Calculate the minimum payment required for your credit card or loan.
Your Minimum Monthly Payment is:
$0.00
Understanding Minimum Monthly Payments
The minimum monthly payment is the smallest amount you are required to pay on a debt each billing cycle. This is most commonly seen on credit cards, but can also apply to certain types of loans. While paying the minimum keeps your account in good standing and avoids late fees, it's crucial to understand its implications.
Credit card companies typically calculate the minimum payment using a formula that involves a percentage of the outstanding balance plus any interest and fees accrued, and sometimes a small fixed amount. The exact formula can vary by issuer and may change over time.
How This Calculator Works:
This calculator uses a common method to estimate the minimum monthly payment:
Percentage of Balance: A specified percentage of your current outstanding balance is calculated.
Fixed Minimum: If a fixed minimum payment is also specified (and is greater than the calculated percentage of the balance), that fixed amount becomes the minimum.
Interest & Fees: Note that the true minimum payment calculated by your lender will also include accrued interest and any applicable fees. This calculator focuses on the balance-dependent portion to give you a baseline estimate.
*For simplicity in this calculator, we focus on the first two components: MAX( (Balance * Minimum Payment Percentage), Fixed Minimum Payment ). Your actual minimum payment from a lender may be higher due to interest and fees.*
Why Minimum Payments Can Be Deceiving:
Paying only the minimum on a debt, especially a credit card with a high interest rate, can lead to paying significantly more in interest over time and taking much longer to pay off the principal balance. For example, a $5,000 balance at 18.99% APR with a 1% minimum payment percentage and no fixed minimum would have a minimum payment of $50. Paying only this amount could result in paying over $6,000 in interest and taking over 15 years to pay off the debt.
It is almost always financially beneficial to pay more than the minimum required amount whenever possible. Making larger payments accelerates debt payoff, reduces the total interest paid, and improves your credit utilization ratio.
function calculateMinimumMonthlyPayment() {
var balance = parseFloat(document.getElementById("balance").value);
var annualInterestRate = parseFloat(document.getElementById("annualInterestRate").value);
var minPaymentPercentage = parseFloat(document.getElementById("minimumPaymentPercentage").value);
var fixedMinimumPayment = parseFloat(document.getElementById("fixedMinimumPayment").value);
var resultValueElement = document.getElementById("result-value");
// Clear previous results and errors
resultValueElement.textContent = "$0.00";
// Input validation
if (isNaN(balance) || balance < 0) {
alert("Please enter a valid current balance.");
return;
}
if (isNaN(annualInterestRate) || annualInterestRate < 0) {
alert("Please enter a valid annual interest rate.");
return;
}
if (isNaN(minPaymentPercentage) || minPaymentPercentage < 0) {
alert("Please enter a valid minimum payment percentage.");
return;
}
// Fixed minimum payment is optional, so only validate if entered
if (document.getElementById("fixedMinimumPayment").value !== "" && (isNaN(fixedMinimumPayment) || fixedMinimumPayment percentagePayment) {
calculatedMinPayment = fixedMinimumPayment;
} else {
calculatedMinPayment = percentagePayment;
}
// Ensure minimum payment is not less than a small standard amount if percentage is very low and no fixed min is higher
// (This is a common practice, though not universally applied, and lenders might have their own floor)
// For this calculator, we'll stick to the specified logic. If the user enters 0% and no fixed amount, the result is 0.
// Format the result to two decimal places
resultValueElement.textContent = "$" + calculatedMinPayment.toFixed(2);
}