At $12,000 of credit-card debt, a 24 percent APR, and a $300 monthly payment, you’ll be debt-free in 6y 10mo and pay about $12,600 in interest — more than the balance itself. Drag the sliders to your own numbers to see your payoff date and what each option changes. The calculator runs entirely in your browser; nothing you enter is stored or sent.
Your Payoff Timeline
Runs in your browser — nothing you enter is stored or sent.
At this pace you’ll pay $12,600 in interest alone. With $10k+ of enrolled debt, a settlement check takes 60 seconds and won’t touch your credit.
See if you qualifyYour payment doesn’t cover this month’s interest — the balance grows even while you pay. This is exactly the situation relief programs exist for.
See if you qualify Call a debt specialistUnder $10k, settlement usually isn’t worth it — a free credit check is the smarter first move toward a lower-APR consolidation path.
See my score free (Credit Karma) We may earn a commission from partner links — it never changes our rankings.How the Payoff Math Works
Card interest compounds monthly: your APR divided by 12 is charged on whatever balance remains, your payment covers that interest first, and only the remainder touches the principal. On the default numbers above, the first $240 of the $300 payment is interest — just $60 reduces the debt. That is why the timeline reads 6y 10mo instead of the 40 months you might expect from dividing $12,000 by $300.
The lever is the gap between payment and monthly interest. Add $100 a month to the default scenario and the timeline drops from 6y 10mo to 3y 11mo, and total interest falls from $12,600 to $6,800 — $5,800 kept, 35 months returned, from one budget change. Move the payment slider and watch the same effect on your own numbers.
The Average Card Balance Where You Live
Average credit-card balances differ by thousands of dollars between states. Here is what the calculator’s default payment ($300 at a 24% APR) does to each state’s average balance, from our 2026-Q2 data layer:
| State | Avg. card balance | Debt-free in | Interest paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | $7,200 | 2y 10mo | $3,000 |
| California | $9,000 | 3y 11mo | $5,100 |
| Florida | $7,000 | 2y 8mo | $2,600 |
| Georgia | $6,200 | 2y 3mo | $1,900 |
| North Carolina | $6,100 | 2y 3mo | $2,000 |
| Texas | $7,300 | 2y 10mo | $2,900 |
Every state and metro we track — balances, garnishment caps, statutes of limitations — is in the Financial Data Explorer.
Three Ways to Shorten the Timeline
Pay more than the minimum, every month. As the math above shows, every dollar past the monthly interest goes straight to principal, and the effect compounds in your favor. Even $50 more per month meaningfully moves the date.
Cut the APR with consolidation. Rolling card balances into a fixed-rate consolidation loan or personal loan replaces a mid-20s APR with something lower and adds a fixed end date. Your credit profile decides the rate, so check where you stand first.
For $10,000 or more, compare relief programs. When the calculator shows years of payments going mostly to interest — or a payment that never reaches zero — credit-card debt relief options like settlement exist for exactly that situation. Our 60-second check below shows which options fit your numbers, free and with no effect on your credit.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is the payoff date calculated?
The calculator uses the standard amortization formula: your APR divided by 12 is charged on the remaining balance each month, your payment covers that interest first, and whatever is left reduces the balance. It assumes a fixed payment and no new charges, which is how card issuers apply interest on a statement balance.
Why does my minimum payment barely move the balance?
Minimum payments are usually set near 1 to 3 percent of the balance, which at today's card rates is mostly interest. If your payment only slightly exceeds the monthly interest, almost none of it reaches the principal, so the timeline stretches to decades. The fastest fix is any amount above the minimum, every month.
Is anything I enter saved or shared?
No. The sliders run entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is stored, sent to us, or shared with anyone, and using the calculator never affects your credit.
When is debt settlement worth considering?
Settlement programs generally make sense from about $10,000 of enrolled unsecured debt, when the math above shows years of payments going mostly to interest. It is a serious step: programs take two to four years, charge fees, and hurt your credit while you are enrolled, so compare it against consolidation before you commit.
What APR should I enter?
Use the purchase APR from your latest card statement, not an average. If you carry balances on several cards, enter the rate on the card with the largest balance, or run the calculator once per card. Card APRs have held near record highs since 2023, so numbers in the mid-20s are common.
