Avalanche or snowball?
Both methods have you pay the minimum on every debt and put all remaining money toward one target debt. When the target is paid off, its whole payment rolls onto the next target, so the amount attacking your debt grows over time.
- Debt avalanche: target the highest interest rate first. It always costs the least interest and is usually the fastest.
- Debt snowball: target the smallest balance first. It usually costs a little more, but you close accounts sooner, and studies of real borrowers (including research from Northwestern's Kellogg School) found that those early wins help people stick with the plan.
With similar interest rates the two methods give almost the same result. With one expensive card and one cheap loan, the avalanche can save hundreds or thousands. The calculator shows both so you can decide whether the motivation is worth the cost.
Setting your monthly amount
Start with the total of all minimum payments, then add whatever you can free up. Every extra dollar goes to the current target. Even $100 above the minimums shortens most plans by years. Keep a small emergency fund of $1,000 or so first, so a surprise bill does not go back on a card.
Other ways to speed it up
Balance transfer: moving card debt to a 0% offer for 12 to 21 months pauses interest, for a fee of 3% to 5%. Consolidation loan: a personal loan at a lower rate replaces several cards with one fixed payment and a fixed end date. Both only help if you stop adding new charges. Our loan calculator shows what a consolidation loan would cost.
If the payments are unmanageable even at the minimums, a nonprofit credit counselling agency accredited by the NFCC can often negotiate a debt management plan with lower rates.