Debt can provide leverage for achieving your goals, like buying a house, car, or education.

But debt can quickly become a burden. A recent survey found 54% of U.S. adults often feel stressed because of debt.

And debt is expensive. Monthly interest payments reduce your ability to save and invest. (No wonder 36% of Americans have more credit card debt than emergency savings.)

You asked, we listened

Over 100,000 people have trusted Tiller to navigate their financial journey. Managing debt is a key part of that journey.

So, with feedback from the Tiller Community, we developed a new Debt Payoff Planner you can customize to manage all your debt in one place.

Introducing the new Debt Payoff Planner for Google Sheets and Excel

The new Debt Payoff Planner makes tracking debt simple. It shows:

• Current balances on all credit cards and loans 
• Interest rates for each liability based on your input
• Minimum monthly payments based on your input
• Progress toward your debt payoff goals
• Estimated monthly interest totals  
• Projected debt payoff date (based on your inputs)
• Total interest paid over the lifetime of the debt
• Recommended payments to reach your desired payoff date

Customize Your Debt Payoff Strategy

The Debt Payoff Planner can model debt snowball, avalanche, or a custom ranking payoff strategy for up to 25 accounts for up to 30 years. 

See how different payoff amounts and other variables impact your debt freedom date. Experiment with variables including monthly payment amounts and time to debt payoff.

Then make a custom debt payoff plan based on your actual balances and real-world numbers.

About the Debt Snowball and Avalanche Methods

The debt snowball and avalanche methods are two popular strategies for paying off debt. The debt snowball method prioritizes small quick wins to stay motivated, while the debt avalanche method focuses on minimizing total interest payments over time.

Debt Snowball

The debt snowball method prioritizes paying off your smallest debt balances first, regardless of interest rate.

For example, using the snowball method you would pay off a credit card with a $1,000 balance and 10% interest rate before paying off a card with a 15% interest rate and $2,000 balance. 

The advantage of this method is psychological – successfully paying off small debts quickly can give motivation to keep tackling larger ones.

Debt Avalanche 

The debt avalanche method focuses on paying off debts with the highest interest rates first, regardless of balance size. 

For instance, you would pay off a high-interest credit card before paying off your student loans, even if the card has a lower balance. 

The debt avalanche will likely save you more in the long run by reducing interest payments. However, it can be less motivating without the quick wins of eliminating your small debts first. 

Custom Payoff Ranking Option

The Debt Payoff planner also provides a custom ranking model. Use this to target debts you simply want to eliminate first, regardless of any other factor. 

Budgeting for Debt Payoff

It’s recommended to make a quick budget before making a debt payoff plan. A budget shows how much money you have to put toward debt after covering your living and other expenses.

A budget can also help you find expenses to cut, giving you more to put towards debt. 

The Tiller Foundation Template includes a yearly and monthly budget. Several budgets are available at the Tiller Community Template gallery. 

Tiller Foundation Template

Combining the Debt Payoff Planner with the budgeting tools in the Tiller Foundation Template will give you a master plan for transforming your financial life. 

However, while it’s recommended, a budget isn’t required to use the Debt Planner template. In fact, because it’s solely based on your account balances, you don’t even need to categorize transactions to use the Debt Planner spreadsheet.

Requirements and Installation 

The Debt Payoff Planner is included with your Tiller subscription. It’s available now for Google and Excel spreadsheets powered by Tiller Money Feeds. And, of course, it’s 100% compatible with the Foundation Template.

If you don’t have a Tiller subscription, you can try the Debt Planner completely free for 30 days.

If you cancel your trial, you keep the template along with any other templates and data you’ve installed.

Installation

Install the Debt Payoff Planner using the Templates feature in the Tiller Money Feeds add-on for Google Sheets, or Tiller Money Feeds add-in for Excel.

Google Sheets
Click the “Templates” option in the main sidebar and click “Install”

Microsoft Excel
Click Tools at the top of the Tiller Money Feeds sidebar then Manage Templates and click “Install”

Click here to learn more about how to install and use the Debt Payoff Planner

Sign Up for a Free “Get Out of Debt With Tiller” Webinar 

Learn more about the Debt Payoff Planner and how it can help you plan your debt payoff strategy with a free webinar, covering:

• How to install the Debt Payoff Planner in your Tiller-powered spreadsheet
• How to configure the Debt Payoff Planner for Snowball, Avalanche, or a custom ranking method
• Suggested weekly Tiller workflows to help you stay on track with your debt payoff goals 

The webinar will be February 27 at 3:00 PM ET. Sign up even if you can’t attend and we’ll send a recording! 

Sign up for the debt webinar

Questions and Feedback

Share your questions and feedback about the Debt Payoff Planner here in the Tiller Community.

https://april.kinsta.cloud/introducing-the-new-tiller-debt-payoff-planner-spreadsheet/

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Managing debt is a normal part of the modern financial journey. But as interest rates surge along with historic levels of credit card debt, many households are feeling stressed by increasing monthly payments.

If you’re hoping to reduce your debt and interest fee payments, it’s worth considering the snowball approach.

How the debt snowball method works

The debt snowball method is one of the most effective debt payoff strategies. It’s designed to help you start small and gain momentum over time until you are debt-free. Here’s how it works:

Make a list of all your debts–student loans, credit cards, vehicle loans, medical bills, etc.

Put them in order from smallest balance to largest balance.

Each month, make the minimum payment on each debt and then throw every available penny at the smallest debt until it is paid off.

Repeat Step 3 until everything is paid off.

Here’s an example of the debt snowball method in action:

Using the debt snowball method, you would pay off your medical bill first. Then, when that was paid off, you’d take the money you were using towards your medical bill and apply it to your credit card bill. Then, you’d focus on your monthly auto loan payments and finally your student loans.

Studies show that small wins are the single most important factor in accomplishing a hard task. These small wins are built into the snowball method, which is why it is so effective.

Trying to pay off $98,814 in debt is daunting, but paying off $1,766 doesn’t sound so bad.

A study from the Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University found that consumers who used the snowball method paid off their debt faster. And three large field experiments based on actual credit card data published in the Journal of Consumer Research found “focusing on paying down the account with the smallest balance tends to have the most powerful effect on people’s sense of progress – and therefore their motivation to continue paying down their debts.”

By the time you’re ready to attack your largest debt, it will feel achievable. And before you know it, debt freedom will be yours.

Also consider the avalanche debt payoff method

While more people have success with the debt snowball method, the avalanche payoff approach is the best option mathematically.

Using this method, you pay off the debt with the highest interest rate first, regardless of how much you owe.

In the example able, you would pay off your credit card debt first, because it has the highest interest rate. You’d then direct your attention to your auto loan, student loans, and finally your student loan.

Free Debt Snowball Spreadsheets for 2024

A spreadsheet is one of the most helpful tools for planning the best debt payoff strategy for your situation. So here are some of the best free debt snowball spreadsheets for Google Sheets and Excel. Note that some of these help you evaluate the avalanche method as well.

Browse debt snowball spreadsheets:

Debt Snowball Planner for Google Sheets and Excel

Debt Payoff Calculator for Google Sheets

Debt Snowball Spreadsheet from Reddit

Debt Reduction Calculator for Excel

Money and Budget Snapshot for Excel

Debt Reduction Calculator for Google Sheets and Excel from Vertex42

Debt Snowball Planner for Google Sheets and Excel

Tiller’s Debt Payoff Planner for Google Sheets and Excel automatically tracks your credit card balances and loans in one dashboard, with tools for making a custom payoff strategy.

The Debt Payoff Planner makes tracking debt simple. It shows:

• Current balances on all credit cards and loans 
• Interest rates for each liability based on your input
• Minimum monthly payments based on your input
• Progress toward your debt payoff goals
• Estimated monthly interest totals  
• Projected debt payoff date (based on your inputs)
• Total interest paid over the lifetime of the debt
• Recommended payments to reach your desired payoff date

The Debt Payoff Planner can model the debt snowball method, avalanche, or a custom ranking payoff strategy for up to 25 accounts for up to 30 years. 

See how different payoff amounts and other variables impact your debt freedom date. Experiment with variables including monthly payment amounts and time to debt payoff.

Then make a custom debt payoff plan based on your actual balances and real-world numbers.

Get the Debt Payoff Planner

Debt Payoff Calculator for Google Sheets

Use the Debt Payoff Calculator for Google Sheets to plan the best debt payment strategy for the fastest payoff based on your current financial situation.

Get the Debt Payoff Calculator

Debt Snowball Spreadsheet from Reddit

This is a simple, 12-month debt-tracking spreadsheet that can help you track a snowball or avalanche strategy. It’s a good starting template for further customization.

Learn more and read comments about this template.

Open the Google Sheet Preview

Debt Reduction Calculator for Excel

Not a debt snowball spreadsheet, this simple credit payment calculator template can help you calculate the amount of money you must pay each month to fully repay your debt. You can also view the monthly payment amount and the total interest paid if you make extra payments. You can use this tool to change your repayment plan and see how much longer it will take you to repay your loan.

Payoff calculator for Excel

Money and Budget Snapshot for Excel

While this simple Excel template isn’t a debt snowball calculator, it can quickly give you an idea of what you can afford to pay toward your debt after budgeting for your big living expenses. (Here’s a free Google Sheet version.)

Money and Budget Snapshot

Debt Reduction Calculator for Google Sheets and Excel from Vertex42

The Debt Reduction Calculator from Vertex42 is a spreadsheet that gets a little more intricate. The first page allows you to input your debt and select your payoff strategy: Snowball, avalanche or stair-stepper – the last of which is a unique combination of the snowball and avalanche methods.

If you choose the snowball method, there is a handy chart that will show you your projected progress. There is no such chart for the avalanche or stair-stepper method.

Whichever method you choose, there will be a separate tab where you can log your payment schedule.

For Microsoft Excel (2010 or later)

For Google Sheets

https://april.kinsta.cloud/debt-snowball-spreadsheet/

#DebtPayoff #DebtSnowball #F6F5F0 #GoogleSheetsTemplates #MicrosoftExcelTemplate

Intuit has announced it’s shutting down Mint, the popular app that introduced millions to tracking their money on mobile.

Mint users are now urged to switch to Intuit’s Credit Karma service, which is a substantially different offering.

Update: According to Intuit, Mint’s “service will end March 23, 2024. When it’s time to move to Credit Karma, you’ll be notified multiple times.”

• Popular Mint Alternatives
  • Tiller – for Life Changing Financial Clarity, $79/annually
  • YNAB – $99/annually or $14.99/month
  • Monarch Money – $99/annually or $14.99/month
• PocketSmith – $14.99 to $39.95/monthly
• We invite You To Try Tiller Free
• Mint to Credit Karma FAQ

A Sincere Hat Tip to Mint

Mint Homepage circa 2009

Mint launched at the dawn of the smartphone era. For millions it was the first tool they used to aggregate and track their finances.

Like “Xerox” or “Kleenex,” the name “Mint” practically became synonymous with the entire category of money management apps.

Here at Tiller, we find it surprising and strangely sad that Mint is going away. And we’re sorry for the millions of users now scrambling for a replacement. (Credit Karma won’t support many of Mint’s features, like budgeting – more below.)

While Mint and Tiller may seem like rivals, in fact Mint was a gateway for many to take their financial lives seriously. And when they outgrew Mint, they discovered Tiller. (We sometimes joke that if Mint’s categories were more customizable, Tiller might never have been born.)

“If you want flexibility in how you manage your finances there is no better option than Tiller. Having all of my data in Google Sheets leaves me in control of tracking and organize my money, no longer locked into the pre-determined systems by services like Mint.” Dane Brooks, ★★★★★ Google Review

Popular Mint Alternatives

Tiller – for Life Changing Financial Clarity, $79/annually

No surprise: we think Tiller is the most powerful and flexible alternative to Mint. Like Mint, Tiller automatically brings together your daily spending, balances, and budgets in one place.

“What’s Tiller? Well, it’s like Mint and Google Sheets had a baby, and the genes from Google were a lot stronger. Easy to use and super-convenient!” – Joe Saul-Sehy, Stacking Benjamins

But unlike Mint (or any other service), only Tiller automatically tracks your financial life in Google Sheets and Excel, combining the ease of an app with the privacy, flexibility, and control of spreadsheets. 

Tiller also includes easy templates for tracking expenses, net worth, debt, and any budget you can imagine.

And because Tiller is spreadsheet-based, you can easily customize everything, analyze trends, and forecast your financial future.

No time for spreadsheets? Get an optional Daily Email Summary of your latest transactions and balances delivered to your inbox each morning. 

Tiller includes top-rated customer support

Tiller’s excellent customer success team constantly receives rave reviews. Plus, Tiller has a vibrant user Community sharing advice, help, and free templates and workflows.

Compare Tiller vs Mint, including Tiller’s key benefits, differences with Mint, and a helpful FAQ: Learn more

Tiller will never sell you out

Unlike any other service, Tiller stores your financial data exclusively in your own private spreadsheets. You exclusively own and control your data – no exports needed. Cancel Tiller, keep your data. It’s that simple. Learn more.

Plus, Tiller is private by design

Our service is solely funded by your subscription. We never monetize customer data. We never show ads for things like credit cards, loan offers, or savings accounts.

Try Tiller Free “There isn’t another tool on the market that does what Tiller can do.” – Will Hinton, ★★★★★ Google Review, October 2023

YNAB – $99/annually or $14.99/month

We respect YNAB. For envelope budgeters, YNAB is a popular and thriving service. Read: Tiller vs YNAB

Monarch Money – $99/annually or $14.99/month

Monarch Money is a newer service with clean design and robust features that will appeal to many Mint users.

PocketSmith – $14.99 to $39.95/monthly

PocketSmith is an online money management tool used in over 200 countries, a focus on personal financial forecasting and a visual approach to budgeting.

Lunch Money – $100/annually or $10/month

Lunch Money offers a “delightfully simple” approach to budgeting. A charming option for personal finance.

Other Mint Alternatives We Like

• Simplifi – $59/annually
• Copilot Money – $95/annually, $7.92/month

We invite You To Try Tiller Free

Tiller Foundation Template: Spending Trends dashboard

If you were a Mint customer who isn’t excited about moving to Credit Karma, we welcome you to try Tiller completely free for 30 days.

It’s easy to move your Mint data to Tiller. We’ve published steps here, and also offer a free tool to help you import your Mint data into Google Sheets. (This is a useful way to back up your Mint data even if you don’t want to use Tiller.)

And if you get stuck, our support team and Community is here to help!

Try Tiller Free

Mint to Credit Karma FAQ

When is Mint Shutting Down?

Update: According to Intuit Mint’s “service will end March 23, 2024. When it’s time to move to Credit Karma, you’ll be notified multiple times.”

When Did Credit Karma Acquire Mint?

Actually, Intuit acquired Mint back in 2009. Intuit then acquired Credit Karma in 2020 and has now decided to merge Mint into Credit Karma’s product.

What is Credit Karma?

Credit Karma is a platform for credit card offers and savings accounts. As their homepage states, “Intuit Credit Karma uses your credit profile to show you personalized recommendations.”

Why is Mint Being Folded into Credit Karma?

Credit Karma hopes to “leverage” Mint users’ data to target them with credit card offers, for example suggesting “they use a different credit card in their wallet to maximize their rewards opportunities.”

What Mint Features Will Continue in Credit Karma?

• Aggregation of account balances and transactions
• Track spending
• Track net worth trends

What Mint Features are Going Away with Credit Karma?

Credit Karma does not offer monthly budgets or spending by category.

What New Features Will Credit Karma Offer Mint Users?

• Monitor credit scores from two bureaus
• Get credit building suggestions
• Personalized recommendations to use credit more wisely
• View your Approval Odds* for financial products
• Track home and auto assets in more detail
• Open a Credit Karma Money High Yield Savings Account
• Monitor your drive score for car insurance discounts
• “And more!”

Can I Continue Using Mint?

Once you’ve moved to Credit Karma, you won’t be able to access your Mint profile.

Are All Accounts Supported by Mint Available on Credit Karma?

According to Credit Karma, “Some financial institutions may not be supported yet or available on Credit Karma”.

Do Intuit and Credit Karma Share My Data?

According to Credit Karma, when you register for their service, your data is used by Intuit to enhance experiences with Credit Karma and Intuit.

https://april.kinsta.cloud/mint/

#mint #PersonalFinanceApp