Debt payoff planner: how long, and how much interest

How it works

• What I owe: one line for each debt, with what is owed now, the interest rate a year (statements call it the APR) and the minimum payment a month.
• What I can pay: one amount a month for all the debts together, and which debt gets the extra first. The page does not choose the order. You do.
• My plan shows how long it takes, what the interest adds up to, the month each debt is gone, and the same debts counted three ways.
• The buttons with common names only fill the name box. You can type any name.
• Print or save as PDF opens your device’s print window. On most computers and phones that window has a choice named Save as PDF, or something close to it.
• Copy as text and Download (.txt) give plain text, for a message to a counselor or for your own notes.

How the page counts

• It goes one month at a time, in whole cents.
• Interest for the month: what is owed, times the yearly rate, divided by 12, rounded to the cent. It is added to what is owed.
• Then the minimums: each debt gets its minimum payment, or what is left of the debt when that is less.
• Then the extra: the money still left from your monthly amount goes to the first debt in the order you chose. When that debt is gone, the next one gets it, in the same month if there is money left.
• When a debt is gone, its payment is not dropped: the whole monthly amount keeps going to the debts that are left.
• The row “Only the minimums typed in” gives each debt its own minimum and nothing more.
• The page stops counting at 50 years.

Two orders, in the words of a federal agency

• The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) describes “two basic strategies” in its article How to reduce your debt (July 16, 2019; the CFPB now keeps it in its archive and says archived pages may be outdated).
• The highest interest rate method: the CFPB says the goal is “to pay off the highest interest rate debt as quickly as possible, because it’s costing you the most”, and that it “can save you money in the long run.” It also says “it may not feel like you’re making progress”.
• The snowball method (the smallest debt first): the CFPB says “you’ll see progress quickly as you pay off smaller debts”, and that “you may end up paying more in the long run”.
• The CFPB does not name one as the right one. It says: “Choose the strategy that’s best for your situation”. This page shows both with your own numbers.

We read that page on October 10, 2026. The quoted words are the CFPB’s; the counting is ours.

What this page can’t do

• It gives an estimate. A real statement counts interest by the day, and it can add late fees and other charges. A rate can change, and a low starting rate can end. Your statements are the record; this page is not.
• It keeps each minimum where you typed it. On a real credit card the minimum usually falls as the debt falls, so paying only the minimum would take longer than the page shows.
• It counts no new charges. It assumes nothing more is added to any debt.
• It does not know which debt matters most. Rent, the electric bill, a car you need for work, child support, taxes, or a debt that is already in court can matter more than any interest rate. That is not arithmetic.
• It does not check that a debt is yours or that the amount is right. If a collector is asking for money you do not recognize, read When a debt collector calls before paying.
• It does not know the payment plans of federal student loans, which have rules of their own: see Student loans.
• It is not connected to a bank, a card or a lender, and it does not tell you what to pay. It is not advice about money from a person trained to give it.
• It holds one plan, and the plan does not move to another phone or computer by itself. Print it, download it, or use My data on this device to carry a backup across.

If the payments do not fit

• Coming up short is a number, not a verdict on you. Many months are short because what comes in is too little.
• The CFPB says credit counseling organizations “can advise you on your money and debts, help you with a budget, develop debt management plans, and offer money management workshops”, and it lists ways to find one: What is credit counseling? (last reviewed August 2, 2023). The same page says: “If an organization won’t help you because you can’t afford to pay, look elsewhere.”
• The CFPB also says: “Avoid companies that charge money in advance to settle your debts for you” (How do I negotiate a settlement with a debt collector?, last reviewed August 2, 2023).
• On this site: When a debt collector calls, When a medical bill is too much, Payday loans, title loans and repossession, Bankruptcy, and Help with money.
• Calling 211 reaches a local helpline in most of the U.S. that knows what help is near you.

We read both CFPB pages on October 10, 2026. This page was not reviewed by a financial counselor.