Calculators
Ten calculators for the personal finance decisions that matter most — getting out of credit card debt, deciding whether a balance transfer or a mortgage refinance pencils out, projecting compound growth, sizing retirement contributions and the employer match, estimating income-driven student-loan payments, and understanding what owning a home actually costs each month.
What you will not find here is a generic "free credit score" lead funnel, an email-gated PDF, or a chart that exists only to sell you a product. The math in each calculator is published in the surrounding article, the assumptions are documented, and the limitations are stated. If a calculator on this site gives you a number that feels too good, the prose underneath tells you why the model might be optimistic. If it gives you a number that feels too conservative, it tells you why. Calculator output is a starting point for thinking, not a substitute for licensed financial advice.
Where rates and limits change year to year (IRS contribution caps, FICO factor weights, FDIC insurance amounts, mortgage rates), each calculator flags the relevant 2026 figure and links to the primary source where the number lives. When the IRS updates limits or the Federal Reserve moves rates, the calculators are updated accordingly — the "Last updated" date on each tool tells you when.
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Credit card payoff: snowball vs avalanche
Side-by-side simulation of both strategies on your actual card lineup. Surfaces the math winner and the honest behavioral tradeoff.
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Balance transfer savings
Net savings after the transfer fee, including the post-promo APR most calculators omit. Shows when the deal does not actually work.
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Compound interest growth
Year-by-year projection with monthly contributions, configurable APY, and honest documentation of what the model leaves out.
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Roth IRA growth
Retirement projection with the 2026 contribution cap check, nominal and inflation-adjusted outputs, and a 4% sustainable-withdrawal estimate.
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Mortgage payment (PITI + PMI)
Full monthly housing cost — principal, interest, property tax, insurance, PMI when LTV exceeds 80%, HOA. Plus total interest over the loan life.
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Credit utilization optimizer
Per-card and aggregate utilization across your real card lineup, with an AZEO pay-down plan and an estimated FICO swing before a major credit application.
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HYSA vs CD: break-even
After-tax compounded return for both products over the CD term, with HYSA rate-drop scenarios and the early-withdrawal penalty math.
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IDR payment estimator
Monthly federal student-loan payment under all four income-driven plans — SAVE, IBR (old and new), PAYE, ICR — from your AGI, family size, and the current poverty guidelines.
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401(k) match optimizer
How much employer match you capture at your current contribution rate — and exactly how many dollars you leave on the table each year.
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Refinance break-even
How many months it takes for the monthly savings to recoup closing costs on a mortgage refinance — and whether the total interest saved makes it worth it.
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More calculators — emergency fund sizing, 401(k) optimization with mega-backdoor capacity, auto-loan total cost, and cash-back-vs-travel valuation — are in production. Each requires the same editorial treatment as the ten above: a working widget, ≥600 words of surrounding prose explaining what the math does and does not capture, and honest documentation of when the result holds.
Browse by topic
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Credit Cards
The math behind cash back, travel rewards, and 0% APR.
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Savings & CDs
Where your dollars actually earn — verified at the bank.
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Investing & Retirement
Roth IRA, 401(k), index funds — decisions you make once a decade.
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Loans & Mortgages
Auto, mortgage, personal, student — when refinancing actually pays.
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Credit & FICO
Build, fix, and optimize your credit — the 30% utilization rule is wrong.
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Taxes
Filing, withholding, quarterly estimates — Form 1040 line by line.