APR to Daily Cost Converter

An APR daily cost calculator breaks down how much interest you're paying every single day on credit card balances, loans, or lines of credit. By expressing interest in daily terms rather than annual percentages, it makes the true cost of debt visceral and immediate, often motivating faster repayment.

How It Works: The calculator divides your annual percentage rate (APR) by 365 days, then applies that daily rate to your outstanding balance. For a $5,000 credit card balance at 18% APR, you're paying approximately $2.47 per day in interest ($900 annually). This daily accumulation continues until you pay down the principal.

When to Use It: Use this calculator to understand the urgency of debt repayment, when comparing debt payoff strategies, to motivate yourself or family members about debt costs, or when deciding whether to make extra payments versus saving. It's particularly powerful for credit card debt where interest feels abstract as a percentage.

Key Concepts: Credit card interest compounds daily, meaning each day's interest gets added to the balance, and you pay interest on interest. Most credit cards use average daily balance method for calculations. Making payments early in the billing cycle reduces average daily balance and total interest charged. Minimum payments barely cover interest, extending repayment to 20+ years and costing thousands in extra interest.

Common Mistakes: Focusing only on minimum payments without realizing that at 18% APR with minimum payments, a $5,000 balance takes 15+ years to pay off and costs $4,000+ in interest. Many people also make payments on the due date rather than early in the cycle, maximizing interest charges. Not understanding that "0% intro APR" offers end and revert to high rates leads to shock when rates jump to 20-25%. Carrying balances for rewards is almost never worth it—earning 2% cash back while paying 18% interest is a net loss.

Pro Tips: Calculate your daily interest cost and find an equivalent expense to cut—if you're paying $5/day in credit card interest, that's $150/month that could go toward principal reduction or savings. Make bi-weekly payments instead of monthly to reduce average daily balance. Pay more than the minimum—even an extra $50/month dramatically reduces payoff time and total interest. Use the daily cost figure to prioritize highest-APR debts first (avalanche method). Consider balance transfers to 0% APR cards, but budget to pay off the balance before the promotional period ends. Most importantly, stop adding new charges while carrying balances—every purchase immediately accrues interest when you don't pay in full.