Template · Budgeting
Debt payoff planner (avalanche and snowball)
Compare avalanche and snowball payoff for up to six debts, with a month-by-month schedule for each.
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XLSXCSVODSXMLNumbers| Debt payoff planner | |||||||||
| Example data — replace the blue input cells with your own. | |||||||||
| Enter up to six debts and leave unused rows empty. Balance, APR and minimum payment are the only inputs in the table. | |||||||||
| Plan settings | |||||||||
| Payoff method (type Avalanche or Snowball) | Avalanche | Avalanche pays the highest APR first, which usually costs the least interest. Snowball pays the smallest balance first. | |||||||
| Extra payment each month | $250.00 | Paid on top of all minimum payments. Minimums from debts already paid off roll into it. | |||||||
| First payment month | Nov 1, 2026 | ||||||||
| Total monthly amount for debts | $965.00 | Minimum payments plus the extra payment. This amount stays the same every month. | |||||||
| Debts (enter balance, APR and minimum payment) | |||||||||
| Debt | Balance | APR | Minimum payment | Avalanche key (APR) | Avalanche priority | Snowball key (balance) | Snowball priority | Selected priority | Months at minimum only (NPER) |
| Card A | $4,800.00 | 22.90% | $120.00 | 22.90% | 1 | $4,800.00 | 3 | 1 | 77 |
| Card B | $1,250.00 | 18.50% | $40.00 | 18.50% | 2 | $1,250.00 | 1 | 2 | 43 |
| Auto loan | $9,600.00 | 6.90% | $285.00 | 6.90% | 4 | $9,600.00 | 4 | 4 | 38 |
| Student loan | $14,200.00 | 4.50% | $160.00 | 4.50% | 5 | $14,200.00 | 5 | 5 | 109 |
| Personal loan | $3,400.00 | 18.50% | $110.00 | 18.50% | 3 | $3,400.00 | 2 | 3 | 43 |
Showing the first 16 of 21 rows and 10 of 10 columns. Cells with formulas show the formula on hover.
| Debt payoff summary | |||
| Compares the avalanche and snowball plans for the same debts and budget. The Selected column follows the method on the Debts tab. | |||
| Method and checks | |||
| Selected method | Avalanche | ||
| Check: payoff method | OK | ||
| Check: minimums cover monthly interest | OK | ||
| Measure | Avalanche | Snowball | Selected |
| Debt-free after (months) | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Debt-free date (last payment month) | Feb 2030 | Feb 2030 | Feb 2030 |
| Total interest paid | $4,459.11 | $4,654.01 | $4,459.11 |
| Total paid (principal and interest) | $37,709.11 | $37,904.01 | $37,709.11 |
| Paid-off status after 360 months | Paid off | Paid off | Paid off |
| Comparison |
Showing the first 16 of 29 rows and 9 of 9 columns. Cells with formulas show the formula on hover.
| Avalanche payoff schedule | |||||||||||
| Highest APR first. Each row is one month; the balance after the last payment is zero. | |||||||||||
| Each month: interest on the opening balance, then minimum payments. The extra payment goes to the debt with the lowest priority number that still has a balance. Freed-up minimums roll into it. | |||||||||||
| Opening balance | Interest | ||||||||||
| Month | Payment date | Budget for debts | Card A | Card B | Auto loan | Student loan | Personal loan | Debt 6 | Card A | Card B | Auto loan |
| Priority (1 = paid first) | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 106 | |||||
| 1 | Nov 1, 2026 | $965.00 | $4,800.00 | $1,250.00 | $9,600.00 | $14,200.00 | $3,400.00 | $0.00 | $91.60 | $19.27 | $55.20 |
| 2 | Dec 1, 2026 | $965.00 | $4,521.60 | $1,229.27 | $9,370.20 | $14,093.25 | $3,342.42 | $0.00 | $86.29 | $18.95 | $53.88 |
| 3 | Jan 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,237.89 | $1,208.22 | $9,139.08 | $13,986.10 | $3,283.95 | $0.00 | $80.87 | $18.63 | $52.55 |
| 4 | Feb 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $3,948.76 | $1,186.85 | $8,906.63 | $13,878.55 | $3,224.58 | $0.00 | $75.36 | $18.30 | $51.21 |
| 5 | Mar 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $3,654.12 | $1,165.15 | $8,672.84 | $13,770.59 | $3,164.29 | $0.00 | $69.73 | $17.96 | $49.87 |
| 6 | Apr 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $3,353.85 | $1,143.11 | $8,437.71 | $13,662.23 | $3,103.07 | $0.00 | $64.00 | $17.62 | $48.52 |
| 7 | May 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $3,047.85 | $1,120.73 | $8,201.23 | $13,553.46 | $3,040.91 | $0.00 | $58.16 | $17.28 | $47.16 |
| 8 | Jun 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $2,736.01 | $1,098.01 | $7,963.39 | $13,444.29 | $2,977.79 | $0.00 | $52.21 | $16.93 | $45.79 |
| 9 | Jul 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $2,418.22 | $1,074.94 | $7,724.18 | $13,334.71 | $2,913.70 | $0.00 | $46.15 | $16.57 | $44.41 |
| 10 | Aug 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $2,094.37 | $1,051.51 | $7,483.59 | $13,224.72 | $2,848.62 | $0.00 | $39.97 | $16.21 | $43.03 |
Showing the first 16 of 368 rows and 12 of 37 columns. Cells with formulas show the formula on hover.
| Snowball payoff schedule | |||||||||||
| Smallest balance first. Each row is one month; the balance after the last payment is zero. | |||||||||||
| Each month: interest on the opening balance, then minimum payments. The extra payment goes to the debt with the lowest priority number that still has a balance. Freed-up minimums roll into it. | |||||||||||
| Opening balance | Interest | ||||||||||
| Month | Payment date | Budget for debts | Card A | Card B | Auto loan | Student loan | Personal loan | Debt 6 | Card A | Card B | Auto loan |
| Priority (1 = paid first) | 3 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 106 | |||||
| 1 | Nov 1, 2026 | $965.00 | $4,800.00 | $1,250.00 | $9,600.00 | $14,200.00 | $3,400.00 | $0.00 | $91.60 | $19.27 | $55.20 |
| 2 | Dec 1, 2026 | $965.00 | $4,771.60 | $979.27 | $9,370.20 | $14,093.25 | $3,342.42 | $0.00 | $91.06 | $15.10 | $53.88 |
| 3 | Jan 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,742.66 | $704.37 | $9,139.08 | $13,986.10 | $3,283.95 | $0.00 | $90.51 | $10.86 | $52.55 |
| 4 | Feb 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,713.17 | $425.23 | $8,906.63 | $13,878.55 | $3,224.58 | $0.00 | $89.94 | $6.56 | $51.21 |
| 5 | Mar 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,683.11 | $141.79 | $8,672.84 | $13,770.59 | $3,164.29 | $0.00 | $89.37 | $2.19 | $49.87 |
| 6 | Apr 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,652.48 | $0.00 | $8,437.71 | $13,662.23 | $2,957.05 | $0.00 | $88.78 | $0.00 | $48.52 |
| 7 | May 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,621.26 | $0.00 | $8,201.23 | $13,553.46 | $2,602.64 | $0.00 | $88.19 | $0.00 | $47.16 |
| 8 | Jun 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,589.45 | $0.00 | $7,963.39 | $13,444.29 | $2,242.76 | $0.00 | $87.58 | $0.00 | $45.79 |
| 9 | Jul 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,557.03 | $0.00 | $7,724.18 | $13,334.71 | $1,877.34 | $0.00 | $86.96 | $0.00 | $44.41 |
| 10 | Aug 1, 2027 | $965.00 | $4,523.99 | $0.00 | $7,483.59 | $13,224.72 | $1,506.28 | $0.00 | $86.33 | $0.00 | $43.03 |
Showing the first 16 of 368 rows and 12 of 37 columns. Cells with formulas show the formula on hover.
| Debt payoff planner (avalanche and snowball) |
| Notes: what this workbook does, how to use it and the method behind it. |
| What it does |
| Plans the payoff of up to six debts, such as credit cards, car loans and student loans. It runs the avalanche method (highest APR first) and the snowball method (smallest balance first) side by side, and shows the month-by-month schedule f… |
| How to use it |
| 1. On the Debts tab, enter each debt's name, balance, APR and minimum monthly payment. Leave unused rows empty. |
| 2. Enter the extra monthly payment and the first payment month. |
| 3. Type Avalanche or Snowball in the method cell. The Selected priority column and the Selected column on the Summary tab follow that choice. |
| 4. Read the debt-free month, total interest and interest per debt on the Summary tab. Open the Avalanche and Snowball tabs to see each month. |
| Formulas and method |
| Monthly interest = opening balance × APR ÷ 12, rounded to the cent. |
| Each month, every open debt is charged interest and receives its minimum payment (capped at the balance plus interest). The total for debts stays the same each month, so the minimums of debts already paid off roll into the extra payment. |
| Priority: Avalanche rank = RANK of APR, highest first. Snowball rank = RANK of balance, lowest first. COUNTIF adds a row-order tie-break so every debt gets a unique priority. |
Showing the first 16 of 31 rows and 1 of 1 columns. Cells with formulas show the formula on hover.
About this template
A planner for paying off up to six debts with a fixed monthly amount. Enter each debt's balance, APR and minimum payment, add an extra monthly payment and choose a method. Avalanche pays the highest APR first, which usually costs the least interest. Snowball pays the smallest balance first, which closes accounts sooner.
The Avalanche and Snowball tabs run both plans month by month. Each month, interest is charged on the opening balance, every open debt receives its minimum, and the extra amount goes to the debt that ranks first among those still open. Minimums from debts already paid off roll into the extra amount. Priorities use RANK with a COUNTIF tie-break, and NPER shows how long each debt takes at its minimum alone.
The Summary tab compares the two methods on payoff month, total interest and total paid, and shows the selected method beside them. The example debts are fictional.
What’s inside
- Avalanche and snowball priorities from RANK, with COUNTIF tie-breaks
- Month-by-month schedule for up to six debts, for both methods
- Freed-up minimum payments roll into the extra payment each month
- NPER gives the months to payoff at the minimum payment alone
- Summary compares payoff month and total interest for both methods
Tabs
| Tab | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Debts | Debt inputs, method and extra payment, priorities for both methods and NPER at the minimum. |
| Summary | Both methods side by side: debt-free month, total interest and total paid, with per-debt results. |
| Avalanche | Monthly schedule with the avalanche priority: opening balance, interest, payments and closing balance. |
| Snowball | Monthly schedule with the snowball priority, laid out the same way as the Avalanche tab. |
| Notes | Purpose, steps, formulas used, assumptions and limits. |
How to use it
- On the Debts tab, enter each debt's name, balance, APR and minimum monthly payment.
- Enter the extra monthly payment and the first payment month.
- Type Avalanche or Snowball in the method cell to choose the plan shown as Selected.
- Read the debt-free month and total interest on the Summary tab.
- Open the Avalanche or Snowball tab to see each month's payments and balances.
Good for
- Choosing between avalanche and snowball for credit cards and loans
- Finding the payoff date for a fixed monthly total
- Seeing how much more interest snowball costs than avalanche
- Estimating how long minimum payments alone would take
Questions about this sheet
Which method saves more interest?
Avalanche usually saves more interest because it pays the highest rate first. Snowball clears small balances sooner, which some people find more motivating. The Summary tab shows the difference for your figures.
How are ties in APR or balance handled?
A COUNTIF tie-break ranks equal values in the order the debts are listed, so each debt has one priority.
What does the NPER column show?
The number of months each debt would take to pay off at its minimum payment alone, with no extra payments and no change in rate.
What if a minimum payment does not cover the interest?
That balance will not fall at the minimum. The check on the Debts tab counts those debts, so you can raise the payment.