💰 Financial
Credit Card Calculator
Calculate how long it will take to pay off your credit card and how much interest you will pay in total based on your monthly payment.
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Formula
n = -log(1 - (B × r) / M) / log(1 + r)n- Number of months to pay off
B- Credit card balance
r- Monthly interest rate (APR / 12)
M- Monthly payment
Example
Paying Minimum vs Fixed Amount
Understanding the impact of payment size on a $5,000 balance at 21% APR.
- If you pay $120 a month: It will take 73 months (over 6 years) to pay off, costing $3,744 in interest.
- If you increase your payment to $250 a month: It will take only 25 months to pay off, costing $1,175 in interest.
- You save over $2,500 in interest just by paying an extra $130 per month.
Frequently Asked Questions
Minimum payments are designed to cover the interest and a tiny fraction of the principal. Making only minimum payments means it can take decades to pay off the debt, and you will end up paying double or triple the original purchase amount in interest.
Most credit cards divide your APR by 365 to get a daily rate, which is then multiplied by your average daily balance.