Debt Consolidation Calculator
Use the debt consolidation calculator to determine your new monthly payments and how long it will take you to become debt-free if you consolidate your debts. The tool's high functionality ensures broad applicability; for example, you can use the debt consolidation loan calculator to support decision-making when it comes to consolidation of credit card debt or you can use it to study any other consolidation loan.
An in-depth comparison with the dynamic chart and tables of payment schedules provide a comprehensive platform for analysis. Read further to learn what debt consolidation loan definition is, how debt consolidation works, and how to consolidate credit card debt.
If you are dealing with multiple debts and are looking for ways to eliminate your debt quicker or reduce the interest charges, you may find our debt snowball calculator or refinance break-even calculator practical for debt management purposes.
What is debt consolidation? - how to consolidate debt?
Debt consolidation refers to the procedure of rolling multiple debts into a larger, single-payment loan. In other words, we may phrase the debt consolidation definition as a replacement of several small debts, such as personal loans and credit card debt, by one all-embracing consolidation loan.
It can be especially beneficial when you would like to reorganize multiple bills with different high-interest rates, payments, and due dates. Therefore, in general, when turning to a debt consolidation loan, you should aim to get the most out of the below benefits:
- Simplifying the repayment structure;
- Lowering interest charges;
- Reducing the monthly payment; and
- Shortening the payoff period.
With our debt consolidation loan calculator, you can compare your current debt with the given consolidation loan across all of the above contexts. Read further, and we'll show you how to consolidate your debt with the help of the present tool.
Is debt consolidation a good idea?
Not sure whether debt consolidation is a good idea? Read the below points that summarize the main benefits of a consolidation loan. This should help you discover if it's worth doing in your case:
- If you have multiple credit cards with double-digit interest rates, you have a reasonable chance of finding a consolidation personal loan at a lower rate and save a hefty amount of money in interest and fees.
- If you have various loans with very distinct repayment structures, debt consolidation would simplify your finances by combining multiple debts into one monthly payment with a fixed rate.
- If you consolidate your debt for paying off multiple revolving credit card balances, you have a chance to lower your credit utilization rate and improve your credit score by extension.
How to use the debt consolidation loan calculator?
To find out how does debt consolidation work in your case, check the following instruction and use the debt consolidation calculator:
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Number of debts: For the first step, you need to set the number of debts you have. Note that the maximum number of debts is six, and you must have at least two debts to apply the debt consolidation calculator.
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Type of payments: You need to choose the required way to make the monthly payments:
- All minimum: if there is a required monthly minimum, you can increase your payments for each of your debts at any time. Credit card debts or personal loans usually operate with such a payment type.
- All fixed: when monthly payments are set, you cannot change the monthly amounts of any of your debts.
- Varied: choose this option if you would like to set the payment type individually at each of your debts.
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Debt specifications: Set the debt balances with their related interest rates and monthly payment amounts. If you choose a varied type of payment, you need to set this parameter as well.
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Debt consolidation loan: Specify the parameters of the debt consolidation loan:
- Amount to be consolidated: the consolidation loan amount might be the same as your total debt, but it can differ.
- Interest rate: It is the annual nominal interest rate.
- First due date: The first deadline until you need to pay the first installment.
- Loan term: The lifetime of the loan.
- Prepaid fee: You can set here any finance charges that are necessary to pay before originating the loan. You may include here the closing cost of any of your existing debts (if any).
- Loaned fee: Include here any fee or charges that you need to pay back with the consolidation loan. Note that your principal balance increases by this amount, which means that interest is charged on this fee.
- Borrowing details
This section shows you the necessary comparisons between the current debt and the specified consolidating loan. The most instrumental index for comparison from the perspective of cost of borrowing is the APR (Annual Percentage Rate), which shows you if it's cheaper or more expensive to take the consolidation loan.
- Summary
Below is the summary section, where you can learn the most relevant features of your current debt and the consolidation loan:
- Balance: The principal balance to be repaid.
- APR: we show you the actual Annual Percentage Rate for both cases, which is the most compact way to compare debts from the borrowing cost perspective.
- Monthly payment: you can see the precise allocation of payment for each of your debt in the payment schedule table.
- Payoff term: you can learn the remaining time in both scenarios.
- Total payable and Total interest.
- Balances
In the dynamic chart, you can follow the balances of both the current debt and the consolidation loan.
- Payment schedules
Finally, you can check the table of payment schedules for each of your debts and the consolidation loan.
Disclaimer
You should consider the debt consolidation calculator as a model for financial approximation. All payment figures, balances, and interest figures are estimates based on the data you provided in the specifications that are, despite our best effort, not exhaustive.
For this reason, we created the calculator for instructional purposes only. Yet, if you experience a relevant drawback or encounter any inaccuracy, we are always pleased to receive useful feedback and advice.
Total debts | Consolidation loan | |
Balance ($) | 17,700 | 17,700 |
APR | 5.407%* | 7.2% |
Monthly payment ($) | 320 | 268.87 |
Payoff term | 5 years and 4 months (64 months) | 7 years (84 months) |
Total payable ($) | 20,403.61 | 22,585.44 |
Total interest ($) | 2,703.61 | 4,885.44 |