Debt vs Saving: Which First?

How this tool works

Enter one representative debt (balance, rate, and minimum payment), an amount you could put toward that debt or invest each month, and an expected investment return and time horizon. The calculator runs two simple scenarios:

• Invest Extra – you pay only the minimum on the debt and invest the extra each month.
• Pay Debt First – you use the extra to pay down the debt faster; once it’s gone, you invest what you had been paying.

At the end of the horizon, we compare approximate net worth (investments minus any remaining debt) under each strategy to show which one wins on these assumptions.