all the interest. |
| order | Payoff order | The debts in the order they are paid off, with the month each is cleared. |
| debtFree | Debt-free date | The month of the last payment, when a start date is given. |
| saved | Interest the extra saves | The interest with no extra payment minus the interest with it, both in the same order. |
| sooner | Months sooner | How many months sooner the debts are paid off with the extra payment. |
| otherInterest | Interest, other method | The total interest if the same payments went to the debts in the other order. |
| difference | Saved vs other method | The interest with the other method minus the interest with this one; negative when this one costs more. |

## Method

Each month: interest = balance × APR ÷ 1200 on every debt; pay each debt its monthly payment; the rest of the budget (all the payments plus the extra) goes to the debts in payoff order, so a paid-off debt’s payment rolls into the next.

## Assumptions

- Interest is charged monthly on each balance at its APR ÷ 12; rates and payments do not change.
- The monthly budget stays the same until every debt is paid off, so the payment of a paid-off debt rolls to the next one.
- Snowball order is by the balances you enter (smallest first); avalanche order is by APR (highest first); ties keep the order of the rows.
- No new charges are added to the debts.
- Values are not rounded to the cent between months; only the display is rounded.

## Worked examples

1. debts = {"name":"Credit card","balance":7500,"rate":24.9,"payment":225} or {"name":"Medical bill","balance":900,"rate":0,"payment":50}, extra = $200.00, method = avalanche gives months = 30, budget = $895.00, interest = $3,733.53, order = Medical bill (month 18), Credit card (month 22), Personal loan (month 25), Car loan (month 30), saved = $2,787.28, sooner = 12, otherInterest = $4,269.79, difference = $536.27. Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How to reduce your debt. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/how-reduce-your-debt/.
2. debts = {"name":"Credit card","balance":7500,"rate":24.9,"payment":225} or {"name":"Medical bill","balance":900,"rate":0,"payment":50}, extra = $200.00, method = snowball gives months = 31, interest = $4,269.79, order = Medical bill (month 4), Personal loan (month 13), Credit card (month 26), Car loan (month 31), difference = -$536.27. Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How to reduce your debt. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/how-reduce-your-debt/.
3. debts = {"name":"A","balance":500,"rate":0,"payment":50} or {"name":"B","balance":1500,"rate":0,"payment":50}, extra = $100.00, method = snowball, start = 2026-10-01 gives months = 10, interest = $0.00, paid = $2,000.00, sooner = 10, saved = $0.00, debtFree = 2027-08-01. Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How to reduce your debt. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/how-reduce-your-debt/.

## FAQ

### How does this debt payoff calculator work?

You pay a fixed amount every month: all your minimum payments plus any extra. Each month every debt gets its minimum, and the rest goes to one target debt. When a debt is paid off, its payment moves to the next target, so the amount you pay each month stays the same until you are debt-free.

### Should I pay off the highest interest rate or the smallest balance first?

Paying the highest APR first (the avalanche method) usually costs the least interest. Paying the smallest balance first (the snowball method) clears whole debts sooner, which some people find easier to stick with. With the four example debts, the avalanche saves $536.27 over the snowball.

### How much does an extra payment help?

A lot, because every extra dollar stops interest on itself. In the example, $200 a month on top of the minimums clears the debts 12 months sooner and saves $2,787.28 in interest.

### What if my payments do not cover the interest?

Then the debts never get paid off, and the page says so. It also stops at 50 years. Raise the extra payment until the plan ends.

### Does the calculator include new charges on my cards?

No. It assumes you stop adding to the debts and that the rates and minimum payments stay as you enter them. Card minimums usually fall as the balance falls; keeping the payment the same pays the card off faster.

### What should I enter as the monthly payment of a loan?

The fixed payment on your statement, such as the monthly car loan payment. For a credit card, enter the current minimum payment, or the amount you plan to pay.

## Sources

- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How to reduce your debt (the highest-rate-first and smallest-balance-first approaches). https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/how-reduce-your-debt/
- Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice: How to get out of debt. https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-get-out-debt
- Monthly interest on a balance at APR ÷ 12: Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.14 (periodic rate). https://www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/regulations/1026/14/