Which debt should I pay first?

The smallest balance and the highest interest rate answer different questions. A useful repayment plan starts with what you can reliably afford, not just which chart finishes first.

Handle urgent obligations first

If you risk losing housing, essential services or facing enforcement, seek local debt advice before ranking balances by interest. Priority obligations vary by country. Keep essential spending and required payments affordable; a calculator cannot decide the legal consequences of missing a bill.

Compare two orders with one budget

For non-priority debts whose minimums you can afford, the avalanche method directs extra money to the highest rate. The snowball method targets the smallest balance for an earlier completed account. For example, an extra 100 against a 24% debt avoids roughly 2 of next month’s interest, versus about 0.50 at 6%, using a monthly-rate approximation and no fees.

Check the plan against reality

List each balance, rate and minimum, keep the total monthly budget the same in both scenarios, and roll freed payments into the next debt. Our comparison tool accepts balances and rates with a simplified payment allocation; it does not reproduce each lender’s minimum formula. Check promotional-rate expiry, fees and statements separately. If minimums are already unaffordable, contact creditors and a local independent adviser instead of increasing the calculator’s budget.