Debt tool

Debt Payoff Planner

List your debts, pick a strategy, and get a debt-free date. Then get honest about real life: 0% promo cards that expire, a tax refund in April, an extra $50 every payday. This planner handles all of it and shows every balance dying on one chart.

Private by design: Calculator inputs are processed locally in your browser. They are not transmitted to Shaun Graham Finance or any third party. Nothing is kept unless you ask — use Save to file near the bottom of the page to keep your own copy.

1List your debts

Grab the latest statement for each one. The promo columns are optional — use them for 0% intro cards or any temporary rate, and the planner handles the expiration for you. Collapse this section once your debts are in to keep the chart in view while you experiment.

No debts yet

Remove	Name	Balance	APR	Minimum payment	Promo APR	Promo ends
Add your first debt to begin — credit cards, student loans, car loans, personal loans, medical bills.

Leave the promo columns empty unless a debt has a temporary rate. When a promo expires, its real APR takes over — and the avalanche strategy automatically starts attacking it.

2Pick a strategy and add extra money

Which debt gets attacked first?Avalanche — highest interest rate firstMathematically cheapest: every extra dollar goes at the most expensive debt. Re-checks rates monthly, so an expired 0% promo card jumps to the front automatically.Snowball — smallest balance firstFast early wins keep people going. Usually costs a bit more interest than avalanche; the comparison table below shows exactly how much for your debts.In the order listedYou know your situation best. Extra money follows the order of the table above, top to bottom.

Extra toward debt every month

Plan startsWhen a debt is finishedKeep paying the same total — the freed-up minimum rolls into the next debt. Uncheck to pocket it instead.

Remove	Type	Amount	Repeats	Date / first payment	Last payment
Optional: add a tax refund, yearly bonus, or an extra amount each payday on top of the monthly figure above.

Test a consolidation offer optional

Got a personal-loan or balance-transfer offer? Enter its real numbers — origination fee included — and see whether it honestly beats your current plan. If it loses, you just saved yourself a loan application.

Debts the new loan would pay off

Add debts in step 1 first.

Offered APR

Loan term

years

Origination fee

Tick at least one debt above to test the offer against your current plan.

The comparison assumes you keep spending the same total per month — whatever the new loan frees up gets thrown at the remaining debts with your chosen strategy. Two fine-print traps it can't see: deferred-interest promos, and paid-off cards quietly running back up. The loan only wins if the balances stay gone.

Read the result

Add your debts to see a debt-free date.

Debt-free date—

Debt-free on minimums only—

Total interest with this plan$0

Interest saved$0vs paying minimums only

Time saved—

First win—

Watch every balance die

Inspect monthAdd debts to inspect the plan month by month.

Every strategy, same money

Same debts, same budget — only the attack order changes. If the interest difference is small, pick the plan you will actually stick with.

Plan	Debt-free	Total interest	First debt gone

Debt by debt

Debt	Starting balance	Paid off	Interest paid	Note

Remember these debts and payments on this deviceEverything on this page, including your amounts. Leave it clear and nothing is kept — a refresh starts fresh.

Everything is calculated in your browser; nothing you enter is sent to Shaun Graham Finance. Nothing is stored on this device unless you check the box above; with it clear, a refresh starts from the defaults. When checked, the whole form — including debt balances, payments, and dates — is kept in local browser storage, not cookies. That storage is not encrypted, so avoid it on a shared device. Files you save contain the debt details you entered; protect them like other financial records.

Important assumptions before moving real money

Interest compounds monthly at APR ÷ 12. Card issuers actually accrue daily and minimums often shrink with the balance; entering today's minimum as a fixed payment is the standard, slightly conservative simplification.
If a minimum payment doesn't even cover the month's interest, the balance grows forever. The planner flags this in the debt-by-debt table — fixing it comes before any strategy.
Promo balances assume the promo rate applies to the whole balance until the end date, then the regular APR takes over. Deferred-interest promotions (common at furniture and electronics stores) can charge back-interest retroactively — check the fine print.
Extra payments assume no prepayment penalties, which are rare on cards but exist on some personal loans.
This tool ranks payoff order; it doesn't cover consolidation, balance transfers, or hardship programs, which can all change the math.

Avalanche or snowball? The honest answer

Avalanche (highest rate first) always wins on paper — it's just arithmetic. But the research on real people is clear: finishing a whole account, even a small one, is what keeps them going. That's the snowball's superpower. Use the comparison table above to put a price on the difference for your debts. If snowball costs you $180 over three years and the early win keeps you from quitting in month four, it's the better plan. If the difference is thousands, let the math win.

The 0% promo card trap

A 0% intro APR feels like free money, and while it lasts, every strategy correctly ignores it. The trap is the expiration: the day the promo ends, that card often becomes your most expensive debt. This planner switches the rate on the date you enter and — if you're using avalanche — redirects your extra money at it automatically. If your promo is "deferred interest" rather than a true 0% APR, pay it off before the deadline no matter what any strategy says.