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Credit Card Payoff Calculator

Carrying a balance on your credit card and paying it off bit by bit? Then the size of your monthly payment decides how long it takes and how much interest you pay in the end. This calculator takes one outstanding balance at a fixed rate and works through 1 to 3 payment choices month by month — a fixed amount, or a percentage of the balance with a minimum. For each choice you see the time to clear the debt, the total interest, the first and the last payment, and the balance after 12 months. It is a clearly labelled monthly approximation, not a reproduction of your statement. The calculation runs entirely in your browser; nothing is stored or sent anywhere.

Enter an outstanding card balance and the yearly rate, then compare 1 to 3 payment choices. All defaults are example assumptions. The calculator is a clearly labelled monthly approximation, not a reproduction of your statement, and makes no product or bank recommendation. The calculation runs in your browser; nothing is stored.

Your card

The amount currently outstanding on your card — the balance that is charged interest, not your credit limit.

The yearly rate your card charges on carried balances. 0% is allowed, for example during an interest-free promotion.

Which rate?

It is in your card agreement or on your statement. Entering the wrong type can shift the term and the total interest noticeably, especially with small payments.

Payment choices

Enter a balance, a rate and at least one payment choice.

What your result means

"Debt-free after" is the month in which the final payment falls due; that last payment is usually smaller than the rest, because only the remainder is left. "Total interest" is what you pay in interest over the whole run — with small payments it can be larger than the original balance. "Total paid" is your balance plus that interest. "Balance after 12 months" shows how far you have got after a year. The higher the payment, the shorter the term and the less interest; the higher the rate, the more interest for the same payment. Which choice is "cleared fastest" holds only under your assumptions — the calculator never labels a choice the overall "best".

How this calculator works

The calculator looks at exactly one existing card balance at a fixed rate, with no new purchases. First the yearly rate is converted into a monthly rate i. If you entered the nominal borrowing rate, i = yearly rate / 1200 (the yearly figure divided by 12 in nominal terms). If you entered the effective annual rate, i = (1 + yearly rate / 100)^(1/12) − 1 (the twelfth root). The two give different monthly rates; over a long term and with small payments this shifts the term and the total interest noticeably — enter the type printed in your card agreement or on your statement.

Each month is then simulated on its own. In month m the interest is charged on the balance carried into the month: z = balance × i. It is added on, giving the statement balance S = balance + z. The payment is either a fixed amount or, for the percentage choice, max(percentage/100 × S, minimum). If the statement balance after the payment is effectively zero (at most half a cent), that month is the last one and the actual final payment is the whole statement balance. Otherwise it continues with the remaining balance.

Two special cases are spelled out. If the month-one payment does not even cover the month-one interest, the balance never falls — the calculator shows this as its own state. And if the balance is still open after 600 months (50 years), the calculator stops and reports the remaining amount. A pure percentage payment with no minimum is the typical case for that, because the payment keeps shrinking with the balance. If such a percentage payment with no minimum does clear, the payment shrinks to a few cents, and the end date only comes from the half-cent cut-off.

Internally, amounts are not rounded to the cent every month. US issuers, for example, often charge interest daily on the average daily balance (the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes a daily periodic rate of APR ÷ 365); this monthly approximation is deliberately simpler, so results differ slightly from a real statement, and practice differs by issuer and country.

Formula and variables

Monthly rate from the yearly rate

nominal borrowing rateFor the nominal rate, the monthly rate i is the yearly rate divided by 1200.
effective annual rateFor the effective annual rate, i is one plus the yearly rate over one hundred, raised to one twelfth, minus one.

First the yearly rate is converted into a monthly rate i. Which of the two routes the calculator takes depends on the type you enter — use the one printed in your card agreement or on your statement.

Interest and statement balance in the month

The interest in month m is the balance carried into the month times the monthly rate i.
The statement balance in month m is the carried-in balance plus that month's interest.

Each month the interest is charged on the balance carried in and added on first. The amounts are not rounded to the cent month by month internally.

Payment in the month

fixed paymentWith a fixed payment you pay the same amount every month.
percentage paymentWith a percentage payment, the payment is the larger of the percentage of the statement balance and the minimum.

The payment is either a fixed amount or a percentage of the statement balance with a minimum. If the percentage falls below the minimum, the minimum applies.

Remaining balance and final payment

while more than half a cent is leftThe remaining balance at the end of month m is the statement balance minus the payment.

Once the statement balance after the payment is at most half a cent, that month is the last one; the actual final payment is then the whole statement balance Sₘ. If the month-one payment does not even cover the interest (P₁ ≤ z₁), the balance never falls — the calculator then shows this state instead of a payoff date.

Total paid

Total paid is your original balance plus the total interest.

Over the whole run you pay your balance plus the interest that builds up. With small payments the total interest can be larger than the original balance.

Variables

i
monthly rate, converted from the yearly rate (nominal or effective)
Bₘ₋₁
balance carried into month m (B₀ = your outstanding balance)
zₘ
interest in month m on the balance carried in
Sₘ
statement balance: carried-in balance plus the month's interest
Pₘ
payment in month m — a fixed amount or a percentage of the statement balance with a minimum
Bₘ
remaining balance at the end of month m

Worked examples

Example 1: one balance at 18% nominal — three payments compared

Example inputs
Outstanding balance€3,000.00
Yearly interest rate18% (nominal borrowing rate; example assumption)
Choice A – fixed payment per month€50.00
Choice B – fixed payment per month€150.00
Choice C – percentage payment3% of the balance, at least 25 (example assumption)
Example results
Choice A (50) – Debt-free after12 years, 11 months (155 months)
Choice A (50) – Total interest€4,732.79
Choice A (50) – Total paid€7,732.79
Choice A (50) – Last payment€32.79
Choice B (150) – Debt-free after2 years (24 months)
Choice B (150) – Total interest€593.48
Choice C (3%, min. 25) – Debt-free after10 years, 9 months (129 months)
Choice C (3%, min. 25) – First payment€91.35
Choice C (3%, min. 25) – Total interest€2,433.75

The monthly rate is i = 18 / 1200 = 1.5%. In month 1, €3,000.00 attracts exactly €45.00 of interest. Choice A pays a fixed €50.00 — €45.00 of it goes on interest, so the balance barely falls: the card is only clear after 155 months, and about €4,732.79 of interest has built up — more than the original balance. Choice B pays €150.00 and is done after 24 months, with only about €593.48 of interest. Choice C starts at €91.35 (3% of €3,045.00); because the percentage payment shrinks with the balance and the €25.00 minimum takes over later, it takes 129 months and costs about €2,433.75 in interest. On these assumptions Choice B is cleared fastest. All figures are example assumptions.

Example 2: one balance at 19.9% effective — fixed vs percentage

Example inputs
Outstanding balance€2,000.00
Yearly interest rate19.9% (effective annual rate; example assumption)
Choice A – fixed payment per month€80.00
Choice B – percentage payment4% of the balance, at least 20 (example assumption)
Example results
Choice A (80) – Debt-free after2 years, 8 months (32 months)
Choice A (80) – Total interest€537.06
Choice A (80) – Last payment€57.06
Choice B (4%, min. 20) – Debt-free after7 years, 2 months (86 months)
Choice B (4%, min. 20) – First payment€81.22
Choice B (4%, min. 20) – Total interest€1,035.06

Here the rate is given as an effective annual rate; the monthly rate is i = (1 + 0.199)^(1/12) − 1 ≈ 1.524%. Choice A pays a fixed €80.00 and clears the €2,000.00 in 32 months with about €537.06 of interest; the last payment is only €57.06. Choice B starts at €81.22 (4% of the first statement balance), but the percentage payment drops month by month towards the €20.00 minimum — so it takes 86 months and costs about €1,035.06 in interest. Same balance, same rate, yet the fixed payment is faster and cheaper on these assumptions. All figures are example assumptions.

Assumptions

  • No new purchases, cash advances or chargebacks are added — only the single outstanding balance is calculated.
  • The interest rate stays constant for the whole run (your assumption — card rates can change).
  • No annual, card or late-payment fees apply, and there is no interest-free grace period.
  • Interest is charged once a month on the balance carried in (a monthly approximation), not daily.
  • Each month the interest is added first, then the payment is made; amounts are not rounded to the cent month by month internally.

Limitations of this calculator

  • In the US (CFPB), many issuers charge interest daily on the average daily balance and in fixed statement cycles; this differs by country and issuer. This calculator is a monthly approximation, so the result differs from your statement.
  • Interest-free grace periods for new purchases, fees, late-payment charges and chargebacks are not modelled.
  • Cash advances and certain transactions often carry a different rate from ordinary purchases — only a single rate is used here.
  • Issuers round every statement; differences of a few cents are possible.
  • The percentage and the minimum amount are whatever your card agreement sets, and the rules differ by country and issuer.
  • This is not debt, legal or financial advice and not a product or bank recommendation. If the card balance becomes a burden, recognised free debt-counselling services can help.

Frequently asked questions

How does the card issuer work out the interest?

It depends on the issuer and the country. In the US, many issuers charge interest daily on the average daily balance, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB): the daily periodic rate is the APR divided by 365, and a grace period usually covers new purchases but often does not apply while a balance is carried. Other issuers and countries work differently. This calculator deliberately keeps it simpler and adds interest once a month to the balance carried in, so the result can differ slightly from your statement. Your card agreement is what counts.

Why does a small payment take so long?

Because the interest is paid first and only the rest reduces the balance. At 18% a year on a 3,000 balance, that is already 45 of interest in the first month. If you pay just 50, only 5 goes towards the balance — it barely falls, and the term stretches over many years. A higher payment shifts the split towards repayment and cuts the total interest sharply.

What happens if my payment does not cover the interest?

Then the balance never falls, and without an extra payment the card is never cleared. The calculator spots this in the very first month and shows the state "The payment covers at most the interest — the balance never falls". With a pure percentage payment and no minimum, the payment keeps shrinking as the balance drops, so clearing it can take a very long time or not finish within 50 years.

Nominal or effective — which rate do I enter?

Enter the type shown in your card agreement or on your statement and pick the matching option. For the nominal borrowing rate the yearly figure is simply divided by 12; for the effective annual rate the twelfth root is taken, which gives a slightly smaller monthly rate. If you choose the wrong type, the term and the total interest can differ noticeably, especially with small payments. A US card APR is a nominal annual rate, so for a US card choose the nominal option.

Does the calculator include new purchases?

No. It looks only at the single balance you enter and assumes no new purchases, cash advances or chargebacks are added. New spending on the same card would increase the term and the interest — this calculator is not built for that.

Which minimum payment does the calculator use?

The calculator applies no legally required minimum payment of its own — what applies is set by your card agreement. Enter the percentage and the minimum amount from your agreement; they differ by country and issuer. The calculator makes no recommendation and is not debt or legal advice.

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Sources and further reading

Official and independent sources on this topic. The links open each website in a new tab; no content is loaded from them into this page.

  • How does my credit card company calculate the amount of interest I owe?Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)US consumer-protection agency; describes daily interest on the average daily balance and how grace periods work. US practice as an example — other countries and issuers differ.
  • Credit card contract definitionsConsumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)Definitions (APR, daily periodic rate = APR / 365, average daily balance, minimum payment) as background for the interest and payment conventions used here.

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Last reviewed: 14/11/2026 · All calculations run in your browser – inputs are not stored. ·How we check our calculators