Debt Payoff Guides
Each guide answers one question about paying off more than one debt, using the same rules as the calculator. Figures are worked examples with the balance, APR, minimum, and extra payment written next to them. They are not a quote from a lender. The on-screen calculator rounds interest to the nearest dollar; the guides keep cents so the arithmetic can be checked.
Nothing here asks you to pick a product. When a comparison needs a fee or an APR that changes halfway through, the guide says so and runs the months by hand, because this calculator holds one APR and one minimum for the whole plan.
Avalanche vs snowball, with numbersA three-debt plan where the orders diverge, and one where they are the same plan.
How card interest is calculated monthlyAPR divided by 12, compared with a 30-day average daily balance.
What an extra $50 to $200 doesOne set of debts, five payment levels, and the savings from each step.
Balance, APR, and minimum on a statementWhich figure to type, and which nearby numbers to leave out.
Balance transfers and consolidationA transfer that costs less, one that costs more, and a loan that only helps if the payment stays up.
How this calculator worksThe month loop, where a finished minimum rolls forward, and what is left out.
The short version of the math, a worked example, and a note on what the model skips also sit on the calculator page, under the numbers.