Debt snowball: smallest starting balance first
The snowball strategy puts extra payments toward the smallest starting balance while covering the minimum on every other debt. This calculator fixes that priority at the start and moves down the list as balances are cleared. Equal starting balances are ordered by higher APR, then by row number.
Paying a smaller account off can make progress easier to see. It does not guarantee less interest: when a larger debt charges a higher APR, prioritizing it instead can reduce the interest paid. The snowball and avalanche can also produce the same outcome when their priorities match.
Enter your individual debts
Enter up to three balances, each annual percentage rate (APR), and each required monthly minimum from your statements. Set unused balances to zero. The total monthly budget includes all minimums plus any extra payment; it is not just the extra amount. A combined balance and average APR cannot represent which debt receives the extra money.
How the monthly simulation works
At the start of each simulated month, interest is added to each outstanding balance at APR divided by 12. Interest and payments are rounded to cents. Each debt receives its entered minimum, capped at the amount owed. The remaining budget goes to the first unpaid debt in the strategy's priority order. If it is cleared, any money left over goes to the next debt in the same month. The budget stays constant as accounts are paid off, so their released payments remain available.
The displayed payoff month includes the final partial payment. A different debt can finish first through its minimum payments even if it is not first in the extra-payment priority. If the budget cannot cover the minimums, or the debts remain unpaid after the 100-year calculation limit, the calculator reports that limitation instead of a debt-free date.
Assumptions and limits
This educational estimate holds APRs and the entered minimum payments fixed. It assumes no fees, new borrowing, missed payments or promotional-rate expiry. Many lenders accrue interest daily or change minimums as balances fall, so their schedules can differ. Check your statements, any prepayment terms, and a sustainable budget. It is not a recommendation about which obligations to miss or a substitute for individual debt advice.
Source
The strategy follows the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau debt action plan: cover minimums and redirect extra payments as debts are repaid. The monthly rounding and fixed-minimum conventions above are this calculator's modeling assumptions.