Credit Card Payoff Calculator
See how many months it takes to pay off a credit card balance and how much interest you will pay at your chosen monthly payment.
What is a credit card payoff calculator?
A credit card payoff calculator shows how long it will take to clear a balance at a fixed monthly payment, and how much interest you will pay along the way. Enter the balance, the card's APR and what you can pay each month, and it returns the number of months, the total interest and the total you will hand over. If the payment is too small to make progress, it tells you.
The average credit card APR on accounts carrying a balance is above 20%, which makes card debt the most expensive money most households borrow. The calculator turns "I'll pay it down" into a date — and shows what each extra $50 a month is worth.
What the payment size does
A $5,000 balance at 22% APR:
| Monthly payment | Months to pay off | Total interest | Total paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| $100 | 137 (11.4 years) | $8,678 | $13,678 |
| $150 | 52 (4.3 years) | $2,798 | $7,798 |
| $200 | 34 (2.8 years) | $1,750 | $6,750 |
| $250 | 26 (2.2 years) | $1,286 | $6,286 |
| $300 | 21 (1.8 years) | $1,022 | $6,022 |
| $500 | 12 (1 year) | $574 | $5,574 |
| $1,000 | 6 | $294 | $5,294 |
The first month's interest on this balance is $91.67, so a $100 payment reduces the debt by only $8 — which is why it takes eleven years. Going from $100 to $200 a month does not halve the time; it cuts it by three-quarters and saves $6,900 in interest. The savings keep coming at higher payments — $500 a month costs less than half the interest of $300 — but the months saved get smaller.
The minimum-payment trap
Issuers set minimum payments at roughly 1% of the balance plus that month's interest, or 2%–3% of the balance, with a $25–$35 floor. On $5,000 at 22%, paying a "1% plus interest" minimum takes about 19 years and costs roughly $8,100 in interest; a flat 2% minimum takes even longer. The minimum is designed to keep you paying, not to get you out. Your statement's "minimum payment warning" box shows the issuer's own estimate — read it once and you will never pay the minimum by choice again.
How card interest is actually charged
Card interest accrues daily: the APR is divided by 365 (22% becomes 0.0603% a day), applied to each day's balance, and added at the end of the billing cycle. There is no interest on purchases if you pay the full statement balance by the due date — the grace period — but once you carry a balance, the grace period usually disappears and new purchases start accruing interest immediately. That is why paying a card to zero, even once, is worth more than it looks: it restores the grace period. Cash advances have no grace period and a higher APR from day one.
Paying off several cards: avalanche vs snowball
- Avalanche — pay minimums on everything and put every spare dollar on the highest-APR card first. Mathematically optimal; saves the most interest.
- Snowball — pay minimums on everything and put spare money on the smallest balance first. Costs a little more interest but clears whole accounts sooner, which many people find easier to stick with.
The difference in interest is usually small compared with the difference between doing either and doing nothing. Pick the one you will follow, and run this calculator on each card to see the sequence.
Balance transfers, consolidation and other ways to cut the rate
- 0% balance-transfer card — 12 to 21 months at 0% for a fee of 3%–5%. Moving $5,000 for a 3% fee costs $150; paying $286 a month clears it within an 18-month window with no interest at all, versus $1,286 of interest at 22% with $250 a month. Only worthwhile if you will pay it off inside the window and stop adding to the old card.
- Personal consolidation loan — fixed rate (often 8%–15% with good credit), fixed term, one payment. Cheaper than the card and forces a payoff date.
- Ask the issuer for a lower rate — a two-minute call works more often than people expect, especially with a good payment history.
- Hardship programmes — if you genuinely cannot pay, issuers and non-profit credit counsellors can reduce the rate under a debt-management plan.
Formula
Months to pay off a balance B at monthly rate r (APR ÷ 12 ÷ 100) with a fixed payment P:
n = ln(P ÷ (P − B × r)) ÷ ln(1 + r)
rounded up to the next whole month. The calculator then runs the month-by-month schedule so the final, smaller payment is counted exactly: total interest = total paid − B.
The payment must exceed the first month's interest, B × r, or the balance never falls — the calculator warns instead of returning a result. At 0% APR the answer is simply B ÷ P. Real cards compute interest daily on the average daily balance, so actual figures differ slightly from this monthly model — by a few dollars over the life of the debt.
Worked example
Balance $5,000, 22% APR, paying $250 a month:
- Monthly rate r = 22 ÷ 12 ÷ 100 = 0.018333
- First month's interest = 5,000 × 0.018333 = $91.67 — so $158.33 of the first payment reduces the balance
- n = ln(250 ÷ (250 − 91.67)) ÷ ln(1.018333) = ln(1.5789) ÷ 0.018167 = 0.4568 ÷ 0.018167 ≈ 25.1 → 26 months
- Twenty-five full payments plus a final partial one: total paid $6,286, total interest $1,286
Paying $350 instead clears it in 17 months for about $851 of interest. Paying only the minimum (1% of balance plus interest, $25 floor) takes about 19 years and $8,100.
How to use this calculator
- Enter the current balance from your latest statement.
- Enter the purchase APR (on the statement, usually in the "interest charge calculation" box). If you have a promotional 0% rate, enter 0 and the months remaining will be balance ÷ payment.
- Enter the fixed amount you will pay every month — more than the minimum.
- Read the months to payoff, total interest and total paid. If a warning appears, the payment does not cover the interest; raise it.
Then try the payment plus $50 and plus $100 to see what small increases are worth — the table above shows the shape: the first increases save the most.
Getting to zero faster
- Stop new charges on the card. The calculation assumes the balance only goes down; a card used for daily spending never clears.
- Pay more than once a month. Interest accrues daily, so paying on payday rather than on the due date trims the average daily balance.
- Direct windfalls to the balance — tax refund, bonus, a sold item. A one-off $1,000 on the $5,000 example saves about $500 of interest and six months.
- Automate the payment at the amount you chose, not the minimum, so a busy month does not undo the plan.
- Check the rate for a balance-transfer offer or consolidation loan if your credit is decent — see the section above.
Related tools
- Loan calculator — a consolidation loan's payment and total cost
- Savings goal calculator — the emergency fund that keeps you off the card
- Compound interest calculator — the same math working for you instead of against you
- Simple interest calculator
Frequently asked questions
Why is my minimum payment so low?
Because it is set to keep the account open and profitable, not to pay it off. Most issuers use 1% of the balance plus the month's interest, or 2%–3% of the balance, with a $25–$35 floor. On $5,000 at 22% that is about $115 the first month, of which $92 is interest — and the payment shrinks as the balance does, stretching the payoff to nearly 20 years. Always pay a fixed amount well above the minimum.
Should I pay off cards or invest?
Pay off the cards. A 22% APR is a guaranteed 22% return on every dollar of principal you repay, which no investment reliably matches. The usual exception is a 401(k) contribution large enough to capture an employer match — a 50%–100% instant return — which is worth keeping while you attack the cards. Once the cards are clear, redirect the payment to savings and investing.
What is a balance transfer?
Moving a balance to a new card that charges 0% for an introductory period, typically 12–21 months, for a one-time fee of 3%–5% of the amount moved. On $5,000 a 3% fee is $150, versus $1,286 of interest at 22% over 26 months at $250 a month. It works if you pay the balance off within the promotional window and do not run the old card back up; the rate after the window is usually as high as the original card.
Does paying off a card hurt my credit score?
No — it helps, mainly by lowering your credit utilisation (balance ÷ limit), which is about 30% of a FICO score; keeping utilisation under 30%, and ideally under 10%, is one of the fastest ways to raise a score. Closing the card afterwards can lower the score slightly by reducing available credit and average account age, so keep old cards open with a zero balance unless they carry an annual fee.
Avalanche or snowball — which should I use?
Avalanche (highest APR first) saves the most interest; snowball (smallest balance first) gives quicker wins. If your cards all carry similar rates, snowball costs almost nothing extra. If one card is at 29% and another at 15%, avalanche can save hundreds. The method that keeps you paying matters more than the method that is theoretically optimal.
How is credit card interest calculated?
Daily. The APR is divided by 365 to get a daily rate (22% → 0.0603%), applied to each day's balance, and the total is added at the end of the billing cycle. Paying the full statement balance by the due date avoids interest on purchases entirely (the grace period); carrying any balance usually ends the grace period for new purchases too. Cash advances accrue from the day of the advance at a higher rate.
Will one late payment ruin my credit?
A payment under 30 days late is not reported to the bureaus, though the issuer charges a fee and may apply a penalty APR. Thirty days or more late is reported and can cut a good score by 50–100 points, staying on the report for seven years. If you miss a due date, pay immediately, then call the issuer — a first slip is often forgiven on request.
Is it better to pay off one card or spread payments across all of them?
Pay the minimum on every card (to avoid late fees and credit damage) and put all remaining money on one card — highest rate or smallest balance, per the section above. Spreading extra money evenly is the slowest approach, because no card gets to zero and every card keeps accruing interest on its full balance.