Debt Friction Drag· part of your Margin Score

Pay off debt: avalanche vs snowball

Two methods. Avalanche: pay highest interest first. Snowball: pay smallest balance first. Both work. Avalanche usually saves more interest. Compare both below with your numbers—see total interest and time to debt-free.

"You must gain control over your money or the lack of it will forever control you."
— Dave Ramsey

Your debts

Up to 3 debts: balance, APR, minimum payment. Add your extra monthly payment. See payoff time and interest.

Debt 1 balance

APR (%)

Min. payment/mo

Debt 2 balance

APR (%)

Min. payment/mo

Debt 3 balance

APR (%)

Min. payment/mo

Extra payment per month (beyond minimums)

Avalanche (highest APR first)

$2,212 interest

18 months to debt-free

Snowball (smallest balance first)

$3,175 interest

18 months to debt-free

Month-by-month: what happens in each month

Each row is one month. Columns show remaining balance, payment allocated, and interest for each debt that month.

Month	Avalanche (highest APR first)	Snowball (smallest balance first)
1	Debt 1 balance $4,971 · payment $50 · interest $21 Debt 2 balance $9,983 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3(extra) balance $13,238 · payment $1,950 · interest $187	Debt 1(extra) balance $3,171 · payment $1,850 · interest $21 Debt 2 balance $9,983 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3 balance $15,038 · payment $150 · interest $187
2	Debt 1 balance $4,942 · payment $50 · interest $21 Debt 2 balance $9,967 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3(extra) balance $11,453 · payment $1,950 · interest $165	Debt 1(extra) balance $1,334 · payment $1,850 · interest $13 Debt 2 balance $9,967 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3 balance $15,075 · payment $150 · interest $188
3	Debt 1 balance $4,912 · payment $50 · interest $21 Debt 2 balance $9,950 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3(extra) balance $9,646 · payment $1,950 · interest $143	Debt 1(extra) balance $0 · payment $1,850 · interest $6 Debt 2 balance $9,950 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3 balance $15,114 · payment $150 · interest $188
4	Debt 1 balance $4,883 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2 balance $9,932 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3(extra) balance $7,817 · payment $1,950 · interest $121	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2(extra) balance $8,132 · payment $1,900 · interest $83 Debt 3 balance $15,153 · payment $150 · interest $189
5	Debt 1 balance $4,853 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2 balance $9,915 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3(extra) balance $5,964 · payment $1,950 · interest $98	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2(extra) balance $6,300 · payment $1,900 · interest $68 Debt 3 balance $15,192 · payment $150 · interest $189
6	Debt 1 balance $4,823 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2 balance $9,898 · payment $100 · interest $83 Debt 3(extra) balance $4,089 · payment $1,950 · interest $75	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2(extra) balance $4,453 · payment $1,900 · interest $53 Debt 3 balance $15,232 · payment $150 · interest $190
7	Debt 1 balance $4,793 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2 balance $9,880 · payment $100 · interest $82 Debt 3(extra) balance $2,190 · payment $1,950 · interest $51	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2(extra) balance $2,590 · payment $1,900 · interest $37 Debt 3 balance $15,273 · payment $150 · interest $190
8	Debt 1 balance $4,763 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2 balance $9,863 · payment $100 · interest $82 Debt 3(extra) balance $267 · payment $1,950 · interest $27	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2(extra) balance $711 · payment $1,900 · interest $22 Debt 3 balance $15,313 · payment $150 · interest $191
9	Debt 1 balance $4,733 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2 balance $9,845 · payment $100 · interest $82 Debt 3(extra) balance $0 · payment $1,950 · interest $3	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2(extra) balance $0 · payment $1,900 · interest $6 Debt 3 balance $15,355 · payment $150 · interest $191
10	Debt 1 balance $4,703 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2(extra) balance $8,027 · payment $1,900 · interest $82 Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $13,597 · payment $1,950 · interest $192
11	Debt 1 balance $4,672 · payment $50 · interest $20 Debt 2(extra) balance $6,194 · payment $1,900 · interest $67 Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $11,817 · payment $1,950 · interest $170
12	Debt 1 balance $4,642 · payment $50 · interest $19 Debt 2(extra) balance $4,345 · payment $1,900 · interest $52 Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $10,014 · payment $1,950 · interest $148
13	Debt 1 balance $4,611 · payment $50 · interest $19 Debt 2(extra) balance $2,482 · payment $1,900 · interest $36 Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $8,190 · payment $1,950 · interest $125
14	Debt 1 balance $4,580 · payment $50 · interest $19 Debt 2(extra) balance $602 · payment $1,900 · interest $21 Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $6,342 · payment $1,950 · interest $102
15	Debt 1 balance $4,550 · payment $50 · interest $19 Debt 2(extra) balance $0 · payment $1,900 · interest $5 Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $4,471 · payment $1,950 · interest $79
16	Debt 1(extra) balance $2,718 · payment $1,850 · interest $19 Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $2,577 · payment $1,950 · interest $56
17	Debt 1(extra) balance $880 · payment $1,850 · interest $11 Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $659 · payment $1,950 · interest $32
18	Debt 1(extra) balance $0 · payment $1,850 · interest $4 Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3 — paid off	Debt 1 — paid off Debt 2 — paid off Debt 3(extra) balance $0 · payment $1,950 · interest $8

Avalanche total interest: $2,212 over 18 months. Snowball: $3,175 over 18 months.

Reducing debt improves your Margin Score (Debt Friction Drag). Once you’re debt-free, redirect that payment to your emergency fund and investments.

Which method?

Avalanche minimizes total interest. Snowball wins on motivation—you knock out small balances first. If the interest difference is small, pick the one you’ll stick with. The best plan is the one you follow.

For consumer debt (credit card, personal loan, auto, student), house affordability, and car choices, see our consumer debt, house affordability, and car decisions guides. All calculators are on the Calculators page.

Related research

The ideas in this guide are backed by academic and policy research. We organize fundamental studies by Margin Score pillar on our Research page.

View research for this pillar →

Key studies: Small Victories: Creating Intrinsic Motivation in Savings and Debt Reduction; Quantifying the pecuniary costs of debt account aversion and the debt snowball.