Loan Payoff Calculator

How to use this loan payoff calculator

Enter your current loan balance — for a credit card, this is your statement balance. For an auto or personal loan, it's the remaining principal. Then enter the annual interest rate (your APR) and the monthly payment you're making or planning to make.

The key rule: your monthly payment must be greater than the monthly interest charge (balance × annual rate ÷ 12) to make any progress. If it isn't, the balance will never decrease and the calculator will tell you so.

Try the most powerful experiment: increase the payment by $50–$200 and watch the payoff date move forward by months or years. On a high-interest credit card, an extra $100/month can save thousands in interest.

How the calculation works

Each month, the calculator applies interest to the remaining balance (balance × monthly rate), then subtracts your payment. This continues until the balance reaches zero. The total of all payments made is "total paid," and total paid minus original balance is "total interest."

The simulation runs up to 100 years (1,200 months) before it gives up — if your payment doesn't cover the interest, the loop exits early and the calculator warns you.

Credit cards vs. installment loans

This calculator works for both. Credit cards typically carry APRs of 18%–30%, making the minimum payment strategy extremely costly — paying only the minimum on a $5,000 balance at 24% APR might take over 20 years to pay off. Installment loans (auto, personal, student) usually have fixed rates and fixed terms, so this calculator helps verify what the lender told you.

Frequently asked questions