Debt Payoff Planner
Track debts with balance, rate and minimum payment.
Overview
The Debt Payoff Planner takes the panic out of owing money by turning balances, interest rates, and minimum payments into a concrete timeline. Add each debt (credit cards, student loans, car notes, personal loans, buy-now-pay-later balances) with the current balance, annual percentage rate, and minimum monthly payment. The planner then projects how long each debt will take to clear, how much interest you will pay along the way, and what changes when you apply extra cash to the right account.
Two strategies are built in: snowball, which targets the smallest balance first for psychological momentum, and avalanche, which targets the highest interest rate first for the lowest total interest paid. You can also stay on minimum-only to see the worst-case timeline. Switching between strategies updates the portfolio projection instantly so you can compare total months and total interest before committing.
How it works
Each debt is stored with its name, balance, APR, minimum payment, and currency. The estimator amortises one debt at a time using its rate and minimum payment to project payoff month and total interest, flagging accounts where the minimum does not cover the monthly interest charge (in which case the balance grows forever). The portfolio planner then sweeps payments across all debts each month: every account pays its minimum, the chosen strategy directs any extra to one target account, and as soon as a debt clears its freed-up payment cascades into the next target.
Recording a payment updates the balance immediately so the projection is always based on what you actually owe today, not the original loan amount.
Examples
- Enter a $4,200 Visa at 22.99%, a $9,800 car loan at 6.5%, and an $850 store card at 27.99% then compare snowball versus avalanche to see which strategy clears the smallest balance faster.
- Add a single student loan and see the months-to-payoff drop dramatically when you add $200 of extra monthly payment.
- Spot a card whose minimum payment is too low to cover interest; the planner flags it as never-paying-off so you raise the payment before it becomes a multi-decade problem.
- Log a one-off windfall payment against the highest-APR card and watch the portfolio interest total drop in real time.
FAQ
Snowball or avalanche, which should I use?
Avalanche pays the least interest mathematically; snowball clears small balances quickly for motivation. If you have stuck with debt plans before, run avalanche; if you have abandoned them, snowball's momentum is worth the slightly higher interest.
How accurate is the payoff estimate?
It assumes a fixed monthly payment, fixed APR, and no new charges. Real cards have variable rates and new spending, so treat the months as a planning target rather than a guarantee.
Why does one debt say it never pays off?
The minimum payment is less than or equal to the monthly interest charge. Increase the payment or stop using the card until the balance starts to fall.
Can I model a balance transfer?
Delete the high-rate row and add a new row with the lower promotional rate and any transfer fee added to the balance.
What about extra one-off payments?
Use the Pay button on a row to subtract the payment from the balance immediately, then the projection refreshes against the new lower balance.