Debt payoff
Debt Snowball & Avalanche Calculator
Add your debts. Pick an extra monthly amount. See snowball vs avalanche side-by-side — including which one gets you out of debt faster, and at what cost.
Snowball vs avalanche, plainly
Snowball attacks the debt with the smallest balance first, regardless of APR. You knock out a debt fast, get a quick win, and roll its minimum payment into the next-smallest debt. Behaviorally powerful — financially slightly suboptimal.
Avalanche attacks the debt with the highest APR first. You pay less total interest and finish faster — but it can take a year or two to close the first debt, which kills momentum for some people.
Which should you pick?
If the avalanche-vs-snowball gap is small (under a few hundred dollars), pick whichever you'll actually stick with. The cheapest plan is the one you finish. If the gap is large — say, $2,000+ on a 30K debt load — avalanche pays for itself.
The extra-payment compounder
The single biggest lever is the “extra monthly” amount above your minimums. Even $50 extra typically cuts months off the payoff timeline because that money goes 100% to principal — none to interest. Drag the slider above to see your numbers.