Debt Consolidation Calculator Guide: How to Combine Debts and Save
Debt consolidation combines multiple debts into a single loan with one monthly payment, ideally at a lower interest rate than your current debts. For example, consolidating $20,000 in credit card debt from 22% APR to a 10% personal loan saves $6,800 in interest over a 4-year term. Use our Debt Consolidation Calculator(/finance/debt-consolidation-calculator) to see your specific savings. A client I advised in 2021 was juggling five credit cards totaling $27,000 with rates from 18% to 26%. She was spending $640/month across all minimum payments and making almost no progress — $480 of that went to interest. After consolidating into a single 11% personal loan, her payment dropped to $590/month with a guaranteed 5-year payoff date, saving her $9,200 in total interest. !Debt consolidation before and after comparison showing 4 credit cards at 18-26% APR consolidated into 1 loan at 10% APR saving $6,850 in interest(/images/blog/debt-consolidation-comparison.svg) How Debt Consolidation Works Debt...
Personal Loan Comparison: Rates, Terms, and Lender Types Explained
A personal loan is a fixed-rate, fixed-term unsecured loan that you repay in equal monthly installments, typically ranging from $1,000 to $100,000 with terms of 2-7 years. Rates vary widely — from 7% for excellent credit to 36% for poor credit — so comparing lenders is essential. Use our Personal Loan Calculator(/finance/personal-loan-calculator) to calculate exact payments for any rate and term combination. When I helped a friend refinance $18,000 in credit card debt into a personal loan in 2022, the rate difference between the first offer (16.5% from his bank) and the best offer (9.9% from an online lender) saved him $3,400 in interest over 4 years. That 30-minute comparison literally paid $3,400 — yet most people accept the first offer they get. !Personal loan interest rates by credit score showing ranges from 5-8% for excellent credit to 20-36% for poor credit with monthly payment comparison(/images/blog/personal-loan-rates.svg) Personal Loan Rates by...