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Debt consolidation calculator

Your debts as they are against one new loan: payment, interest and time.

Reviewed by Victor Yuki Matusita on . First published .

Your numbers stay on your device
%
months

New monthly payment

$276.43/mo

One loan of $10,400, with the $400 fee, at 12.5% for 4 years costs $3,269 in interest and fees. Paid as they are, your debts cost $4,913 in interest.

  • New loan $10,400 · 78%
  • Interest $2,869 · 22%

Your debts

Debt 1
$
%
$
Debt 2
$
%
$
Debt 3
$
%
$
%

Added to the new loan here.

Your debts now
Monthly payment
$355
Interest and fees
$4,913
Total paid
$14,913
Debt-free in
3 years 9 months
Consolidation loan
Monthly payment
$276
Interest and fees
$3,269
Total paid
$13,269
Debt-free in
4 years

B costs $79 less a month and $1,645 less in all.

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Schedule of the consolidation loan

How to use the debt consolidation calculator

  1. Enter each debt with its balance, APR and the payment you make now. Add up to 10.
  2. Type the rate and term of the consolidation loan you were offered, and its fee.
  3. Compare the two sides: the monthly payment, the interest, the total and the months.
  4. Open the schedule of the new loan, or save it as a PDF or a CSV.

How the comparison is worked out

The formula

Your debts now: each one runs month by month, interest = balance × APR ÷ 12 rounded to the cent, until its payment clears it. The totals add every debt.

The new loan: amount = sum of the balances + fee; payment M = P × r × (1 + r)^n ÷ ((1 + r)^n − 1), with r the yearly rate divided by 12 and n the months.

Assumptions

  • Each current debt is paid with its own fixed monthly payment until it is gone; nothing new is charged on it.
  • The new loan pays off all the balances, plus the origination fee, which is added to it; it has a fixed rate and equal monthly payments.
  • Interest is the APR divided by 12, times the balance, rounded to the cent, on every debt and on the new loan.
  • No balance transfer fees, late fees or changes of rate are included.

Worked example

This is the example the calculator opens with, worked out by the same engine you use above.

You enter
New rate12.5%
New loan term48 months
Debt 1$5,200.00, 24.99%, $180.00
Debt 2$3,100.00, 19.99%, $110.00
Debt 3$1,700.00, 27.99%, $65.00
Origination fee4%
You get
New monthly payment$276.43
Monthly payments now$355.00
New loan, with the fee$10,400.00
Origination fee$400.00
Interest on the new loan$2,868.71
Interest on your debts now$4,913.24
Total cost saved$1,644.53

One loan of $10,400, with the $400 fee, at 12.5% for 4 years costs $3,269 in interest and fees. Paid as they are, your debts cost $4,913 in interest.

Sources

Educational tool

This calculator is an educational tool, not financial advice and not a loan offer. A lender decides whether to lend to you and at what rate and fee.

Questions about debt consolidation

Does a lower payment mean consolidation saves money?

Not on its own. A longer term can lower the payment while the total interest goes up. Compare the total paid on both sides, not only the monthly payment.

How is the origination fee counted?

Here it is added to the new loan, so you borrow enough to pay off every debt and the fee. Its cost shows in the interest and fees of the new loan.

What if I keep using the cards after consolidating?

Then new balances grow next to the loan. The calculator assumes nothing new is charged on the debts you pay off.

Why does it ask for the payment I make now?

The current side pays each debt with that payment until it is gone. A higher payment there shortens it and lowers its interest.

Privacy

Your numbers stay on your device. The calculator runs in your browser, so nothing you type is sent anywhere, and the link you copy keeps the numbers after the #, a part of the address your browser never sends.