Enter up to 3 debts and your monthly budget. See which payoff strategy saves more interest.
Avalanche vs snowball — which is better? Avalanche (highest APR first) always wins mathematically — it minimises total interest. Snowball (lowest balance first) wins psychologically — quick wins motivate continued payoff. This tool shows you the exact financial difference.
Methodology: Calculations use standard financial mathematics — Future Value of Annuity (FV = PMT × ((1+r)n − 1) / r), standard loan amortization for debt payoff, and the historical ~7% real S&P 500 return for opportunity-cost projections. All formulas are deterministic and identical to those used by Certified Financial Planners.
This calculator compares two debt payoff strategies side-by-side — the Avalanche (highest interest rate first) and the Snowball (lowest balance first) — showing total interest paid, number of months to debt freedom, and which debts get eliminated first under each approach. It's for anyone with multiple debts who wants a clear data-driven answer on which strategy to use.
Both strategies pay minimums on all debts simultaneously, then direct extra payments to a single target debt. In the Avalanche, the target is always the debt with the highest APR. In the Snowball, the target is the debt with the smallest balance. When a debt is paid off, its former minimum payment gets "rolled" into the extra payment amount for the next target — creating the compounding "snowball" or "avalanche" effect.
The Avalanche method always saves more money — typically hundreds to thousands of dollars in interest compared to the Snowball. However, research by Harvard Business School found that the Snowball method produces higher debt elimination rates in practice, because early wins (paying off small balances) increase motivation and follow-through. The best method is the one you'll actually stick to — this calculator helps you see what each choice costs.