Minimum payments only
This is the box the law makes your issuer print on every statement, worked out for your balances.
Would a balance transfer help?
Which card clears when
Paying the minimum on everything and putting the rest on the highest rate first.
| Card | Balance | Rate | Interest paid | Cleared after |
|---|
A credit card has no term. That is what makes it different from every other debt: the balance only goes down as fast as you decide to push it down, and the minimum payment is designed to keep you there.
This calculator shows three numbers side by side: what happens if you only ever pay the minimum, what it takes to clear the card in three years, and what your own payment does.
How the minimum payment is set
There is no single rule, but the shape is standard. The CFPB's 2025 report on the credit card market describes issuers charging “the highest of a few options, such as a numerical floor, or a percentage of the cycle-ending balance plus interest and fees”. In practice most large issuers use 1% of the balance plus that month's interest and fees, with a floor between $15 and $50, most often $40. Both are editable above, so you can match your own card agreement.
The effect is that the minimum falls as the balance falls, which is why minimum-only payoff takes so long. Around 15% of general-purpose cardholders pay only the minimum.
The warning box on your statement
Since the CARD Act, every statement must carry a box showing how long the balance would take at minimum payments, what that would cost, and the payment that would clear it in 36 months, along with the saving. That is the rule in Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026.7(b)(12), and the box above is the same calculation done on your numbers.
How the interest is charged
Card interest is usually worked out daily. The APR is divided into a daily rate and applied to the average daily balance, so interest builds every day rather than once a month. If you pay the statement balance in full, the grace period means new purchases are not charged interest at all. That grace period does not apply to cash advances, which start charging from day one, usually at a higher rate.
Our model charges interest monthly on the balance, which lands within a dollar or two of a daily calculation on ordinary balances. It assumes no new spending, the same assumption the statement box uses.
Where extra payments go
If your card has several rates on it (purchases, a promotional balance, a cash advance), anything you pay above the minimum must be applied to the highest-rate balance first. That is federal law, 12 CFR 1026.53. The one exception is the last two billing cycles of a deferred-interest promotion, when the extra goes to that balance instead.
Balance transfers
A 0% offer works when the fee is smaller than the interest you would otherwise pay, and when you clear the balance before the promotion ends. The average transfer fee among the biggest issuers was 4.3% in the second half of 2024, so moving $8,000 costs about $344 up front.
Watch the difference between two offers that sound alike. With a 0% APR offer, interest starts only on what is left when the promotion ends. With deferred interest (“no interest if paid in full within 12 months”), leaving anything unpaid triggers interest charged retroactively from the start. The CFPB's example is a balance where $100 left unpaid turned into $165 owed.
Avalanche or snowball
With more than one card, paying the highest rate first is always cheaper. Paying the smallest balance first clears accounts sooner and, on the evidence, helps some people finish. The tool prices both, so the choice is informed rather than guessed at.
Quick answers
How long will it take to pay off my credit card?
At the minimum payment, usually many years: the minimum falls as the balance falls. Enter your balance and rate above to see both the minimum-only time and the time at a payment you choose.
How is a credit card minimum payment calculated?
Most issuers charge the greater of a dollar floor (often $40) or about 1% of the balance plus that month's interest and fees.
Does paying more than the minimum help?
A great deal. Every dollar above the minimum comes off the balance, and it must be applied to your highest-rate balance first under federal rules.
Is a balance transfer worth it?
It is when the transfer fee, typically around 4.3%, is less than the interest you would otherwise pay, and you can clear the balance before the 0% period ends.
Should I pay off the highest rate or the smallest balance first?
Highest rate first always costs less. Smallest balance first clears accounts sooner and can help you keep going. The calculator shows the price difference for your cards.
Sources
- CFPB, Consumer Credit Card Market Report (2025), on minimum payment formulas and balance transfer fees
- 12 CFR § 1026.7(b)(12), the minimum payment warning on statements
- 12 CFR § 1026.53, how payments above the minimum must be allocated
- CFPB, how card interest is calculated
- CFPB, deferred interest compared with 0% APR
- Federal Reserve G.19, average credit card rates (Q2 2026)