Debt Payoff Calculator
Find out how long it takes to become debt-free and how much interest you'll pay. Enter your balance, interest rate, and monthly payment.
At $250.00/month it takes 24 payments. Paying more each month cuts both the time and the interest significantly.
How to use this calculator
Enter your total balance, the interest rate (APR), and the monthly payment you can make. The calculator shows how many months until you're debt-free, the total interest, and the total amount paid.
How debt payoff works
Each month, interest is added to your balance and your payment is applied — first to that interest, then to the principal. The more you pay above the interest, the faster the balance falls and the less interest accrues over time. Small increases in the payment have an outsized effect.
Worked example
A $5,000 balance at 18% APR with a $250 monthly payment is paid off in about 24 months with roughly $1,000 in interest. Bumping the payment to $400 clears it in about 14 months and saves hundreds.
Estimates only. Variable-rate debt and changing balances will affect your actual payoff.
Frequently asked questions
How long will it take to pay off my debt?
It depends on the balance, the interest rate, and how much you pay each month. Enter those three values and the calculator shows the number of months and the total interest you'll pay.
Why does a low payment never pay off the debt?
If your monthly payment is smaller than the monthly interest, the balance grows instead of shrinking. You must pay more than the interest each month to make progress — the calculator warns you when the payment is too low.
What's the fastest way to get out of debt?
Pay more than the minimum, and target the highest-interest debt first (the 'avalanche' method) to minimize total interest. The 'snowball' method — smallest balance first — can help motivation. Either beats minimum payments.
Does paying biweekly help?
Yes. Paying half your monthly amount every two weeks results in 26 half-payments — one extra full payment per year — which shortens the payoff and cuts interest.