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How to use the Yahoo Finance credit card payoff calculator
The Yahoo Finance credit card debt calculator gives you a clear picture of how many months it will take to pay off your debt. Simply input your balance, interest rate, and monthly payment amount, and we’ll do the rest.
Alternatively, you can set a goal for how many months you want to pay off your debt, and we’ll tell you how much your monthly payment will have to be to achieve that goal.
Pay off debt with a balance transfer credit card
Credit card calculators are useful when paired with recommended debt payoff strategies, including using balance transfer credit cards.
The best balance transfer credit cards offer a 0% introductory rate on balance transfers for a specific period, often between 12 to 18 months. You don’t have to pay interest on any eligible transferred balance during the promotional period.
This gives you time to pay off debt without having to worry about high interest charges, which could be a huge opportunity for becoming debt-free. Keep in mind that you typically have to pay a balance transfer fee, so using a balance transfer card generally only makes sense if the interest you can save is higher than the fee.
Other debt payoff methods
Consider these two popular methods for paying down debt. Note that these strategies can work with interest-free periods on 0% APR credit cards or they can work on their own, it depends on what’s best for your financial goals and situation.
Debt snowball
The debt snowball method focuses on paying off your smallest debt first. After assessing your income and expenses, you would put any additional funds toward paying your smallest debt. Once that debt is paid off, you move on to the next smallest debt.
This method makes sense for keeping your motivation levels high as you pay down your debt. It won’t save you more money on total interest than the debt avalanche method, but that’s not necessarily as important as actually clearing your debt.
Debt avalanche
The debt avalanche method focuses on paying off your debt with the highest interest rate first. Once you pay off your debt with the highest interest rate, you move on to the debt with the next highest interest rate.
This method makes sense for saving money on interest as you pay down debt. This strategy should save you more money over the course of your repayment process than the debt snowball method.
Read more: Best ways to pay off credit card debt
FAQs about credit card debt
Editorial Disclosure: The information in this article has not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. All opinions belong solely to the Yahoo Finance and are not those of any other entity. The details on financial products, including card rates and fees, are accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank’s website for the most current information. This site doesn't include all currently available offers. Credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.
