Highest interest rate first — the cheapest route out of debt. See exactly what the discipline is worth in dollars.
What you owe
$19,450 total
Replace the example rows below with your own debts. All three figures are printed on your statement.
Where do I find these numbers?
Debt
Any name you will recognise — “Visa”, “Store card”, “Car”. It only labels the row.
Balance
What you still owe today, not what you originally borrowed. On a statement it is the current or statement balance.
APR %
The yearly interest rate, near the interest charges on your statement. Cards often list several — use the purchase APR. Type 22.9, not 0.229.
Minimum
The smallest payment your lender will accept this month, shown as minimum payment due. On a loan it is your fixed monthly instalment.
DebtBalanceAPR %Minimum
On top of your $520 of minimums. This one number does most of the work.
$/ month
If nothing changes
Nov 2032
6 years 4 months of minimum payments
Interest handed over
$8,425
Adding $200 a month
Mar 2029
2 years 8 months and you are done
Interest handed over
$3,380
$5,045 saved·3 years 8 months soonerThat is what the extra $200 a month is worth to you.
$0$4,863$9,725$14,588$19,450
nowyr 1yr 2yr 3yr 4yr 5yr 6
Your avalanche planMinimum payments onlyDebt by debt, and what to pay3 debts, in the order you clear them
Debt
Cleared in
Interest
Total paid
What to pay
1Store card
Apr 20279 months
$192
$2,042
Pay $255.00 a month through month 8, then $2.31 in month 9 to finish.
2Visa card
Aug 20282 years 1 month
$1,985
$8,185
Pay $155.00 a month through month 8, then $407.69 in month 9, then $410.00 through month 24, then $387.42 in month 25 to finish.
3Car loan
Mar 20292 years 8 months
$1,203
$12,603
Pay $310.00 a month through month 24, then $332.58 in month 25, then $720.00 through month 31, then $510.06 in month 32 to finish.
Month 1 is this month. Each time a debt clears, its payment moves to the next one — which is why the amounts in the last column go up while your monthly total stays the same.
Snowball vs. avalancheBoth cost the same here
Method
Debt-free
Interest
snowball
Mar 2029
$3,380
avalanche
Mar 2029
$3,380
With these balances both methods cost the same, so pick whichever order you will stick with.
Month-by-month scheduleAll 32 payments, printable
Month
Payment
Interest
Balance left
1. Aug 2026
$720.00
$220.73
$18,950.73
2. Sep 2026
$720.00
$213.90
$18,444.63
3. Oct 2026
$720.00
$206.93
$17,931.56
4. Nov 2026
$720.00
$199.85
$17,411.41
5. Dec 2026
$720.00
$192.63
$16,884.04
6. Jan 2027
$720.00
$185.27
$16,349.31
7. Feb 2027
$720.00
$177.77
$15,807.08
8. Mar 2027
$720.00
$170.14
$15,257.22
9. Apr 2027🎉 Store card paid off
$720.00
$162.35
$14,699.57
10. May 2027
$720.00
$155.27
$14,134.84
11. Jun 2027
$720.00
$148.09
$13,562.93
12. Jul 2027
$720.00
$140.78
$12,983.71
Why the highest rate goes first
Interest is rent you pay on money you have already spent. A dollar sitting on a 26% store card costs you roughly twice as much per month as the same dollar on a 13% personal loan. So the cheapest possible plan is the one that removes the most expensive dollars first, no matter how large or small the balance holding them is.
That is the entire avalanche method. Everything else — the minimums, the rollover — works exactly as it does in the snowball.
What it costs you
The avalanche asks for patience. If your highest-rate debt is also a large one, you may pay for a year before anything is crossed off the list. Nothing visibly changes in that time, and that is precisely when people give up and go back to minimum payments.
Before committing, look at the comparison table above and check when the avalanche clears your first debt. If that date is many months out and the saving over the snowball is small, take the snowball. The cheapest plan is only cheapest if you finish it.
A middle route
Some people clear one very small balance first for the momentum, then switch to strict avalanche order for everything after. It costs a little more than pure avalanche and buys you the early win. Run both versions above and you will see the price of that choice exactly.
Common questions
How does the debt avalanche work?
Order your debts by interest rate, highest first, and ignore the balances. Pay the minimum on everything, then put every spare dollar against the highest-rate debt. When it clears, its payment rolls onto the next-highest rate. Your monthly total stays the same throughout.
Is the avalanche always cheaper?
In total interest, yes — it is mathematically the cheapest possible order for a fixed monthly budget. It also usually finishes on the same date or sooner. The only thing it cannot do is give you an early win, which is why some people abandon it.
How much does it actually save?
For most households a few hundred dollars, occasionally a few thousand when one debt carries a much higher rate than the rest. The comparison above shows the exact figure for your balances rather than a rule of thumb.
What if my highest-rate debt is also my largest?
Then the avalanche will feel slow, because months will pass before anything clears. That is the case where the snowball is worth considering even though it costs more — a plan you keep beats a plan you quit.
Does a promotional 0% rate change the order?
Yes, and be careful with it. A 0% balance sits at the bottom of the avalanche order until the promotion ends, at which point the rate jumps and it may leap to the top. Note the expiry date and re-run this calculator when it approaches.