Credit Card Payoff Calculator
The Credit Card Minimum Payment Trap
Paying only the card's minimum can stretch a payoff out for decades — this scenario shows the trap in real numbers.
Results
- Time to pay off (fixed payment)
- 3 years, 1 months
- Interest paid (fixed payment)
- $3,083
- Time to pay off (minimum payment only)
- 50+ years (payment barely covers interest)
- Interest paid (minimum payment only)
- $55,654
Frequently asked questions
Why does the minimum payment take so much longer?
Card issuers calculate the minimum as a small percentage of your current balance, so as the balance shrinks, the minimum payment shrinks too — interest can eat up most of it, stretching payoff out for decades on high-APR balances.
What's a realistic fixed payment to set?
Any amount meaningfully above the minimum speeds things up, but the biggest gains come from paying enough that a large share goes to principal rather than interest each month.