Rajkumar Anguluri·Software Engineer · Founder, Artha Engine·Last reviewed 8 April 2026·Methodology
Independent decision-support tool. Artha Engine is not a financial services provider, does not sell loans or insurance, and has no commission relationships with banks or insurers.
Debt Payoff Planner
Which debt should you attack first, and how fast can you actually be debt-free? See the payoff order the avalanche method recommends, exactly how many months your extra payment saves, and what doubling it (or switching to snowball) does to the timeline.
Inputs
Start with two debts and an extra monthly payoff amount.
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Debt-free in
22 mo
Attack Credit card first
The debt-avalanche method routes every extra rupee at the most expensive balance first, minimising interest drag.
Keep minimum payments on every debt, then push every extra rupee at the first item in the payoff order.
Total balance
₹6.3L
Months to debt-free
22 mo
Baseline timeline
40 mo
If you make only the stated minimums.
Interest saved
₹1.2L
Pay first
Credit card
Breakdown
- 1. Credit card₹1.8L28.6%
- 2. Personal loan₹4.5L71.4%
Benchmarks
Double the extra payment
+37.5%You
₹22
Benchmark
₹16
How much faster you become debt-free by doubling the slider.
Minimums only (no extra)
-45.0%You
₹22
Benchmark
₹40
The baseline timeline without any acceleration.
Snowball (smallest first)
You
₹22
Benchmark
₹22
Behavioural wins vs. pure interest math.
What moves the result most
Holding everything else fixed, here is how the headline shifts when each input swings by a typical range.
You have at least one debt above 24% APR
These should be cleared before any new investing or housing decisions are made.
Your extra payment cuts the timeline meaningfully
The acceleration is worth more than the cash you redirect, because compounding interest works against you.
Months saved
18 mo
Next best actions
The result hints at what to look at next. Each link carries your current numbers so you never re-enter them.
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At a glance
- What it does
- Simulates the debt-avalanche (highest interest first) or debt-snowball (smallest balance first) payoff strategy across multiple loans.
- Avalanche vs snowball
- Avalanche saves the most interest mathematically; snowball delivers quicker emotional wins. For pure cost minimization, choose avalanche.
- Typical output
- ₹1.8L credit card (36%) + ₹4.5L personal loan (15%) with ₹12k extra/month becomes debt-free in ~35 months, saving ~₹65k in interest.
- Best used for
- Anyone juggling multiple high-interest debts. Clearing these is the highest-return decision in personal finance.
How It Works
This is the drill-down layer. The flagship flow leads with a recommendation, and this page lets you inspect the underlying model.
- The planner prioritises the highest-interest debt first in the core recommendation.
- Debt-free timeline depends on minimum payments plus extra monthly prepayment.
- Interest saved is estimated against a baseline of making only minimum payments.
Assumptions
The recommendation stays blunt, but the assumptions remain visible.
- Debt rates and minimum payments are assumed constant.
- The base plan uses the debt-avalanche method to minimise interest cost.
FAQ
The follow-up questions people usually ask after the main recommendation is already clear.
Should I use snowball or avalanche?
Avalanche is better financially because it cuts the most expensive debt first, though snowball can help with behaviour if motivation is the main problem.
Should I invest before paying high-interest debt?
Usually no, especially when the debt rate is meaningfully above the return you can confidently expect after tax.
Sources & references
Every formula and assumption above is grounded in these authoritative sources.
Related tools & decisions
Keep going from here — each link carries the same cluster context.
What to do next
Emergency Fund Calculator
Is your liquid cushion actually enough to survive a job loss? See the months you're covered, the shortfall, and what drives the target for your profile.
Prepay vs Invest Calculator
Should your next ₹1 lakh kill loan interest or grow in an index fund? See the net benefit over your loan's remaining life.
Comparison pages
No direct comparison yet.
Related guides
Long-form explainers that put the math behind this tool in context.
Calculations and decision frameworks, not personalised financial advice. The numbers on this page are based on the inputs you supplied and the regulatory rules in effect when this page was last reviewed. They are not a recommendation to buy, sell, hold, port, or surrender any specific financial product. Consult a SEBI-registered investment advisor, a qualified tax professional, or a licensed insurance broker before acting on a financial decision involving your money.
Artha Engine is an educational decision-support website. We do not offer loans, sell insurance, distribute mutual funds, provide regulated investment advice, collect loan applications, or receive commissions from banks, insurers, AMCs, brokers, or other financial providers. References to RBI, SEBI, IRDAI, Income Tax Department, or other authorities are source citations only. Artha Engine is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any government authority, regulator, bank, insurer, AMC, or broker. Artha Engine does not charge users fees for using calculators, comparison tools, articles, or financial health scoring. Mailing address: India.
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