How long does it take to pay off a credit card?

Card issuers set the minimum payment as your monthly interest plus 1% of the balance, with a floor around $25. That structure is designed to keep the balance alive: as you pay it down, the required payment shrinks with it, so the debt fades out over decades rather than getting killed. The Credit Card Interest Calculator puts your own payment next to that minimum-payment track so you can see both endings.

How it works

1. Card balance and APR come straight from your statement.
2. Your monthly payment is whatever you can commit to, held constant.
3. The two panels simulate every month until the balance hits zero: payoff time, total interest, and total paid for your plan and for minimums only.

Why the minimum takes decades

At 24% APR, a $5,000 balance accrues about $100 of interest in month one. The minimum payment that month is roughly $150, so only $50 touches the principal. Next month the balance is barely lower, the interest nearly identical. Repeat for 234 months. A fixed payment breaks the pattern because it doesn't shrink as the balance falls; every month a larger share of the same dollars goes to principal.

If the numbers say "never"

Enter a payment below the monthly interest and the calculator tells you so instead of pretending. The escape routes are the usual ones: pay more than the interest, move the balance to a 0% intro card, or consolidate at a lower rate. For several cards at once, the Debt Payoff Calculator compares snowball and avalanche orders.

The Credit Card Interest Calculator is free, runs locally, and never sends your data to a server. More finance calculators at maratool.com.