Debtless
Payoff methods
Student loans or credit cards: which comes first?
How to compare student loan rates against credit card rates, and why federal protections matter even when the math favors the card.
Money decisions, made clearer.
The Debtless Journal
Debtless is a 100% free debt payoff app for iPhone. Practical ways to get out of debt, one decision at a time. Clear examples, useful routines and a free app to put your plan into practice. The Debtless Journal is a free debt blog of practical articles on payoff methods, credit card interest, loans, collections, budgeting and privacy, written for anyone deciding how to pay down what they owe. It turns reading like this into a plan, drawing on 442 articles in this library.
The Debtless Journal articles
442 articles
Free debt apps
Bank linking in money apps: what you trade for ease
Weigh the convenience of linking a bank account in a money app against the credentials and exposure that linking requires.
Budget & cash flow
Adjusting tax withholding instead of waiting for a refund
A large tax refund is money that could have been paying down debt all year. Here is how to use the IRS estimator to adjust withholding instead.
Credit card debt
How to pay off $5,000 in credit card debt
A month-by-month look at what it can take to pay off a $5,000 credit card balance, with a worked payment example.
Payments & progress
Choosing a debt accountability partner
How to pick a debt accountability partner, decide what financial details to share and skip, and set up a check-in that you will actually keep.
Loans & bills
What happens when you miss a buy now, pay later payment
What generally happens after a missed buy now, pay later installment, including late fees, account holds and how outcomes vary by provider.
Life & debt
Moving in together when one of you has debt
How to split costs fairly when one partner carries more debt, and why keeping debts separate is usually simpler before marriage.
Privacy & habits
Backing up data from a local-only app
How to back up data from an app that keeps everything on your device: rely on your phone's own backup, and export a file as a second, portable copy.
Getting started
How to pay off $5,000 in one year
A fixed monthly payment is the amount that clears a $5,000 balance in twelve months at a given APR, found by simulating each month.
Payoff methods
Medical debt or credit cards: which comes first?
Why a 0% hospital payment plan usually belongs behind a high-rate credit card, and how to verify a medical bill before paying it.
Free debt apps
What a debt payoff spreadsheet needs to get right
The four things a DIY debt payoff spreadsheet has to handle correctly: monthly interest, rollover, date stamps, and error checks.
Budget & cash flow
When to pause extra debt payments on purpose
Pausing an extra debt payment can be the right call before a layoff, leave or known emergency, as long as minimums continue and a restart date is set.
Credit card debt
How to pay off $10,000 in credit card debt
What it can take, month by month, to clear a $10,000 credit card balance, plus when a bigger balance calls for more than budgeting.
Payments & progress
A quarterly debt review: rates, fees and plan fit
A checklist for a 30-minute quarterly debt review: checking rates, fees, minimums and whether your current payoff order still fits your life.
Loans & bills
Getting out of a payday loan cycle
Why payday loan rollovers get expensive fast, how to work out the real cost of a cycle, and alternatives worth trying before another rollover.
Life & debt
Spending pressure from friends while paying off debt
How to turn down pricey plans with friends while paying off debt, with scripts you can use today and a small budget line for staying social.
Privacy & habits
On-device AI on iPhone: what stays on your phone
What it means when an iPhone feature runs on-device instead of in the cloud, why that matters for anything related to money, and how to check which is which.
Getting started
What a debt-free date is and how it is calculated
A debt-free date is a projected month when your balances would reach zero, calculated by simulating each debt forward.
Payoff methods
Where 0% debt belongs in your payoff order
The difference between true 0% financing and deferred-interest offers, and how to treat each one in your payoff order before a deadline hits.
Free debt apps
Debt payoff on paper vs. in an app
Compare tracking debt payoff on paper against using an app, and see where a written ledger holds up and where it starts to strain.
Give your plan a place to live.
Track balances and compare payoff methods in Debtless. Free, with no account or bank connection.
