How long it takes to pay off $5,000 of credit card debt

Updated October 2026 by Debt Payoff Planner: Tracker

The short answer

At a 22% APR, paying $200 a month clears $5,000 of credit card debt in 34 months and costs $1,750 in interest.

At 22% APR and $300 a month, $5,000 takes 21 months and $1,022 of interest. To clear $5,000 at 22% in one year, you need $467.98 a month.

Paying only the minimum on $5,000 takes longer. Your card statement shows how long in its Minimum Payment Warning. The tables below cover APRs from 18% to 29% and payments from $150 to $400 a month.

$200 a month at 22% APR: 34 months, $1,750 interest
$300 a month at 22% APR: 21 months, $1,022 interest
Paid off in 1 year at 22% APR: $467.98 a month
Minimum payments only: More than 58 months at 22% in our example. Your statement shows how long.

Months and interest for $5,000 by APR and payment

Find your APR and your monthly payment in the table. Each cell shows how many months it takes to pay off $5,000 and the total interest you pay.

Months to pay off $5,000, and the total interest
APR	$150 a month	$200 a month	$250 a month	$300 a month	$400 a month
18%	47 months $1,984 interest	32 months $1,314 interest	24 months $989 interest	20 months $797 interest	14 months $579 interest
22%	52 months $2,798 interest	34 months $1,750 interest	26 months $1,286 interest	21 months $1,022 interest	15 months $732 interest
25%	58 months $3,626 interest	36 months $2,137 interest	27 months $1,535 interest	21 months $1,206 interest	15 months $853 interest
29%	69 months $5,287 interest	39 months $2,762 interest	28 months $1,914 interest	22 months $1,477 interest	16 months $1,025 interest

The tables assume the APR stays the same, you make no new purchases and you pay no fees. Interest is the balance times the APR divided by 12, rounded to the cent each month. The last payment is smaller than the others.

On $5,000 at 22%, paying $250 a month instead of $200 pays the card off 8 months sooner and saves $464 of interest.
On $5,000 at 29%, $150 a month takes 69 months, or 5 years and 9 months, and costs $5,287 of interest. Adding $50 a month cuts it to 39 months and $2,762.

The 22% row is close to the US average. The Federal Reserve’s G.19 consumer credit release puts the average rate on credit card accounts at commercial banks that were charged interest at 22.15% in the second quarter of 2026. The average across all credit card accounts was 20.94%. Your own APR is on your card statement.

Monthly payment to pay off $5,000 in 1 to 5 years

Pick when you want the card paid off. The table shows the payment you need each month at each APR.

Monthly payment by APR and payoff time
APR	12 months 1 year	24 months 2 years	36 months 3 years	48 months 4 years	60 months 5 years
18%	$458.40	$249.62	$180.77	$146.88	$126.97
22%	$467.98	$259.40	$190.96	$157.53	$138.10
25%	$475.23	$266.86	$198.80	$165.79	$146.76
29%	$484.98	$277.00	$209.53	$177.14	$158.71

Each payment is the smallest amount, to the cent, that pays off $5,000 within that many months. The last payment is a little smaller.

At 22%, paying off $5,000 in 1 year costs $616 of interest. Paying it off in 5 years costs $3,285, because the balance stays on the card four years longer.

What if you pay only the minimum?

Each card sets its minimum payment with its own formula. Chase says that in most cases its minimum is 1% of the statement balance plus interest and late fees, or $40, whichever is greater. We use that formula as an example, without late fees. On $5,000 at 22%, the first month’s interest is $91.67 and 1% of the balance is $50.00. So the first minimum payment is $141.67.

If you kept paying the first minimum every month
APR	First minimum	Months	Interest
18%	$125.00	62	$2,693
22%	$141.67	58	$3,121
25%	$154.17	55	$3,419
29%	$170.83	52	$3,791

This is an example, not your card’s formula. Your card may count interest by the day and add fees.

A real minimum payment does not stay the same. It goes down as the balance goes down, so paying only the minimum takes longer and costs more than this table shows. We do not estimate how much longer, because it depends on your card’s formula.

Your card statement shows how long minimum payments take. Under Regulation Z, credit card statements generally must show a Minimum Payment Warning. It says how long it would take to pay off your balance with minimum payments only, and how much you would pay in total. When that takes more than 3 years, it also shows the monthly payment that pays off the balance in 3 years.

How $5,000 compares with $10,000

Half the balance takes less than half the time and less than a fifth of the interest. At 22% and $300 a month, $10,000 takes 52 months and $5,596 of interest. $5,000 at the same payment takes 21 months and $1,022.

The payment is the same, but the first month’s interest is $91.67 instead of $183.33. So more of every payment goes to the balance from the first month. If your balance is closer to $10,000, see how long it takes to pay off $10,000 of credit card debt.

Check your own card

Credit card payoff calculator Debt payoff calculator

Type your balance, APR and monthly payment into the free credit card payoff calculator. It shows the months, the interest and the payment for every month. To get the payment for a date, choose Target date under Calculate using. Every month count, interest total and payment on this page comes from the same code as that calculator. It runs in your browser with no sign-up.

Have more than one card? List them all in the debt payoff calculator. It shows which card to pay first with the debt snowball and with the debt avalanche. The snowball pays the smallest balance first. The avalanche pays the highest APR first. See the two methods compared.

Track the payoff on iPhone

Debt Payoff Planner: Tracker is an iPhone app for paying off debt with the snowball or avalanche method. You type in your cards and loans, and it plans the payoff and records each payment. It is free for up to 3 debts, with no account and no bank link. Premium adds unlimited debts. See it on the App Store.

Questions

All questions

How long does it take to pay off $5,000 in credit card debt?

At a 22% APR, $200 a month takes 34 months and costs $1,750 in interest. $250 a month takes 26 months and $1,286. $300 a month takes 21 months and $1,022. A higher APR or a smaller payment takes longer.

How much do I need to pay a month to pay off $5,000 in a year?

At a 22% APR, you need $467.98 a month. At 18% it is $458.40, and at 29% it is $484.98. To pay it off in 2 years at 22%, you need $259.40 a month.

How long does it take to pay off $5,000 with minimum payments only?

It depends on how your card sets its minimum payment. The Minimum Payment Warning on your monthly statement shows how long minimum payments alone would take and what they would cost. In our example at 22%, the first minimum is $141.67. Paying that same amount every month takes 58 months. A real minimum goes down as the balance goes down, so paying only the minimum takes longer than that.

Do new purchases change these numbers?

Yes. The tables assume you stop using the card while you pay it off. Each new purchase adds to the balance, so the payoff takes longer and costs more interest.

When to talk to someone

If your payments take more than you can cover each month, a nonprofit credit counselor can go through your budget and your debts with you. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says credit counseling can be free or low cost, and that counselors may charge for some services. It points to the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (nfcc.org, 877-360-6322) and the Financial Counseling Association of America (fcaa.org). Get any fee in writing before you sign up.
If a debt collector or your card issuer treats you unfairly, you can submit a complaint to the CFPB at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or (855) 411-2372, Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET.
If a company wants a fee before it settles any of your debts, the FTC calls that a warning sign. You can report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
If you are sued over a debt and your income is low, a legal aid office may help for free. Find the one near you at lsc.gov.
If money worries leave you in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It is free, confidential and open 24/7. In an emergency, call 911.

Outside the US, look for a free debt advice service run or approved by your government.

Sources

Federal Reserve, G.19 Consumer Credit, release of October 7, 2026
Chase, How to calculate your minimum credit card payment
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Regulation Z, § 1026.7(b)(12), repayment disclosures

Sources checked on October 17, 2026.