Free tool · Updated August 10, 2026

Debt Snowball vs Avalanche Calculator

Enter your debts once and see both strategies side by side: months to debt-free, total interest, and exactly what choosing the wrong one costs. Everything runs in your browser — nothing is uploaded, stored, or sent anywhere. No sign-up.

Which one should you actually pick?

Avalanche (highest APR first) is always mathematically cheapest — it is never beaten on interest. Snowball (smallest balance first) clears individual debts sooner, which is why it survives: the accounts disappearing is what keeps people going.

The honest way to decide is to look at the gap the calculator prints. If avalanche saves you a few dollars, take the snowball and the motivation. If it saves you hundreds, that is real money and worth the discipline. The point of running the numbers is that you stop guessing which case you are in.

What this assumes

• Interest is charged monthly at APR ÷ 12 on the balance, and payments post at month end.
• You keep paying minimums on every debt; the extra always goes to the one debt at the top of the order.
• When a debt is cleared, its whole payment rolls onto the next one — that rolling snowball applies to both strategies.
• No new borrowing, no fees, no promotional-rate expiry. A 0% card that reverts to 24% will beat this model — put in the rate you will actually be paying.
• Minimums are held flat rather than shrinking with the balance, which is the conservative assumption most card issuers make roughly true anyway.

Want this as a spreadsheet you own?

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