Methodology

How credit card interest drag is modeled

The model accrues monthly interest, applies a fixed payment, and estimates first-year interest, payoff time, and total interest.

Default APR benchmark
21.50%

Formula

Monthly interest equals remaining balance x APR / 12. SwitchWize applies the modeled monthly payment until the balance reaches zero or the payment fails to cover accruing interest.

Related: Credit Card Interest Drag Index and JSON dataset.