Work out how long a debt takes to clear from the balance, APR and monthly payment, and how much sooner a little extra each month would finish it.
Balances, interest rates and monthly payments interact in a way that is hard to hold in your head: a small increase in the monthly payment shortens the term far more than it looks, and a payment below the monthly interest never clears the debt at all.
Enter what you owe, the rate and what you pay each month. Nothing is stored or sent anywhere.
Paying £25 more a month clears it 11 months sooner and saves £329 in interest. Interest is charged on what is left, so every extra pound also shrinks next month's interest.
This is arithmetic on the figures you enter, not debt advice. It assumes the rate and the payment both stay the same and that nothing further is borrowed, which is rarely how a real balance behaves. For free, regulated help, talk to MoneyHelper or StepChange.
| Tax/source year | 2026/27 |
|---|---|
| Region | England/Wales/Northern Ireland |
| Tax code basis | 1257L where the page uses PAYE defaults |
| Pension basis | No pension deduction unless this example says otherwise |
| Student loan basis | No student loan unless selected in this example |
| Deposit and debts | Deposit size, existing credit commitments, childcare and other bills can matter as much as gross income. |
|---|---|
| Rate and term | Interest rate, term, fees and lender policy can change the repayment pressure. |
| Can I compare this with take-home pay? | take-home comparison |
|---|---|
| How would bills affect affordability pressure? | budget pressure |
| What is not decided here | PayBreakdown does not decide payroll correctness, lender approval, benefit entitlement or employer compliance, and does not give regulated financial, mortgage, debt, tax, payroll or legal advice. |
|---|
The figures on this page are worked from debt payoff, using the values below. Open the calculator if your example salary differs.
This estimate is worked out on £35,000 annual gross. Interest rate, term, fees, deposit and the credit commitments you already have all move the result, and a lender applies its own affordability policy and credit checks on top. Treat the number as a way to see whether a repayment looks comfortable or stretched, not as an offer — and read it against your real bills, savings and any income change you expect. See how each deduction is worked out.
No. It reports what the arithmetic gives for the figures you enter, and nothing is stored or sent anywhere. Which debt to clear first, and whether repayment is the right step at all, is advice — get it free from MoneyHelper or StepChange.
APR changes, fees, promotional rates, missed payments, and changing monthly payments can all alter the real interest paid.
Last updated 2026-08-27. Checked by Sean Elsmore. Rates last checked against GOV.UK on 2026-08-07. Estimates are for planning and should be checked against official records where the decision matters.