401(k) Loan Calculator
Calculate 401(k) loan repayment, interest paid back to yourself, and the opportunity cost of lost market returns. See the true cost of borrowing from retirement.
Debt Payoff Calculator
Calculate debt payoff time with extra payments, total interest cost, and required payment for a goal date. Compare extra payment scenarios.
$
%
$
$
mo
Payoff in⧉
36 months
3 years
Total Interest⧉
$4,789.00
24.2% of total paid
Total Paid⧉
$19,789.00
Balance + interest
Interest Saved⧉
$5,487.00
vs min payment only ($10276)
Months Saved⧉
37
Min-only payoff: 73 months
Required for Goal⧉
$761.87
To pay off in 24 months
Interest vs Principal
Principal
Interest (24.2%)
Extra Payment Scenarios
| Extra/Month | Payoff (months) | Total Interest | Total Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Min only | 73 mo (6.1 yrs) | $10,276.00 | $25,276.00 |
| +$50.00 | 58 mo (4.8 yrs) | $7,929.00 | $22,929.00 |
| +$100.00 | 48 mo (4 yrs) | $6,488.00 | $21,488.00 |
| +$200.00 | 36 mo (3 yrs) | $4,789.00 | $19,789.00 |
| +$300.00 | 29 mo (2.4 yrs) | $3,813.00 | $18,813.00 |
| +$500.00 | 21 mo (1.8 yrs) | $2,730.00 | $17,730.00 |
| +$1,000.00 | 13 mo (1.1 yrs) | $1,630.00 | $16,630.00 |
Payoff Schedule
| Month | Payment | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $550.00 | $312.63 | $237.37 | $14,687.38 |
| 2 | $550.00 | $317.57 | $232.43 | $14,369.80 |
| 3 | $550.00 | $322.60 | $227.40 | $14,047.20 |
| 4 | $550.00 | $327.70 | $222.30 | $13,719.50 |
| 5 | $550.00 | $332.89 | $217.11 | $13,386.61 |
| 6 | $550.00 | $338.16 | $211.84 | $13,048.46 |
| 7 | $550.00 | $343.51 | $206.49 | $12,704.95 |
| 8 | $550.00 | $348.94 | $201.06 | $12,356.00 |
| 9 | $550.00 | $354.47 | $195.53 | $12,001.54 |
| 10 | $550.00 | $360.08 | $189.92 | $11,641.46 |
| 11 | $550.00 | $365.77 | $184.23 | $11,275.69 |
| 12 | $550.00 | $371.56 | $178.44 | $10,904.13 |
| 13 | $550.00 | $377.44 | $172.56 | $10,526.68 |
| 14 | $550.00 | $383.42 | $166.58 | $10,143.27 |
| 15 | $550.00 | $389.48 | $160.52 | $9,753.79 |
| 16 | $550.00 | $395.65 | $154.35 | $9,358.14 |
| 17 | $550.00 | $401.91 | $148.09 | $8,956.23 |
| 18 | $550.00 | $408.27 | $141.73 | $8,547.96 |
| 19 | $550.00 | $414.73 | $135.27 | $8,133.24 |
| 20 | $550.00 | $421.29 | $128.71 | $7,711.94 |
Planning notes, formulas, and examples
About the Debt Payoff Calculator
How long will it take to pay off your debt? And how much faster could you be debt-free with extra payments? These are the two most important questions for anyone carrying a balance — and this calculator answers both precisely.
Making only minimum payments on high-interest debt stretches repayment over years or even decades, with a shocking amount going to interest. A credit card balance of $15,000 at 19% with minimum payments can take over 20 years and cost more in interest than the original balance. That is why a payoff plan needs to show both time and total cost, not just the monthly bill.
This calculator shows the exact payoff timeline for any debt, the total interest cost, and how extra payments change the equation. Enter your balance, rate, and payments to see a detailed amortization schedule. The extra-payment scenario table reveals the sweet spot — where modest additional payments produce dramatic time and interest savings.
When This Page Helps
Visualizing the cost of debt and the impact of extra payments motivates action. This calculator shows you exactly how much money you save with each extra dollar and how many months sooner you will be free of the debt. It also calculates the required payment to hit a specific payoff goal date, which makes it easier to compare payoff plans side by side.
How to Use the Inputs
- Enter the current balance of your debt.
- Input the annual interest rate.
- Set your minimum monthly payment.
- Add any extra monthly payment you can commit to.
- Optionally set a payoff goal in months.
- Review the payoff timeline and interest savings.
- Use the scenario table to find the optimal extra payment.
Formula used
Monthly Interest = Balance × (Annual Rate / 12). Principal = Payment − Interest. Months to pay off (standard) = −ln(1 − Balance × r/PMT) / ln(1 + r) where r is the monthly rate.Example Calculation
Result: Payoff: 33 months — Interest: $3,700 — Saved $5,500 vs min-only
With $550/mo total ($350 min + $200 extra), a $15,000 balance at 18.99% pays off in 33 months with $3,700 interest. Minimum payments alone would take 62 months with $9,200 interest — the extra $200/mo saves $5,500 and 29 months.
Tips & Best Practices
- Even $50/month extra makes a significant difference on high-interest debt — run the numbers to see.
- The first extra payments save the most interest because the balance (and therefore interest) is highest.
- Set up automatic extra payments so you pay consistently without having to think about it.
- Any windfall (tax refund, bonus, gift) applied to debt has an outsized impact vs. future extra payments.
- If your rate is above 15%, prioritize payoff over savings — you won't earn 15% guaranteed elsewhere.
- Once a debt is paid off, redirect the entire payment to the next debt for accelerated results.
Interest Comes Down First
In the early part of a loan, most of each payment goes to interest. Extra payments help most when the balance is still high, because every dollar of principal removed stops future interest from accruing on that amount. That is why the first extra payments usually create the biggest savings.
Match The Strategy To Your Budget
The best payoff plan is the one you can sustain every month. A slightly smaller extra payment that you can keep making is usually better than an aggressive amount that forces you to stop later. Use the scenario table to find a plan that fits your cash flow and still makes a meaningful dent in the term.
Use Windfalls Intentionally
Tax refunds, bonuses, and other one-time inflows can do a lot of work on high-rate debt. Applying them as lump sums near the start of a payoff plan can shorten the timeline much more than spreading them out loosely over time.
Sources & Methodology
Last updated:
Methodology
This page models one balance with a fixed APR and a fixed monthly payment, then simulates month-by-month interest accrual and principal reduction until payoff. It compares the baseline payment path with optional extra-payment scenarios and can back into a required payment for a target payoff horizon.
It is a repayment-planning worksheet rather than a creditor statement model. Real accounts may change minimum payments, APRs, or fees over time, so the results should be read as a constant-rate scenario built from the user's own inputs.
Sources
- Getting Help When You’re in Debt (consumer.gov) — Federal consumer guidance on building repayment plans and working through debt-management options.
- Understanding minimum payments (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau) — CFPB educational resource describing how minimum payments affect time to payoff and total interest cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
As much as you can comfortably afford after covering essentials and maintaining a small emergency fund. Even $25-50 extra helps. Use the scenario table to see the impact at different levels and choose what fits your budget.
If your debt rate exceeds expected investment returns (typically 7-10% for stocks), pay off debt first. Credit card debt at 20%+ should almost always be prioritized. Low-rate debt (under 5%) might be worth keeping while investing.
Minimum payments are designed to keep you in debt. On high-rate debt, most of the minimum goes to interest, leaving very little to reduce the principal. Credit card companies set minimums at 1-3% of the balance — barely above the interest charges.
This calculator focuses on a single debt with detailed payoff analysis and scenarios. The debt calculator handles multiple debts simultaneously with avalanche/snowball strategy comparison. Use this for deep analysis of one debt, or that one for managing multiple debts.
Yes. Call your credit card company and ask for a rate reduction. Having a good payment history strengthens your position. Balance transfer offers with 0% intro APR can eliminate interest for 12-21 months while you aggressively pay down principal.
Missing payments triggers late fees, potential penalty APR increases (up to 29.99%), and credit score damage. Set up autopay for at least the minimum to avoid this. Extra payments should be on top of the minimum, not in place of it.
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