Balance Transfer Calculator

Moving a high-interest balance onto a 0% APR credit card can save real money, but only once you account for the transfer fee and the rate that kicks in after the promotion ends. The Federal Reserve's G.19 release put the average rate on credit card accounts that were charged interest at 22.15% in the second quarter of 2026, so the gap between a 0% offer and a typical card rate is wide; whether a transfer pays off depends on the fee and on how much of the balance you clear before the promotion ends.

The tool runs both paths month by month for the length of the promotion, applying the same monthly payment to each. On your current card, interest accrues at your current APR. On the new card, the transfer fee is added to the balance up front and interest accrues at the promo APR. The savings figure is the interest the old card would charge over the promo period minus the fee and any promo interest. It also shows the break-even point (how many months of old-card interest the fee equals) and whether the moved balance is paid off before the promotion ends; it does not model what happens after that.

The balance transfer fee, commonly 5% of the amount moved, can swallow much of the benefit if you leave it out of the math, so build it in from the start. Equally important is the promotional end date: any balance still outstanding when the intro period closes starts accruing interest at the higher post-promo APR, which can erase the savings you set out to capture.