How to use the debt consolidation calculator
List each credit card or loan you want to combine with its balance, APR and the monthly payment you make now. Then enter the consolidation loan offer: its APR, term in months and origination fee. The calculator pays off every debt month by month as it stands, builds the new loan, and compares the two on monthly payment, time to debt-free, total interest and total cost.
The answer that matters most is the total you pay. A lower monthly payment can still cost more if it comes from a longer term. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Does debt consolidation save money? An example
Say you owe $6,000 on a card at 24.99%, $3,500 at 21.49% and $1,500 on a store card at 29.99%, paying $345 a month in total. That is $11,000 at an average APR of 24.56%. Kept as is, the last card is paid off in 58 months and you pay $7,105.12 in interest.
A 36-month loan at 12% APR with a 5% origination fee taken out of the proceeds means borrowing $11,578.95 to get $11,000 in hand. The payment is $384.59 a month, $39.59 more than now, but you are done 22 months sooner and pay $13,845.12 in total instead of $18,105.12: a saving of $4,259.99.
Stretch the same loan to 60 months and the payment falls to $257.57, $87.43 less than you pay now. You still save, but only $2,651.08, because interest runs two more years.
The origination fee changes the math
Many personal loans charge an origination fee, often taken out of the money you receive. On the example loan the 5% fee is $578.95, and because you must borrow extra to cover it, you also pay interest on the fee. With no fee, the same loan would save $4,952.25 instead of $4,259.99. If you pay the fee in cash rather than borrowing it, the saving is $4,402.25.
Lenders must disclose the APR, finance charge and amount financed before you sign under the Truth in Lending Act (CFPB: Regulation Z (Truth in Lending)). Compare offers by APR, which includes fees, not by the interest rate alone. The personal loan calculator shows the true APR of a loan with an origination fee.
How the calculator does the math
For each current debt, interest each month is the balance times APR ÷ 12, and your payment covers that interest first, then the balance, until it reaches zero. If a payment does not cover the monthly interest, the calculator tells you, because that debt would never be paid off. The new loan uses the standard fixed payment formula: payment = L × r ÷ [1 − (1 + r)−n], where L is the loan amount, r is APR ÷ 12 and n is the term in months. When the fee comes out of the proceeds, L is your total balance ÷ (1 − fee rate). Card issuers usually charge a daily rate, so your statements may differ slightly.
What rate do you need for consolidation to work?
The "loan saves money if APR is" line solves for the highest rate at which the new loan still costs less in total than your current plan. For the example, a 36-month loan with a 5% fee beats paying the cards as they are at any APR below 31.78%. That is higher than your average card rate because the loan also forces a faster payoff.
Term matters as much as rate. A 60-month loan at 20% APR would cut the payment to $306.77 but cost $301.16 more overall. For reference, the Federal Reserve's consumer credit survey (Federal Reserve G.19 Consumer Credit) put the average rate on credit card accounts paying interest at 22.36% and on 24-month personal loans at 11.90% at commercial banks in August 2026. Your offer depends on your credit.
Pay the same amount and finish faster
If the new payment is lower than what you pay now, the calculator also shows what happens if you keep paying your old total on the new loan. Paying $345 a month on the 60-month example loan clears it in 42 months for $14,177.74 in total. Check that your loan has no prepayment penalty before planning extra payments. The amortization calculator shows the month-by-month schedule.
Risks to weigh before you consolidate
The CFPB warns that some low consolidation rates are teaser rates that rise later, that a lower monthly payment may come from paying over a longer time, and that taking on new debt to pay off old debt rarely works unless spending also comes down (CFPB: What do I need to know about consolidating my credit card debt?). Balance transfer cards usually charge a transfer fee and the promotional rate ends, and a home equity loan puts your house at risk if you cannot pay.
Before you apply, the CFPB suggests asking your creditors directly for a lower rate or payment and talking to a nonprofit credit counselor. Once the cards are paid off, avoid running the balances back up, or you end up with the loan and the card debt.
To see how a single loan works on its own, try the loan calculator. To build savings so you need less credit next time, see the savings calculator.
Updated November 2, 2026 · Sources are linked in the text above · How we build and check our calculators