Compare snowball vs avalanche: $5,000 budget $250/mo (A 1000 @ 22% min $150, B 4000 @ 29.99% min $100)
Budget $250.00/mo • Total balance $5,000.00
Prefilled calculator
This embeds the multi-debt payoff tool with your scenario prefilled.
Snowball (smallest first)
Payoff order: Card A → Card B
Total interest: $2,048.02
Months: 29
Avalanche (highest APR first)
Payoff order: Card A → Card B
Total interest: $2,048.02
Months: 29
Explanation
This two-card scenario has $5,000.00 total balance with a $250.00/month payoff budget. Snowball and avalanche use the same budget — the only difference is which debt gets the extra payment.
Total interest comes out about the same for both strategies in this setup, so the payoff order and motivation factor can matter more than the math.
Time to payoff is essentially the same in months. Avalanche is still a strong default if your main goal is minimizing interest, while snowball can be easier to stick with.
Payoff order (snowball): Card A → Card B. Payoff order (avalanche): Card A → Card B.