Debt Avalanche Calculator: Highest Interest First
Plan paying off several debts with the avalanche method, highest interest rate first, and compare it with snowball. See how much interest avalanche saves and when you are debt-free.
Interest is estimated monthly at APR/12 on the balance before each payment, with no fees, promotional rates or daily balances. The results are estimates.
Avalanche saves 32.82 in interest, and snowball clears its first debt 7 months sooner.
Avalanche (highest APR first)
- Debt-free in month
- 22
- Total interest
- 938.31
- Card A: paid off in month 11
- Card B: paid off in month 13
- Car loan: paid off in month 22
Snowball (smallest balance first)
- Debt-free in month
- 22
- Total interest
- 971.14
- Card B: paid off in month 4
- Card A: paid off in month 13
- Car loan: paid off in month 22
About the Debt Avalanche Calculator
The Debt Avalanche Calculator plans paying off several debts with the avalanche method: pay the minimum on every debt, and put everything else on the debt with the highest interest rate. When that debt is cleared, its payment rolls on to the debt with the next highest rate. Because the most expensive debt shrinks first, the avalanche pays the least interest of any order.
Enter up to ten debts, each with a name, a balance, an APR and a minimum payment, and the total you can pay each month. The calculator shows the avalanche plan first, with the month each debt is paid off, the month you are debt-free and the total interest. Next to it is the snowball plan, which pays the smallest balance first, and a sentence that says how much the avalanche saves.
Interest is estimated monthly at APR ÷ 12 on each balance before the payments, with no fees, promotional rates or daily balances, so the results are estimates.
How to use it
Enter your debts
- Fill in one row per debt: a name, the balance, the APR and the minimum payment.
- Press Add a debt for another row, up to ten, or Remove to drop one.
- Type your monthly budget for all the debts together. It must be at least the sum of the minimums and more than the first month's interest.
Read the plan
The avalanche plan lists the debts in the order they are cleared, with the payment month of each, counted from your first payment. The snowball plan beside it uses the same debts and budget.
How the avalanche works
Each month the calculator charges of interest on every open balance , pays each minimum, then puts what is left of the budget on the open debt with the highest APR. If two rates are equal, the smaller balance goes first. A cleared debt's minimum stays in the budget:
Worked example
Card A owes 3,000 at 22% with a minimum of 90, Card B owes 1,000 at 18% with a minimum of 30, and a car loan owes 6,000 at 6% with a minimum of 150. With a budget of 500 a month:
- Avalanche clears Card A in month 11, Card B in month 13 and the car loan in month 22, with 938.31 of interest.
- Snowball clears Card B in month 4, Card A in month 13 and the car loan in month 22, with 971.14 of interest.
The avalanche saves 32.82 in interest. If every minimum were 10 and the budget 100, the plan would never finish, because the first month's interest is already 100.00.
Related calculators
To see the smallest-balance order first, open the Debt Snowball Calculator. For a single card, the Credit Card Payoff Calculator works out the payoff month, and the Compound Interest Calculator shows what the freed-up payments could grow to once you are debt-free.
Privacy
Nothing is uploaded; every calculation runs in your browser and never leaves your device. The balances you type stay on this page and are gone when you close or reload it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the debt avalanche method?
You pay the minimum on every debt and put every spare amount on the debt with the highest APR. When it is paid off, its payment rolls on to the next highest rate. Because the costliest debt goes first, it pays the least interest overall.
How much does the avalanche method save?
It depends on the gap between the rates. With Card A at 22 percent, Card B at 18 percent and a car loan at 6 percent, a budget of 500 a month costs 938.31 of interest with avalanche and 971.14 with snowball, a saving of 32.82.
Does avalanche always finish sooner?
Not always. In the worked example both methods are debt-free in month 22. Avalanche saves interest, but the first debt it clears can take longer, because the highest rate debt is not always the smallest.
What happens if two debts have the same APR?
The smaller balance is paid first, and then the one listed first. The order is checked again every month from the current balances.
What does the calculator leave out?
It charges interest monthly at APR ÷ 12 and ignores fees, promotional rates and daily balances, so the totals are estimates. It does not model a consolidation loan either.