HELOC Payoff Calculator
Bank calculators amortize one fixed payment. A HELOC has a draw period and a repayment period, often at different rates — and it lives alongside your other debts. Model both phases and compare payoff strategies side by side. Free, no signup required.
How Each of the 9 Strategies Works
Minimum Payments
How it works: Pay only the minimum on every debt, with no extra applied anywhere. This is the baseline the other eight strategies are measured against — the comparison table shows how much time and interest each one saves versus this path.
Best for: Understanding your starting point. Almost any structured strategy beats it once you can pay anything beyond the minimums.
Avalanche (Highest Rate)
How it works: All extra payment goes to the debt with the highest interest rate. This mathematically minimizes total interest paid.
Best for: Saving the most money overall. This is the mathematically optimal strategy.
Snowball
How it works: All extra payment goes to the debt with the smallest balance. Once paid off, its minimum payment plus the extra rolls into the next smallest debt.
Best for: People who need quick psychological wins to stay motivated.
Variable Snowball
How it works: Similar to snowball, but re-evaluates which debt has the lowest balance every month.
Best for: Situations where balances fluctuate or you want a more adaptive approach.
Highest Balance
How it works: All extra payment targets the debt with the largest remaining balance each month.
Best for: People who want to eliminate their largest obligation quickly.
Highest Payment
How it works: All extra payment targets the debt with the highest minimum monthly payment. Paying this off first frees up the most cash flow.
Best for: People who want to reduce required monthly obligations quickly.
Cash Flow Index
How it works: Targets the debt with the lowest balance-to-payment ratio. A lower ratio means your extra dollar has the biggest relative impact.
Best for: Efficiently freeing up cash flow with maximum leverage.
Net Present Value
How it works: Uses Net Present Value analysis to determine where an extra dollar saves the most interest, considering both rate and remaining term.
Best for: Sophisticated analysis with a mix of short-term high-rate and long-term low-rate debts.
Max Interest Savings
How it works: Considers both interest rate AND how long the debt will accumulate interest. Targets the debt that will generate the most future interest over its remaining life, accounting for the fact that longer-term debts at moderate rates can cost more than short-term debts at high rates.
Best for: Portfolios with a mix of debt terms — reveals which debt truly costs the most over its full remaining life.
Deep dives: 9 payoff strategies compared · the cashflow index method explained
How a HELOC Actually Pays Off
A home equity line of credit runs in two phases. During the draw period — commonly 5–10 years — you can borrow against the line, and most lenders require only interest payments on what you’ve drawn. When the draw period ends, the line converts to the repayment period: no more borrowing, and your payment is re-amortized so principal plus interest retires the balance over the remaining term, often at a different rate than the draw phase.
That two-phase structure is why a standard amortization calculator gives misleading answers for a HELOC. A fixed-payment calculator assumes one rate and one payment from day one. In reality, interest-only draw payments keep the balance flat (or growing, if you’re still drawing), and the payment jump at conversion surprises many borrowers. This calculator models both phases explicitly: enter your draw rate, how much you’re still drawing each month, the draw period remaining, and the repayment rate and term — it walks the balance month by month through the transition.
The second thing bank calculators miss: your HELOC doesn’t exist in isolation. If you also carry a credit card, a car loan, or a mortgage, the order you attack them changes the total interest you pay. During the draw phase a HELOC only pays interest, so payoff strategies sequence around it — and once repayment begins, where it falls in the order depends on the strategy you pick. Add your other debts below and the comparison table shows all nine strategies against your actual numbers.
Every figure on this page is computed live from what you enter — nothing is estimated from averages. The calculator shows the math for your numbers; it doesn’t tell you what to do with it.
HELOC Payoff Questions
Why do bank HELOC calculators give different numbers?
Most bank calculators amortize a single fixed payment at a single rate. A HELOC’s interest-only draw phase and separately-amortized repayment phase break that assumption, so a fixed-payment calculator either overstates your early principal progress or misses the payment jump at conversion. This calculator models the two phases separately, which is why its timeline can differ from a bank’s single-phase estimate.
What happens when my draw period ends?
Borrowing stops and the outstanding balance re-amortizes over the repayment term at the repayment rate. Because draw-phase payments are often interest-only, the required payment usually rises at conversion — sometimes substantially. Enter your repayment rate and term above and the schedule shows the exact payment change for your numbers.
Should I pay off my HELOC before the draw period ends?
It depends on the rate on your HELOC relative to your other debts, how much of the draw period remains, and what the payment becomes at conversion. Paying down principal during the draw phase reduces the balance that re-amortizes later; targeting a higher-rate debt first may save more interest overall. The comparison table shows both paths against your actual numbers — it’s the math for your situation, not financial advice.
Can I compare my HELOC against my other debts?
Yes — add your credit cards, auto loans, student loans, or mortgage as additional rows. The calculator sequences all of them together under nine different payoff strategies and shows the payoff date and total interest for each, with the HELOC’s two phases handled correctly inside every strategy.
Does the calculator handle variable HELOC rates?
You enter one rate for the draw phase and one for the repayment phase. HELOC rates float with the prime rate, so treat the results as a model at today’s rate — re-run the numbers when your rate changes. Modeling the two phases at their current rates is still far closer to reality than a single-rate amortization.
Is this HELOC calculator free?
Yes — free, with no signup required. If you want to save your debts, track the payoff over time, or have an AI agent watch the plan daily, a free Zoninga account adds that on top.
Comparing more than a HELOC? Use the full debt payoff calculator to compare all 9 strategies across every debt type.