Credit Card Repayment Calculator
Credit card debt is expensive to carry and slow to clear at minimum repayments. Enter your balance, rate, and what you can pay each month to see exactly how long it takes and what it costs you in interest.
How to use this calculator
Enter your current balance from your latest statement, the interest rate on your card, and the monthly repayment you plan to make. If your card has an annual fee, add that too – it gets factored into the total cost.
The result shows how long it takes to pay off the balance at that repayment amount, the total interest you’ll pay, and how much of what you repay actually goes toward the debt versus interest. The scenario table below it shows what happens if you increase your repayment by $50 or $100 a month – the interest saving is often more significant than people expect.
For balances over $5,000, the calculator also shows a personal loan comparison at 12% p.a. over three years. Credit cards typically charge between 18% and 22% p.a., so consolidating into a lower-rate personal loan can reduce the total interest cost and set a clear finish line for repayment.
If your monthly repayment is less than the interest accruing each month, the calculator will flag this – the balance will never reduce at that rate and the repayment needs to increase before any progress is possible.
Common Questions
Why does paying just the minimum take so long? Most credit card minimum repayments are set at around 2% of the outstanding balance. At a typical rate of 20% p.a., the majority of that minimum payment goes straight to interest rather than reducing what you owe. As the balance slowly falls, so does the minimum payment, which drags the process out even further. Even a modest fixed repayment above the minimum cuts years off the timeline.
Is it worth consolidating credit card debt into a personal loan? It depends on the rate you can access and your repayment discipline. Personal loans typically carry rates between 8% and 15% p.a. compared to 18-22% on most credit cards. Consolidating at a lower rate reduces the interest cost and replaces an open-ended balance with a fixed term, which forces a clear repayment schedule. The risk is using the card again after consolidating and ending up with both the loan and a new balance to manage.
Can I roll credit card debt into my home loan? In some cases, yes. If you have sufficient equity in your property, it’s possible to refinance and consolidate credit card debt into your mortgage. The interest rate is considerably lower, but the debt is now secured against your home and stretched over a much longer term – which means the total interest cost over the life of the loan can actually be higher despite the lower rate. It needs to be structured carefully to avoid that outcome.
Does closing a credit card improve my borrowing capacity? Yes. Lenders assess credit card limits as a liability regardless of whether there’s a balance on the card. A $20,000 limit is treated as a potential $20,000 debt in their serviceability calculation. Reducing or closing unused limits before applying for a home loan can meaningfully improve your assessed borrowing capacity.
If the interest cost is significant and you want to look at whether a personal loan or debt consolidation makes more sense for your situation, you can book a call using the button below.
