onlinecalculator.me

Free debt snowball and avalanche calculator

Snowball pays off the smallest balance first for quick wins; avalanche targets the highest rate to minimize total interest. Enter your debts and extra payment to see the exact.

Payoff strategy
Name Balance ($) Min. payment ($) APR (%) Remove
About this calculator

How to use

  1. Enter each debt with its current balance, minimum monthly payment, and annual interest rate (APR).
  2. Use the + Add debt button to add more rows as needed.
  3. Choose Snowball (smallest balance first) or Avalanche (highest APR first).
  4. Enter any extra monthly payment you can make beyond the minimums.
  5. Click Calculate payoff plan to see the full payoff schedule.

The formula

Each month, for every active debt:

  1. Interest accrues: interest = balance × (APR / 100 / 12)
  2. Minimum payment is applied (or full balance if less)
  3. The extra payment is applied entirely to the target debt (lowest balance or highest APR)

When a debt is paid off, its minimum payment is freed up and added to subsequent payments — this is the compounding “snowball” or “avalanche” effect.

Worked example

Credit Card: $5,000 at 20% APR, $100 min. Car Loan: $12,000 at 6% APR, $250 min. Student Loan: $25,000 at 5% APR, $300 min. Extra payment: $200/mo.

Snowball order: Credit Card first (smallest), then Car Loan, then Student Loan. The credit card falls in roughly 22 months. Once cleared, $300/mo flows to the car loan (original $250 + freed $100 + $200 extra), paying it off faster.

Notes

  • The simulation uses month-by-month amortization, so results are precise — not estimates.
  • This calculator does not account for balance transfers, debt consolidation, or variable rate changes.
  • Interest is accrued monthly before each payment, matching how most consumer debt works.

Frequently asked

What is the difference between snowball and avalanche?
Snowball orders debts by balance, smallest first — you pay off the lowest balance debt as fast as possible, then roll that payment to the next. Avalanche orders by APR, highest first — mathematically optimal for minimizing total interest, though it can take longer to see the first debt eliminated.
Which strategy saves more money?
Avalanche always saves more total interest when APR order differs from balance order. Snowball provides faster psychological wins by eliminating debts sooner, which can help with motivation. Both are far better than paying minimums only.
How does the extra payment work?
After making the minimum payment on every debt, the full extra payment is applied to the target debt each month. Once the target debt is paid off, its freed-up minimum payment is automatically added to the next target — that is the snowball or avalanche effect.
What happens after I pay off a debt?
The freed minimum payment rolls to the next debt in the strategy's order: the remaining debts receive increasingly large payments as each one is eliminated.