See what your card really costs.
Two things this calculator answers: how long until your card is paid off at the payment you can afford, or, if you have a target month in mind, what that payment needs to be.
US average was 21.52% on accounts assessed interest (Federal Reserve G.19, Q1 2026, latest release).
Done by August 2029, on a $5,000 balance at 24.99% APR.
At 24.99% APR, every month you carry a balance, the bank adds about $104 in interest to what you owe. The fastest way to pay less is to pay more of the balance off sooner, even an extra $25/month makes a real difference.
Convert the APR to a monthly interest rate.
Monthly rate = 24.99% / 12 = 2.083%
Each month, interest is added to the balance, then your payment is applied to what is left.
Interest in month one = $5,000 * 2.083% = $104
Repeat month after month until the balance reaches zero.
3 years to pay off, $2,135 total interest, $7,135 paid in all
Monthly-compounding approximation. Real issuers compound daily, so actual interest runs a few percent higher.
The math is brutal at high APRs.
Credit cards charge interest on your average daily balance, compounded monthly. At 24% APR, a $5,000 balance costs about $100 in interest the first month. Even if you make a $200 payment, half of it is just feeding the interest.
Two principles work in your favor:
Pay more than the minimum, always. Minimums on most cards are designed to keep you in debt for 15 to 25 years. Even an extra $25 to $50 a month dramatically shortens payoff time and total cost.
Lower the APR if you can. Balance transfer offers (0% for 12 to 21 months, with a 3 to 5 percent transfer fee) can save thousands if you actually use the runway to pay it off rather than re-rack the balance.
Minimum payments cost more than the debt.
If you make only the minimum payment on a $5,000 balance at 24% APR, you'll pay it off in about 22 years and pay roughly $7,000 in interest, more than the original debt. That's why this calculator exists. Once you see the numbers, paying more becomes the easy decision.
A few things sit outside the math.
New purchases. The math assumes you stop using the card while paying it down.
Annual fees. If your card has one, the real total cost is slightly higher.
Late fees and over-limit fees. Those fees add to the balance and accrue interest themselves. Autopay the minimum at least.
Variable APR changes. Many cards adjust APR based on the Federal Reserve's prime rate.
Assumptions
- APR is constant for the entire payoff. Real credit-card APRs are variable and tied to the prime rate; they reset when the Fed moves.
- Payment hits on the same day every month, before any new interest accrues. Real billing cycles use a daily-balance method that produces a slightly different number.
- The same payment is made every month. No skipped months, no late fees, no over-limit fees.
- No new charges added to the card during payoff. Adding charges resets the timeline.
Limitations
- Real issuers compound interest daily, not monthly. The actual total interest is typically a few percent higher than this calculator's monthly approximation.
- Late fees, returned-payment fees, and over-limit fees add directly to the balance and accrue interest themselves.
- Promotional 0% APR windows, balance-transfer fees, and rate changes after introductory periods are not modeled.
- Card minimum-payment formulas (typically 1 to 3 percent of balance, or a $25 floor) are not modeled. The calculator uses whatever payment you enter.
- It is not personalized debt advice or a recommendation about any specific card.
- It is not a credit-counseling tool. For severe debt situations, contact a non-profit credit counselor (NFCC).
- It is not legal advice on debt collection, settlement, or bankruptcy.
- It is not a recommendation of balance-transfer cards. They can help (0% intro APR plus modest transfer fee) but only if the runway is actually used.
A note on how this was made. Lessons, glossary entries, and articles on ClearMoneySchool are drafted with AI assistance and reviewed by Joseph Citizen before publication. We use AI to draft faster and explain more clearly. We do not use it to publish anything we have not read, fact-checked, and edited. Read our full AI policy.
Educational simulation only. Real credit-card costs include daily-compounding interest, fees, and variable APR changes not modeled here. Always verify with your card issuer before making decisions. ClearMoneySchool does not provide personalized financial or debt advice.