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Credit Card Calculator
Minimum payments are designed to stretch your balance for years. This credit card calculator shows how long payoff takes, the interest you'll pay, and how the minimum-payment trap compares side by side with a steady fixed payment.
See how this works on a $6,000 card balance — 3 real examples
Minimum-payment rule
Time to pay it off
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Total interest
$0
Total paid
$0
Saved vs minimum
$0
Balance over time: minimum vs your plan
Month-by-month payoff scheduleEvery payment, interest and balance
| # | Date | Payment | Interest | Principal | Balance |
|---|
How your credit-card payoff time is calculated
Each month the calculator adds interest to the balance, then applies your payment and rolls the rest forward — the same interest-first arithmetic your issuer uses:
interest = balance × (APR / 12)
minimum payment = max($floor, balance × min%)
new balance = balance + interest + new purchases − payment
In Fixed mode the payment is the same every month, so the balance falls in a nearly straight line. In Minimum mode the payment is a percent of the shrinking balance with a dollar floor, so it tapers off and payoff stretches for years — that’s the trap the chart makes visible. In Target mode the required payment is solved with the standard loan payment formula so the starting balance clears in exactly the months you choose. The minimum-payment scenario is always computed in the background so the “saved vs minimum” figure and the trap comparison hold in every mode. Assumptions: a constant APR, interest applied monthly (issuers usually compound daily, a small difference), payments applied on schedule, and no late fees or penalty rates. This tool is an estimate, not credit advice.
One $6,000 balance, three payment habits
The card is the same: $6,000 at 22% APR. The only thing that changes is who decides the payment — you, or the statement.
A steady $250 every month
to a zero balance32 months
- The balance is gone in 32 months — two years and eight months.
- Interest comes to $1,979 along the way.
- All in, the $6,000 borrowed costs $7,979 to repay.
A fixed payment ignores the shrinking balance and keeps taking the same bite every month.
Load this example (opens in a new tab)Paying whatever the statement asks
to a zero balance75+ years
- The first minimum is $122.20 — and it shrinks as the balance does, stalling progress.
- Payoff arrives after 907 months: seventy-five years and seven months.
- Interest reaches $44,974, about seven and a half times the balance that started it.
The minimum is priced to keep the account open, not to pay it off.
Load this example (opens in a new tab)Working back from a deadline
per month clears it$311.27
- Naming 24 months as the finish line solves the payment: $311.27.
- Interest stops at $1,470 — $509 less than the $250 plan.
- Eight months sooner than the $250 plan, for $61.27 more each month.
Choosing the deadline instead of the payment turns the card into a fixed-term loan.
Load this example (opens in a new tab)Illustrations only, not financial advice. Your own rate, taxes and insurance will differ — check with a qualified financial advisor before acting on any of this.
Escaping the minimum-payment trap, in plain English
- The minimum is designed to shrink. Because it’s a percent of the balance, the payment falls as you pay down — so progress slows to a crawl and interest piles up for years.
- A fixed payment is the fix. Holding even your first minimum steady, instead of letting it decline, can cut a decade off the payoff. The chart shows both paths at once.
- APR is the accelerator. On a $6,000 balance, moving from 18% to 26% APR adds thousands in interest at the same payment — a balance transfer or lower-rate option is worth pricing out.
- New purchases keep you stuck. Charging while you pay down means part of every payment just covers fresh spending. The “new purchases” input shows how much that costs.
- Work backward from a deadline. Target mode turns “debt-free by next year” into an exact monthly number, so you know what it actually takes.
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Frequently asked questions
How long will it take to pay off my credit card?
It depends almost entirely on how much you pay each month. On a $6,000 balance at 22% APR, a fixed $250 a month clears the card in about 32 months with roughly $1,980 of interest. Drop to the typical 2% minimum and payoff stretches past 75 years while interest climbs to nearly $45,000. Enter your own balance, APR and payment above to see the exact months-to-payoff and total interest.
Why does paying only the minimum take so long and cost so much?
The minimum is usually a small percentage of the balance — often 1–3% — so as your balance falls, the required payment falls with it. That means an ever-shrinking payment that barely stays ahead of interest, which is why a $6,000 balance at a 2% minimum can take about 75 years — and nearly $45,000 in interest — to clear. This is the minimum-payment trap, and the chart above shows the declining-minimum line crawling toward zero next to a fixed payment that dives straight down.
How much interest will I pay on my current balance?
Interest is charged on the balance every month, so total interest depends on your APR and how fast you pay the principal down. This interest-on-credit-card calculator adds each month’s interest to the balance, applies your payment, and sums the interest across the full payoff. Paying more each month cuts both the number of payments and the total interest, and the calculator shows exactly how much you save versus the minimum.
How is credit card interest calculated — daily or monthly?
Most issuers compound daily using a daily periodic rate (APR ÷ 365) applied to your average daily balance, then bill it once a month. This calculator uses the equivalent monthly rate of APR ÷ 12 for a clean, transparent estimate; the difference from true daily compounding on a typical balance is small. Either way, a higher APR and a lower payment both push your total interest up.
What is the difference between paying a fixed amount and a percentage of the balance?
A fixed payment stays the same every month, so it takes a steady bite out of principal and the balance falls in a straight line. A percentage-of-balance minimum shrinks as the balance shrinks, so the payment tapers off and progress stalls. Holding your very first minimum payment steady instead of letting it decline can cut years off the payoff — switch to “Minimum payment” mode above to see that comparison for your numbers.
How much do I need to pay each month to be debt-free in a set number of months?
Switch the payment mode to “Target payoff” and enter the number of months you want. The calculator solves for the level monthly payment that clears your starting balance in exactly that time, the same way a loan payment is calculated. It also shows the total interest that plan costs and how it compares against dragging the balance out on minimums.
Disclaimer: these calculators are educational tools, not financial advice. They model your inputs with published formulas, but they cannot know your full situation — for decisions with real stakes, talk to a qualified professional. Formulas and defaults last reviewed .