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Debt & Loans

Debt Snowball vs Avalanche Calculator

Compare debt snowball and debt avalanche using the same monthly debt budget, with modeled payoff time and interest for each strategy.

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Added on top of all entered minimums. Snowball vs. Avalanche determines where this extra money—and later each freed minimum—goes.

❄️ Snowball

Pay smallest balance first — builds momentum.

Payoff Time

2 yr 6 mo

Total Interest

$3,667

🔥 Avalanche

Pay highest APR first — saves the most interest.

Payoff Time

2 yr 6 mo

Total Interest

$3,612

The Avalanche method saves about $55 of interest under the same fixed monthly debt budget.

What this means for you

With a fixed monthly debt budget of $980, the faster modeled payoff is 2 yr 6 mo.

  • Avalanche targets the highest APR after all minimums are covered and saves about $55 versus Snowball in this scenario.
  • Snowball targets the smallest balance after all minimums are covered. Its main advantage is behavioral simplicity, not a guaranteed interest saving.
  • When a debt is eliminated, its old minimum payment stays inside the same monthly debt budget and automatically rolls to the next target.
Talk to Alex about building a debt payoff plan that fits your budget

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Educational estimates only. Not financial, tax, investment, legal, payroll, mortgage, or insurance advice. Results may vary based on rates, tax rules, lender terms, state laws, and personal circumstances. Financial values entered into supported calculators may be stored privately with technical data such as IP address for MFA analytics, security, debugging and product improvement. Do not enter account numbers, passwords, Social Security numbers or login credentials. Privacy details.