How this number is made
A balance transfer charges a fee up front and a low or zero rate for a window. This page assumes the offer rate is zero and that you pay the balance plus the fee off in equal payments before the window ends. If you do not, the deferred or go-to rate can erase the savings. That failure is not modeled.
- The comparison rate is the card you have now.
- Months are the promotional months, and the payoff plan uses exactly those months.
Formula
Fee = balance × fee percent. Interest avoided ≈ the interest on a declining balance at the old rate over those months, using the same payment. Savings = interest avoided − fee.
Worked example
With the figures already in the form, interest avoided, minus the fee is $589.33.
Questions
What if I do not pay it off?
Then this result is wrong. Some offers bill interest back to the start. Read that clause. This page assumes you finish inside the window.
Is the new card’s later rate here?
No. Only the fee and the interest you skip by paying the old rate’s balance off during a zero-percent window.