Debt Snowball vs Avalanche Planner

The snowball method pays off the smallest balance first, then rolls that freed-up payment into the next smallest. The avalanche method targets the highest interest rate first. Both keep paying the minimum on every other debt.

The avalanche method almost always costs less interest because it clears your most expensive debt first. The snowball only matches it when your smallest balance also happens to carry the highest rate.

Motivation. Clearing an entire debt quickly is a satisfying win that frees up a payment and helps many people stay consistent. The best plan is the one you actually finish, so the small interest difference can be worth it.

Every month the planner spends a fixed budget equal to all your minimums plus the extra. When a debt is cleared, its minimum is no longer needed, so that money automatically rolls onto the next target debt, accelerating each payoff.

Then the balance grows instead of shrinking and the debt is never repaid. The planner detects this and flags it so you know you need a larger payment.

No. The whole simulation runs entirely in your browser. Your balances, rates and payments are never uploaded or stored.