Credit Card Interest Calculator
Enter your balance, APR and monthly payment to see your payoff date and total interest — then nudge the payment up and watch the interest collapse.
How credit card interest actually works
Credit cards charge interest daily on your average balance: your APR divided by 365, applied every day, then billed monthly. At 20.99% APR, a $5,000 balance accrues roughly $87 of interest in the first month — so of a $200 payment, only about $113 reduces what you owe. That's why minimum payments feel like running on a treadmill.
The minimum payment trap
Minimum payments are typically 2–3% of the balance or interest plus a small fixed amount. Paying only the minimum on $5,000 at 21% APR can take well over 20 years and cost more in interest than the original balance. Fixing your payment at a set dollar amount (rather than the shrinking minimum) already cuts years off; raising it beats almost any other use of spare cash, because paying down 21% debt is a guaranteed 21% return.
Faster payoff strategies
- Avalanche: pay minimums on everything, throw every spare dollar at the highest-APR card. Mathematically optimal.
- Snowball: smallest balance first, for the motivational wins. Slightly costlier, often more sustainable.
- Balance transfer / consolidation: a 0% promotional transfer or a lower-APR personal loan can save a lot — check the transfer fee and use our loan calculator to compare.