How long does paying only the minimum take?
Paying only the minimum on a $6,000 card at 24% takes 252 months, about 21 years, and costs $10,887 in interest. Keep paying the first $180 every month instead and it is gone in 56 months.
The worked example
One card with a $6,000 balance at 24% APR and nothing new charged to it. The minimum each month is that month’s interest plus 1% of the balance, never less than $25.
| You put in | |
|---|---|
| Balance | $6,000 |
| APR | 24% |
| Minimum payment rule | Interest + 1% of the balance, $25 floor |
| Paying only the minimum | |
| First month’s interest | $120 |
| Plus 1% of the balance | $60 |
| First minimum payment | $180 |
| Time to pay off on minimums | 252 months (about 21 years) |
| Interest on minimums | $10,887 |
| Total paid on minimums | $16,887 |
| Keeping $180 as a fixed payment | |
| Time to pay off at the fixed payment | 56 months (about 4.7 years) |
| Interest at the fixed payment | $3,987 |
| Total paid at the fixed payment | $9,987 |
| Interest saved by the fixed payment | $6,900 |
Every figure on this page is computed from these inputs by the same calculator the channel’s Shorts use.
Run your own numbers
The calculator starts at the worked example. Change any figure to see yours.
On minimums
252 months (about 21 years)
Interest on minimums
$10,887
First minimum
$180
Keep paying the first minimum ($180) every month instead: paid off in 56 months (about 4.7 years) with $3,987 in interest, $6,900 less.
Educational content, not financial advice.
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Your next moves
Find your card’s minimum formula
It is in your card agreement, and your statement estimates how long minimums would take.
Freeze the payment
Take this month’s minimum and keep paying that amount even as the required minimum drops.
How the math works
Many card issuers set the minimum with a recipe like this one: the month’s interest plus a small slice of the balance, here 1%, with a floor of $25. On $6,000 at 24%, the first month’s interest is $120 and the slice is $60, so the first minimum is $180.
The catch is that the minimum is worked out again every month from the new balance. As the balance falls, the minimum falls with it, so only about 1% of what you owe comes off each month. Shrinking that slowly is why the payoff runs to 252 months and the interest to $10,887, more than the $6,000 you started with.
What people get wrong
The minimum keeps the account in good standing; it is not a payoff plan. Paying it on time protects your record with the card, but a falling minimum is not a sign the debt is under control. Mostly it means each payment is getting smaller.
The other mistake is paying whatever the statement asks for each month. It feels like keeping up, and it is exactly what stretches the payoff out. Holding the payment at the first $180 instead clears the card in 56 months rather than 252 months.
It helps to know what the minimum is for. It is the smallest payment that keeps the account current this month, set by a formula that expects the balance to be carried for years. Paying more than the minimum is always allowed, and the card never charges for it.
How to read the result
Compare the two payoff times, not the two payments. The fixed $180 costs the same as the first minimum in month one; the difference is that it keeps costing that much while the minimum shrinks. Over the life of the card that saves $6,900 in interest.
Your card’s formula may use a different percentage or floor, and some add fees to the minimum. Your statement shows this month’s minimum, and US card statements also estimate how long paying only the minimum would take. Put your balance, APR and formula into the calculator above to see your own version.
Questions
How is a credit card minimum payment calculated?
A common formula, used here, is the month’s interest plus 1% of the balance, with a $25 floor. On $6,000 at 24% that is $120 of interest plus $60, a first minimum of $180. Your card agreement states your card’s own formula.
Why does paying only the minimum take so long?
Because the minimum shrinks as the balance shrinks, so only about 1% of the balance comes off each month. On this card that means 252 months of payments and $10,887 in interest.
What is the simplest way to pay it off faster?
Stop the payment from shrinking. Paying the first $180 every month clears this card in 56 months with $3,987 in interest, $6,900 less than paying only the minimum.
Does my statement show how long minimums take?
Yes. US card statements include a minimum payment warning: an estimate of how long paying only the minimum would take and what it would cost in total. It uses your card’s own formula, so it can differ from this example.
Interest compounds monthly at APR ÷ 12 and each payment lands at the end of the month, after that month’s interest. The minimum is that month’s interest plus 1% of the balance, never less than $25, and it shrinks as the balance shrinks. Disclaimer