Free Debt Snowball Spreadsheet [+ Video]

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Is the thought of paying off your debt overwhelming?

Keeping up with the minimum payments, tracking your debt payoff progress and trying to avoid MORE debt is hard.

I want to show you the SIMPLEST way to tackle your debt payoff journey, with the Free Debt Snowball Spreadsheet!

What Is The Debt Snowball?

Before we dive into the details of the Debt Snowball Spreadsheet, let’s talk about what the Debt Snowball is, and why it’s a GREAT way to tackle your existing debts.

The Debt Snowball was made popular by financial guru Dave Ramsey, and is his preferred method of paying off consumer debt. He suggests that paying off debt in this order keeps you motivated to continue your debt payoff journey (and I 100% agree!).

The debt snowball is a method for paying off your consumer debt (not your mortgage). Instead of looking at the interest rate, you simply pay off the smallest debt first, and then move on to the next smallest.

The Debt Snowball follows these exact steps to help you pay off your debt:

1. List your debts from smallest to largest balance (ignore interest rate)
2. List your minimum payment amounts for each debt
3. Continue to pay ONLY THE MINIMUM on your larger debts, and put ALL extra money toward the smallest debt
4. Once the smallest debt is paid off, you put the previous minimum payment plus all that extra money on the next smallest debt
5. Repeat until all debt is paid off

This is a simple, repeatable plan that has helped millions of people get out of debt, and is the same method I use for my Financial Coaching clients.

Why Should You Use The Debt Snowball?

The Debt Snowball isn’t just a simpler way to pay off your debt. There is scientific research that shows it is one of the BEST WAYS to pay off your consumer debt, especially if your debt is spread across multiple accounts.

The Harvard Business Review conducted a large study over 36 months that shows the power of small wins (paying off smallest balance first). People were much more motivated by paying off a smaller debt balance than making a small dent in a larger debt balance.

Since the debt snowball has you paying off the smallest debt first, you will feel the power of completely eliminating a debt, and stay motivated to tackle the next one.

And let me just note, motivation is a POWERFUL thing when tackling debt.

Sometimes, paying off debt hurts because it makes you focus on your past mistakes (overspending, borrowing money, etc.).

Instead, putting your debt into perspective with the snowball spreadsheet gives you something to strive toward, and makes it feel more like actual progress.

And once that first debt is paid off, it can start to feel like a game that you want to WIN!

There is much more than numbers to this method, and it plain WORKS!

Debt Snowball Spreadsheet Video

I’ve created a step-by-step tutorial on using your debt snowball spreadsheet. Watch the below video or continue reading below to get started!

Debt Snowball Spreadsheet Instructions

Now let’s put this into action.

Here’s how to use the Debt Snowball Spreadsheet to start paying down your debt today:

Budget Extra

This is the exact amount you have leftover at the end of the month. If you haven’t already, download a copy of my Budget Template, fill out all your budget details, and then see what is left. This is the amount you want to start putting toward your debt.

Debts

This is where you are going to list your debts, starting with the smallest balance at the top. This may include credit cards, student loans, car loans, or any other debts that it not your mortgage.

Balance

List the current balance of your debt. You may need to log into your lender’s website to get the most current data. Be as specific as possible here to get an accurate payoff date at the end.

Minimum Payment

This data can be obtained directly on your billing statement for the debt. It will show you what the “Minimum Payment” required is to pay each month. Put this into the spreadsheet next to each debt.

Snowball (Min. + Extra)

Note: This field is locked, as it automatically calculates the total.

This is where the MAGIC happens. I’ve designed the spreadsheet to automatically total the “Budget Extra” amount you put in and add it to the Minimum Payment option for your first debt. This is the amount you can pay on this debt every month.

Think of this as your “starter snowball”. As you start paying off debts, the amount gets larger, because you add this “Snowball” amount to the next minimum payment.

You can start to see how the snowball effect helps you build momentum as you pay off your debts.

Months To Pay Off

Note: This field is locked, as it automatically calculates the total.

This field takes your total debt and divides it by your monthly Snowball.

This shows how long it will take to pay off that specific debt.

As you can see, the larger your “Budget Extra” gets, the faster your debts can be paid off.

Download The Debt Snowball Spreadsheet Today

I hope you find this tool helpful in putting together your debt payoff plan.

The Debt Snowball method is truly the simplest, most powerful way to pay off your debt.

To get your copy of the Debt Snowball Spreadsheet, simply sign up to our newsletter below!

After signing up, you’ll also get tips on how to get on a budget, get out of debt and start saving more!

Note: You will need Google Sheets (Gmail account) or Microsoft Excel to use the snowball spreadsheet.

Now that you have your Debt Snowball Spreadsheet, it’s time to throw EVERY extra dollar at your debt!

To get your snowball started, check out my latest post on saving money!