How Long to Pay Off a Credit Card? Balance x Payment Table

It depends on two numbers: your balance and your monthly payment. At 22.15%, the Fed’s average APR on card accounts that pay interest (Q2 2026), a $5,000 balance paid at $200 a month takes 2 years, 10 months. Paying $300 a month cuts it to 1 year, 9 months. The table covers balances from $1,000 to $100,000.

For your exact balance, APR and payment, run your numbers in the credit card payoff calculator.

Payoff time by balance and monthly payment

Every cell uses 22.15%, the Fed's average APR on card accounts that pay interest (Q2 2026). The sources page has the data and its date.

Time to pay off and total interest at 22.15% APR
Balance	$50/mo	$100/mo	$150/mo	$200/mo	$300/mo	$500/mo	$750/mo	$1,000/mo	$2,000/mo
$1,000	2y 2m$260	1y$116	8m$77	6m$59	4m$42	3m$29	2m$23	2m$19	n/a
$2,000	6y 2m$1,665	2y 2m$519	1y 4m$317	1y$232	8m$154	5m$98	3m$71	3m$57	2m$38
$3,000	never	3y 9m$1,412	2y 2m$779	1y 6m$545	1y$347	7m$210	5m$146	4m$116	2m$75
$5,000	never	11y 9m$9,012	4y 5m$2,834	2y 10m$1,768	1y 9m$1,031	1y$579	8m$386	6m$296	3m$171
$7,500	never	never	11y 9m$13,519	5y 5m$5,385	2y 10m$2,652	1y 6m$1,363	1y$868	9m$648	4m$345
$10,000	never	never	never	11y 9m$18,025	4y 5m$5,669	2y 2m$2,595	1y 4m$1,586	1y$1,158	6m$592
$15,000	never	never	never	never	11y 9m$27,037	3y 9m$7,058	2y 2m$3,893	1y 6m$2,726	9m$1,296
$20,000	never	never	never	never	never	6y 2m$16,652	3y 2m$7,791	2y 2m$5,191	1y$2,316
$30,000	never	never	never	never	never	never	6y 2m$24,977	3y 9m$14,117	1y 6m$5,452
$40,000	never	never	never	never	never	never	19y$130,723	6y 2m$33,303	2y 2m$10,381
$50,000	never	never	never	never	never	never	never	11y 9m$90,125	2y 10m$17,678
$100,000	never	never	never	never	never	never	never	never	11y 9m$180,249

How to read the table

Each row is a starting balance. Each column is a fixed monthly payment. Where they meet, the cell shows two things: how long payoff takes and the total interest you pay along the way. Every cell uses the same APR, the Fed’s quarterly average for accounts assessed interest, so the table changes each time this site moves to the Fed’s latest published rate.

Some cells say “never.” That means the payment doesn’t cover the monthly interest, so the balance never falls. On $10,000, for example, one month of interest at the average rate is $184.58, so a $100 payment loses ground every month.

The math behind each cell:

The monthly rate is the APR divided by 12.
Each month, interest is charged on the balance and rounded to the cent.
Your fixed payment comes out, and whatever exceeds the interest reduces the balance.
The last payment is whatever is left, including that month’s interest.

The table assumes no new purchases and no fees. Card issuers usually apply a daily rate to your average daily balance, so a real statement can differ from these figures by a few dollars. The methodology page covers the rules in full.

Why small payment changes matter

Your payment has two jobs. The first dollars cover that month’s interest. Only the rest reduces what you owe. So when a payment sits close to the monthly interest, a small increase can change the payoff time a lot.

Take $10,000 at 22.15%. A $250 payment takes 6 years, 2 months and costs $8,325.80 in interest. Raise it to $300 and payoff takes 4 years, 5 months, with $5,668.53 in interest. The extra $50 goes entirely to the balance, on top of the small slice of the $250 that was already reducing it.

Your APR shifts every cell too. The same $5,000 at $200 a month takes 2 years, 7 months at 15.99% and 3 years, 4 months at 29.99%.

Minimum payments take the longest

A minimum payment usually shrinks as your balance shrinks, so the payoff drags on. Under a rule of interest plus 1% of the balance with a $25 floor, $5,000 at the average APR takes 19 years and $8,020.47 in interest. The first minimum under that rule is $143.21. A flat $150 a month instead finishes in 4 years, 5 months, with $2,834.27 in interest.

Your statement already shows a version of this. Under Regulation Z, card statements must show how long paying only the minimum would take and the monthly payment that would clear the balance in 36 months. The minimum payment calculator runs the same comparison for any balance.

Payoff guides by balance

Each of these pages takes one balance and adds more detail: the payment for 6 months to 5 years at three APRs, the minimum-payment path, a balance transfer scenario and a three-card snowball vs avalanche example.

If you have more than one card, the debt payoff planner runs all of them together with a snowball or avalanche order.

FAQ

How long does it take to pay off $1,000 on a credit card?

At 22.15%, paying $50 a month clears $1,000 in 2 years, 2 months with $259.54 in interest. Paying $100 a month takes 1 year and $115.79 in interest. Doubling the payment more than halves the time, because more of each payment goes to the balance.

How long does it take to pay off a credit card with minimum payments?

Much longer than a fixed payment, because the minimum falls as the balance falls. Under an interest plus 1% rule with a $25 floor, $3,000 at 22.15% takes 14 years, 10 months. Your own statement shows your issuer’s estimate, since federal rules require that disclosure.

How long to pay off $3,000 at $100 a month?

At 22.15%, a $100 monthly payment clears $3,000 in 3 years, 9 months, with $1,411.65 in interest. The last payment is smaller than the rest: $11.65. Raising the payment to $150 cuts payoff to 2 years, 2 months and the interest to $778.61, with every extra dollar going straight to the balance.

Why does the table say “never” for some payments?

The payment in that cell doesn’t cover a month of interest. The balance then stays the same or grows, no matter how long you pay. On $20,000 at 22.15%, one month of interest is $369.17, so any payment at or below that never clears the balance.

How is credit card payoff time calculated?

Each month, interest equal to the APR divided by 12 is charged on the balance and rounded to the cent. Your payment covers that interest first and reduces the balance with the rest. The count stops when the balance reaches zero, and the final payment is whatever is left, including that month’s interest.

How Long Does It Take to Pay Off a Credit Card?