Debt Consolidation Calculator

You've got a couple of cards in the mid-20s% and a personal loan, and a lender offers to roll them all into one new loan at a single, lower rate. One payment instead of three, and the rate is better than any of your cards — what's not to like? The catch is the same one that trips people up on mortgage refinances: the new loan usually runs LONGER than it would have taken to pay the debts off separately, and stretching the balance over more months can add up to more total interest even at a lower rate. There's a second, quieter cost too — folding several balances into one erases the finish line on whichever debt was closest to gone, so the relief of almost being done with your worst card resets to zero. This lesson races 'keep them separate' against 'consolidate' on the same chart, so you can see exactly when the lower rate is a real win and when it's a longer, costlier version of the same debt.

Free and interactive — no sign-up, nothing to install. Read the full lesson for the plain-language explanation.