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Credit Card Payoff Calculator

Calculate how long it takes to pay off your credit card balance and how much total interest you'll pay — with a comparison to minimum payments.

Current balance ($)

Annual Percentage Rate (APR %)

Monthly payment ($)

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Common card payoff

Everyday Uses

Debt-free dates

Turn a scary balance into a concrete plan: "paying $250 a month, I'm done in 19 months."

Minimum payment reality check

See how long minimum payments really take — often decades — and what they cost in interest.

Payoff strategy

Compare paying an extra $50 vs $100 a month to pick a plan you can actually stick to.

Balance transfer decisions

Work out whether a 0% transfer fee beats staying put at your current rate.

Paying down while still spending

Balances stall because new charges land on top of the repayments. Running the payoff with and without ongoing spending shows the difference in stark terms.

Deferred-interest promotions

Some zero-percent offers charge all the interest retroactively if any balance remains when the promotion ends. Check that your payoff date clears the deadline with room to spare.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to pay off credit card debt with minimum payments?

A $5,000 balance at 22.99% APR with a 2% minimum payment takes over 30 years to pay off and costs about $7,700 in interest — paying back $12,700 on a $5,000 debt. Doubling the minimum payment cuts this to roughly 8 years and $2,800 in interest. Use this calculator to model your exact payoff timeline.

What is the average credit card interest rate in 2024?

The average US credit card APR hit a record high of 20.75% in 2024 — up from 16.3% in 2022. Rewards cards average 22–27%. Store cards often charge 26–30%. Even balance transfer cards charge 0% only for an introductory period (typically 12–21 months), then revert to standard rates.

What is the best strategy to pay off multiple credit cards?

Avalanche method: pay minimums on all cards, put every extra dollar on the highest-APR card. This saves the most money in interest. Snowball method: target the smallest balance first for quicker wins — better for motivation. Financially, avalanche beats snowball — but snowball has higher real-world completion rates.

How does credit card APR and monthly interest work?

APR (Annual Percentage Rate) ÷ 12 = monthly periodic rate. On a $5,000 balance at 22.99% APR: monthly interest = $5,000 × (22.99 ÷ 12)% = $95.83. If your minimum payment is $100, only $4.17 goes to principal. To pay off in 2 years, you need $254/month. Most credit cards compound interest daily.

Should I do a balance transfer to pay off credit card debt faster?

A 0% balance transfer card can save hundreds in interest if used correctly. Transfer your balance, pay it off before the promotional period ends (12–21 months), and avoid new purchases on the card. Watch out for: transfer fees (3–5%), revert rates (20–30%+ after intro), and the temptation to run up the original card again.

How to calculate a credit card payoff

Interest is charged monthly on whatever is left, so the months to clear are log(payment ÷ (payment − balance × monthly rate)) ÷ log(1 + monthly rate). If the payment is smaller than the monthly interest the balance never falls at all.

Credit card payoff examples

$5,000 · 19.99% APR · $150/mo: 50 months — about $2,357 interest
$3,000 · 22% APR · $100/mo: 44 months — about $1,395 interestNearly half the original balance again, paid in interest.
$5,000 · 19.99% APR · $250/mo: 25 months — about $1,132 interestRaising the payment by $100 saves roughly $1,225 in interest and clears the card two years sooner.