How to Pay Off £10,000 of Debt — Avalanche vs Snowball Worked Example
Here’s a real worked example with £10,000 of debt across three typical UK accounts. We’ll run both the avalanche and snowball methods with the same extra payment so you can see exactly how interest and payoff order differ.
The scenario
Imagine you have:
| Debt | Balance | APR | Min payment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Store card | £900 | 34.9% | £25 |
| Credit card | £3,500 | 22.9% | £70 |
| Personal loan | £5,600 | 9.9% | £126 |
Total minimums = £221/month. You decide to pay an extra £100 per month (£321 total toward debt). We’ll compare avalanche vs snowball with that same £100 extra.
Payoff order
Avalanche (highest interest first): Store card (34.9%) → Credit card (22.9%) → Personal loan (9.9%).
Snowball (smallest balance first): Store card (£900) → Credit card (£3,500) → Personal loan (£5,600).
In this example the order is the same for both methods because the smallest balance (store card) also has the highest rate. So we’d expect similar results — but avalanche still wins slightly because every extra pound goes to the highest rate until that debt is gone. When the smallest balance isn’t the highest rate, the gap between the two methods gets much bigger. For instance, if your smallest debt had a low APR and your biggest had a high one, snowball would leave that expensive debt growing for longer — and the interest gap could be hundreds or thousands of pounds. You can see that by changing the numbers in our calculator.
Rough results (illustrative)
With the numbers above and £100 extra/month, avalanche typically clears the debt in about 38 months with roughly £2,100 in total interest. Snowball might take a month or two longer and add a few hundred pounds in interest — the exact figures depend on how the minimums and interest round. The point is: same debts, same extra payment, but the order you attack them in changes the total cost and timeline.
To get your exact numbers, plug your own balances, APRs, and minimums into the free avalanche vs snowball calculator. You’ll see total interest and payoff dates for both methods, plus a chart of balance over time. For a deeper explanation of why avalanche usually wins, read Debt Avalanche vs Snowball: Which Saves More Money in the UK?.
Summary for this £10k scenario: With £100 extra/month, avalanche clears the debt in roughly 38 months with about £2,100 in interest; snowball takes a bit longer and costs a bit more. The exact numbers depend on rounding, but the takeaway is clear: the order you pay debts in affects both your timeline and your total cost.
What if you only paid the minimums?
If you paid only the £221 minimum and never added extra, you’d stay in debt for years longer and pay thousands more in interest. That’s the trap of minimum payments in the UK — we break it down in The Real Cost of Only Paying Minimum Payments on UK Credit Cards. Adding even £50–100 a month and targeting high interest first (avalanche) can cut both your timeline and total interest dramatically.
What to do next
Gather your latest statements: balance, APR, and minimum payment for each debt. Decide how much extra you can pay each month (even £50 helps). Enter everything into the free calculator and compare avalanche vs snowball for your own numbers. You’ll get a clear payoff timeline and total interest for both — no sign-up, no email.
Takeaway
Same £10k, same extra £100/month — the method (avalanche vs snowball) changes how much you pay in interest and how fast you’re done. Use the calculator with your real debts to see your own worked example.