A credit card payoff calculator shows how long a card balance takes to pay off and how much interest it adds.
How long will my card take to pay off?
$
What you owe on the card today. Type a plain number like 3000, with no dollar sign or commas. The most we accept is $1,000,000.
%
The card's yearly interest rate, as a plain number like 22.15. It starts at the Federal Reserve's average for credit card accounts charged interest in the second quarter of 2026, and your statement shows your own rate. We accept 0 to 79.99.
$
What you pay toward the card each month, the same amount every month. Type a plain number like 150. It has to be more than the first month's interest, or the balance never goes down. The most we accept is $1,000,000.
Your result
Time to pay off
2 years 2 months
Paying $150 a month on $3,000 at 22.15% APR.
$0$1K$2K$3K
Year 0Year 5Year 10
Your payment
Minimum payments
Paying $150 a month on $3,000 at 22.15% APR: the balance owed at the end of each month shown, for your payment and for paying only the minimum. This is an estimate.
Month
Your payment
Minimum payments
0
$3,000.00
$3,000.00
12
$1,741.83
$2,659.16
24
$174.86
$2,357.03
36
$0.00
$2,089.24
48
$0.00
$1,851.87
60
$0.00
$1,641.46
72
$0.00
$1,454.95
84
$0.00
$1,276.40
96
$0.00
$1,057.81
108
$0.00
$785.57
120
$0.00
$446.51
132
$0.00
$24.24
133
$0.00
$0.00
Paying $150 a month on $3,000 at 22.15% APR, the balance is paid off in 2 years 2 months.
That is $778.61 of interest, so the total paid is $3,778.61.
Paying only the minimum would take 11 years 1 month and cost $3,824.75 in interest.
Compared with paying only the minimum, your payment pays $3,046.14 less interest and finishes 107 months sooner.
This is an estimate: the APR stays the same and nothing new goes on the card.
Total interest$778.61
Total paid$3,778.61
Interest saved vs. minimumThe interest on the minimum-payment path minus the interest on your payment, for the same balance and APR. If your payment is lower than the minimum, the tile switches to the extra interest you would pay.$3,046.14
APRAPR is the yearly interest rate on the card. The box starts at 22.15%, the Federal Reserve's average for credit card accounts charged interest in the second quarter of 2026. Your card has its own APR, and the result is an estimate that assumes the rate stays the same.Minimum paymentA typical minimum payment is the larger of $40 or 1% of the balance plus that month's interest, and never more than what is owed. It varies by issuer: the CFPB found dollar floors from $15 to $50. On the default balance the first minimum is $85.38, and it shrinks as the balance does.
How Does a Credit Card Payoff Calculator Work?
A credit card payoff calculator runs the balance forward one month at a time. Each month the card adds interest, then the payment comes off, and the calculator repeats that until the balance reaches zero and counts the months and the interest.
Monthly interest = balance × APR ÷ 12
The minimum payment is the larger of $40 or 1% of the balance plus that month's interest, and never more than what is owed.
Enter the balance, the card's APR and a monthly payment.
Each month we find the interest: the balance times the APR, divided by 12, rounded to the cent.
We add that interest to the balance and take off the payment. The last payment is only what is still owed.
We repeat until the balance is zero and count the months. Total interest is all the interest charged along the way, and total paid is the balance plus that interest.
For the comparison, we run the same card paying only the minimum. That payment is worked out again every month, so it shrinks as the balance does. The rule is a typical one, and it varies by issuer.
If a payment does not cover the first month's interest, the balance never goes down, so we ask for a higher payment instead of showing a payoff time.
The table shows both balances every 5 years, and always at the end.
Paying $150 a month on $3,000 at 22.15% APR, and paying only the minimum: the balance owed at each point. This is an estimate.
Time
Your payment
Minimum payments
0 months
$3,000.00
$3,000.00
5 years
$0.00
$1,641.46
10 years
$0.00
$446.51
11 years 1 month
$0.00
$0.00
The Math Behind Paying Off a Credit Card
Why does paying only the minimum take so long?
Paying only the minimum takes so long because the minimum shrinks as the balance shrinks, so each month pays down less than the one before. Rapunzl's calculator shows it on the default balance: the first minimum payment is $85.38, $55.38 of it goes to that month's interest, and the balance drops by only $30.00. After 5 years of minimum payments, $1,641.46 of the $3,000 is still owed, and the card is not paid off until 11 years 1 month, with $3,824.75 of interest. The minimum here follows a typical rule, which varies by issuer.
How much interest does a bigger payment save?
A bigger monthly payment saves interest because less of the balance sits on the card to be charged each month. Rapunzl's calculator shows it on the default balance: $100 takes 3 years 9 months for $1,411.65 of interest, $150 takes 2 years 2 months for $778.61 of interest, $200 takes 1 year 6 months for $545.20 of interest and $300 takes 1 year for $347.37 of interest. Going from $150 to $300 a month cuts the interest from $778.61 to $347.37. Time and interest both fall because every payment removes more of the balance, and a smaller balance is charged less the next month.
Where does the starting APR come from?
The starting APR comes from the Federal Reserve's G.19 release, which reports 22.15% as the average rate for credit card accounts charged interest in the second quarter of 2026. Accounts that paid no interest are left out, so the number describes balances that carry interest. Rapunzl's calculator uses it only as a starting point, because every real card has its own rate. At the default payment, the same balance costs $473.84 in interest at 15%, $778.61 at 22.15% and $1,210.75 at 30%.
Using the Calculator in Class
Project it and ask students to guess how long the default balance takes at $150 a month before you press go. Then change only the payment to $300 and ask what moves more, the time or the interest, comparing 2 years 2 months with 1 year and $778.61 with $347.37. Close with the minimum line on the chart: ask why it stretches to 11 years 1 month when the first minimum payment is only $85.38. The modules below cover credit and loans, and the posts have more ways to teach the same idea.
At 22.15% APR, paying $150 a month clears $3,000 in 2 years 2 months, which is 26 months. Total interest is $778.61, so the total paid is $3,778.61. Paying $200 a month instead takes 1 year 6 months and $545.20 of interest. These are estimates, because the APR is assumed to stay the same and nothing new goes on the card.
There is no single rule, so this calculator uses a typical one that the CFPB found in card agreements: the larger of $40 or 1% of the balance plus that month's interest, and never more than what is owed. It varies by issuer and by card, and fees and past-due amounts are not included here. On the default balance the first minimum is $85.38, and it shrinks as the balance shrinks. Your statement shows the exact minimum for your card.
On the default balance, paying only the minimum takes 11 years 1 month and costs $3,824.75 in interest. Paying $150 a month takes 2 years 2 months and costs $778.61, which is $3,046.14 less interest and 107 months sooner. The minimum takes so long because it falls every month along with the balance.
Any APR from 0 to 79.99 works. The box starts at 22.15%, the Federal Reserve's average for credit card accounts charged interest in the second quarter of 2026, and your statement shows your own card's rate. For the default balance and payment, 15% costs $473.84 in interest over 2 years, 22.15% costs $778.61 over 2 years 2 months, and 30% costs $1,210.75 over 2 years 5 months.
No, it is an estimate. We figure interest once a month at the APR divided by 12, while a real card charges interest on the daily balance, so a statement will differ a little. The calculator also assumes the APR stays the same, nothing new goes on the card, and no fees or late charges are added.
If a payment does not cover the first month's interest, the balance never goes down, so there is no payoff time to show. For the default balance and APR, the first month's interest is $55.38, so the calculator asks for at least $55.39. A payment that covers the interest but sits under the card's minimum still gets a result, with a note.
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Interest is figured once a month at the APR divided by 12, a simplification: a real card charges interest on the daily balance, so a statement will differ a little. The minimum payment follows a typical rule that varies by issuer. The APR stays the same, and no new purchases, fees or late charges are added.
