Two ways to order the same debts
When you have several debts and some money beyond the minimums, the question is where the extra goes. Both methods pay every minimum first. The avalanche sends the extra to the debt with the highest interest rate. The snowball sends it to the smallest balance. When a debt is paid off, its minimum rolls into the extra, because the total monthly budget stays the same.
The example
Three debts: a card ($6,000 at 22.15%, $150 minimum), a personal loan ($2,000 at 11.86%, $90) and a car loan ($9,000 at 7.14%, $180), with $700 a month in total. The rates are Federal Reserve G.19 averages. Avalanche clears everything in 28 months with about $2,294 of interest. Snowball also takes 28 months, with about $2,482. So avalanche saves about $188.
What snowball offers instead
Snowball wins the first payoff. It clears the personal loan in month 6; avalanche's first payoff (the card) comes in month 17. That's 11 months sooner. Some people find an early win keeps them going, and a plan someone sticks with does better than one they abandon. The math favors the highest rate first; the rest is a personal call.
When the difference is big or small
The gap between methods depends on how different the rates are and how the balances line up. If the smallest balance also has the highest rate, both methods pick the same order. A bigger budget shortens everything and usually narrows the dollar gap; at $900 a month, both finish in 21 months and avalanche saves about $145.
How the simulation works
Each month: add interest to each balance (APR ÷ 12), pay each minimum (or the rest of a smaller balance), then put what's left on the target debt, moving to the next target if one is paid off. Ties keep your input order. The car loan is treated like a revolving balance for simplicity; a real installment loan has a fixed schedule, which would change the numbers slightly.
Your debts
Add up to 10 debts with your own balances, rates and minimums. If the budget doesn't cover the minimums, the page tells you. Minimums here are illustrative; your statements have the real ones.
Sources
Last reviewed: Sep 28, 2026