Credit Card Calculator

Estimate payoff time, total interest, and total paid from your balance, APR, and monthly payment. Optional target payoff month mode included.

How to Use

  1. Enter your Current Balance and APR.
  2. Enter your Monthly Payment (or choose “Target payoff in months”).
  3. Enable “New Purchases” only if you want to model ongoing charges (optional).
  4. Open Show Work to see the monthly rate, interest, and principal steps.
  5. Use Share Link to generate a URL that restores your inputs.
Payoff Summary
Updates live as you type. Final schedule is an estimate.
Payoff Time
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Total Interest
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Total Paid
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Payoff Date
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Enter values to begin.
Schedule Preview
First few months (balance, interest, principal). Full preview handled by JS.
Month Start Balance Interest Principal End Balance
Enter inputs to generate a preview.
Note: This tool models interest using a monthly periodic rate derived from APR (APR ÷ 12). Actual issuers may vary by statement cycle and daily compounding.
Inputs & Settings
Choose a mode, then fill the required fields. Results update instantly.
The current outstanding balance on the card.
Enter the stated APR (not APY). Example: 19.99% or 29.99%.
Amount you plan to pay each month (minimum + extra).
Show Work (step-by-step)
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Work is shown using an estimated periodic rate. If you enable “Daily compounding (estimate)”, the tool will approximate using common assumptions.

Details

  • Periodic rate: typically APR ÷ 12 for a monthly estimate.
  • Interest (month): interest = balance × periodic_rate (estimate).
  • Principal paid: principal = payment − interest − fees (bounded to ≥ 0).
  • Warning: if payment ≤ interest + fees, payoff may never happen (balance grows).

This tool is for estimation and planning. Issuers may compute interest using daily balances, statement cycles, and promotional rates.

FAQ

Why does my payoff time look “too long”?

High APR plus a low payment means most of the payment goes to interest early on. Increasing payment even a little can shorten payoff time a lot.

What if my APR changes?

This calculator assumes a constant APR. If your APR changes (or you have a promo period), you’ll need separate scenarios.

Does this match my statement exactly?

Not always. Statement math can use daily compounding and issuer-specific methods. This tool aims for a clean, deterministic estimate you can trust for planning.

Tool Info

Last updated:

Updates may include improved payoff scheduling, edge-case handling, and additional issuer-style options.