At a Glance
- Enter every debt you owe, including secured debts such as a mortgage, along with your monthly net income to generate a complete snapshot. The more complete the data entered, the more useful the output. Partial data produces partial insight: how this tool works.
- The tool calculates four metrics: debt composition, monthly payment burden, debt-to-income ratio, and time to clear each debt at current payment rates. These four angles together give a more complete picture of the debt position than any single figure on its own: the four metrics explained.
- An overall health classification of healthy, stretched, or under pressure is assigned based on the worst of the two affordability ratios. The classification is conservative by design: if either the burden percentage or the DTI is in a worse tier, the badge reflects that: the health classification.
- The tool automatically surfaces up to six relevant tools matched to your specific debt picture, including consolidation tools, DMP comparators, and the credit rebuild timeline where appropriate. Tools are triggered by conditions such as having two or more unsecured debts, payment burden above 25%, or a pressure-tier classification: matched tools.
- All figures are illustrative only and are not financial advice. The tool runs entirely in the browser; no data is sent to any server or used for any application or credit check: about this tool.
Total Debt Picture Snapshot
Your total debt picture
Enter everything you owe to see the full picture – composition, cost, payment burden, and where to focus. All figures are based on the information you enter and are illustrative only.
| Debt | Balance (£) | APR (%) | Monthly pmt (£) | Secured? |
|---|
Debt composition
Monthly payment burden
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of net monthly income
Debt-to-income ratio
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total debt vs annual net income
Highest cost debts by APR
Time to debt free per debt
Tools matched to your debt picture
Add your debts above to see personalised tool suggestions.
All figures are based on information you enter and are illustrative only. Remaining interest calculations use standard amortisation and assume fixed payments throughout. Actual figures depend on lender-calculated interest, any fees, and changes to your payment amounts. Debt-to-income and payment burden ratios are indicative guides only – lenders apply their own affordability criteria. If you are struggling with debt, contact a free debt advice service such as StepChange (stepchange.org) or National Debtline (nationaldebtline.org). This tool does not constitute financial advice.
About this tool
Most debt management decisions are made without a clear picture of the whole position. People focus on individual debts, one at a time, and end up consolidating the wrong ones, ignoring the highest-rate balances, or not realising how much of their income is committed to debt repayment. This tool is designed to fix that by giving you the full picture in one place before you make any decisions.
Unlike the other tools in this section, which focus on specific decisions such as whether to consolidate or which debts to prioritise, this tool starts earlier in the process. It is the right place to begin if you want to understand your overall debt position before deciding what to do about it. The matched tools section at the bottom then directs you to whichever specialist tool is most relevant given your specific figures. Our guide to what debt consolidation is covers the basics if you are new to the topic.
What to include
Enter every debt: mortgages, secured loans, credit cards, personal loans, car finance, overdrafts, buy-now-pay-later balances, and any other outstanding borrowing. Mark secured debts using the toggle in the secured column. The more complete the picture, the more useful the output. Partial data produces partial insight.
What the tool calculates
Monthly payment burden as a percentage of net income, debt-to-income ratio against annual net income, remaining interest and time to clear each debt at current payment rates, and a composition split between secured and unsecured debt. An overall health classification and a set of matched tools are generated from these figures.
Net monthly income
The income figure is used only to calculate the two affordability ratios. Use your net take-home pay after tax and National Insurance. If income varies month to month, use a conservative estimate of a typical lower month rather than a high month. The figure is not used for any application or credit check.
Privacy
The tool runs entirely in the browser. No data you enter is sent to any server, stored, or shared. The figures exist only in your browser session and disappear when you close or reload the page. The tool does not run a credit check and leaves no footprint on your credit file.
How this tool works
Enter your debts in the table at the top and adjust the income slider. The tool updates all metrics instantly as you make changes. The five outputs update in real time as you add, edit, or remove debts.
Enter each debt in the table
Edit the name, balance, APR, and current monthly payment for each debt. The default example includes a mortgage, two credit cards, a personal loan, and car finance to give you a starting point. Remove any that do not apply and add your actual debts. Mark secured debts (mortgages, second charge loans) using the toggle in the secured column. A “payment too low” warning appears if the monthly payment entered does not cover the interest accruing on a debt – correct these before reading the metrics.
Set your net monthly income
Use the income slider to set your monthly take-home pay. This figure is used only for the two affordability ratio calculations in the metrics section. It is not stored or used for any other purpose. Adjusting the income slider updates the burden percentage and DTI ratio in real time, so you can also use it to model different income scenarios.
Read the metrics and health badge
The metrics section shows four panels: debt composition (secured vs unsecured split), monthly payment burden gauge, debt-to-income ratio gauge, and a ranked list of your highest-cost debts by APR. The health badge above the metrics shows whether the overall picture is healthy, stretched, or under pressure, based on the worse of the two affordability ratios. The time-to-clear panel shows how long each debt will take to repay at the current monthly payment.
Review the matched tools
Below the metrics, the tool surfaces up to six tools matched to your specific debt picture. Tools are suggested based on conditions such as having two or more unsecured debts, a payment burden above 25%, high-rate debts above 18% APR, secured debts, or a pressure-tier health classification. Each tool card explains why it is being suggested and links directly to the relevant tool.
The four metrics explained
Each metric in the snapshot is designed to give you a different angle on the same debt position. Together they provide a more complete picture than any single figure on its own.
Debt composition
The stacked bar shows the split between secured and unsecured debt as a proportion of the total balance. Secured debt, primarily mortgages and secured loans, is shown in navy. Unsecured debt, credit cards, personal loans, car finance, and overdrafts, is shown in teal. This matters because secured and unsecured debts have fundamentally different risk profiles and are managed through different approaches. The composition split is the starting point for understanding which part of the debt picture needs attention.
Monthly payment burden
The burden gauge shows total monthly debt repayments as a percentage of net monthly income. Below 15% is shown in green and considered healthy. Between 15% and 30% is shown in amber and considered stretched. Above 30% is shown in red and indicates significant pressure on the monthly budget. Lenders typically consider anything above 40 to 50% of gross income committed to debt repayments as a risk indicator in affordability assessments, though they each apply their own criteria.
Debt-to-income ratio
The DTI gauge shows total outstanding debt as a percentage of annual net income. Below 100% is shown in green. Between 100% and 200% is shown in amber. Above 200% is shown in red. A DTI above 200% means total debt exceeds two years of net income. For unsecured debt alone, a DTI above 100% is considered high by most lenders, though mortgage debt is typically treated separately given its long-term nature and lower rate profile.
Time to clear each debt
The time-to-clear panel shows how long each debt will take to repay at the current monthly payment, calculated using standard amortisation. Debts are sorted from longest to shortest remaining term. The length of each bar is proportional to the longest remaining debt in your list. A “payment too low” label appears for any debt where the monthly payment entered does not cover the monthly interest charge: these debts would grow rather than reduce at the payment entered.
The health classification
The health badge summarises the overall debt position in a single label. It is based on the worse of the two affordability ratios: the monthly payment burden percentage and the debt-to-income ratio. The three tiers and their thresholds are described below.
Healthy
Monthly payments are below 15% of net income and total debt is below one year of net income. This indicates a manageable debt position. Maintaining current payments and avoiding new high-rate debt is the priority. If any high-rate unsecured debts are present, reviewing whether to pay them down faster or consolidate them into a lower-rate product may still produce a meaningful interest saving.
Stretched
Monthly payments are between 15% and 30% of net income, or total debt is between one and two years of net income, or both. The position is manageable but under some pressure. Reviewing high-rate balances and whether consolidation or accelerated repayment of the most expensive debts could reduce the burden meaningfully is worthwhile. This tier typically benefits most from using the prioritisation and true cost tools.
Under pressure
Monthly payments exceed 30% of net income or total debt exceeds two years of net income. The debt position is placing significant pressure on the household budget. At this level, it is sensible to speak to a free debt advice service before making changes. StepChange (stepchange.org) and National Debtline (nationaldebtline.org) both offer free, impartial advice and can help identify the full range of options available given the specific circumstances.
How the classification is calculated
The health badge reflects the worse of the two ratio tiers. If the burden percentage is in the healthy tier but the DTI is in the stretched tier, the badge shows stretched. This conservative approach means the badge captures any pressure point in the debt picture, not just the most prominent one. Both thresholds and both ratios are shown separately in the gauges so you can see exactly which measure is driving the classification.
Matched tools
The tool suggestions at the bottom of the snapshot are not generic. They are generated based on specific conditions in your debt data and change as you edit the figures. The conditions that trigger each suggestion are described below, so you understand why a tool has been recommended and can make your own judgement about whether to use it.
Triggered by: 2 or more unsecured debts
The debt consolidation true cost calculator and the debt prioritisation tool are both suggested when there are two or more unsecured debts in the picture. These two tools together cover the decision of which debts to consolidate and whether consolidation actually saves money at a realistic APR and term. The prioritisation tool identifies the best combination; the true cost calculator confirms the verdict.
Triggered by: payment burden above 25%
The consolidation vs DMP comparator is suggested when monthly payments exceed 25% of net income. At this level, a Debt Management Plan may be an alternative to a consolidation loan, particularly if adverse credit restricts the available consolidation APR. The DMP comparator shows the financial difference between the two approaches over the same period. Our guide to debt consolidation vs debt management plans covers the differences between these options.
Triggered by: unsecured debt above 18% APR
The APR band cost comparator is suggested when any unsecured debt carries a rate of 18% or above. This tool shows the actual interest cost difference between the current rate and a range of lower rates, making the potential saving from consolidation concrete rather than abstract. It is particularly useful as a starting point before approaching a lender or broker.
Triggered by: pressure tier or adverse credit
The credit rebuild timeline and the credit profile classifier are suggested when the health classification is stretched or under pressure. These tools help identify when different lender tiers become accessible and how lenders are likely to view an application at the current credit profile level. They are most useful for people who know their credit profile has adverse entries that may restrict the available options.
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Checking won’t harm your credit scoreFrequently asked questions
Should I include my mortgage in the debt picture?
Yes. Including the mortgage gives the most accurate picture of the total debt position and the payment burden percentage. A mortgage is a significant financial commitment and excluding it would understate both the total balance and the monthly payment total, making the affordability ratios misleadingly favourable.
That said, the tool treats mortgages separately in one important way: the matched tool suggestions and the APR ranking are more relevant to the unsecured portion of the debt picture. A mortgage at 4% APR will typically rank at the bottom of the APR list, which correctly reflects that it is not a priority for consolidation. The tool suggestions are driven primarily by the unsecured debt characteristics, the payment burden, and the health classification. If the health classification is only in the pressure tier because of the mortgage balance pushing up the DTI, that context is worth bearing in mind when reviewing the suggestions.
What is debt-to-income ratio and why does it matter?
Debt-to-income ratio (DTI) expresses total outstanding debt as a multiple of annual net income. A DTI of 150% means total debts are one and a half times annual take-home pay. The ratio is a measure of leverage: how many years of income would be needed to clear all debts if all income were directed to repayment. Lenders use various versions of this calculation in affordability assessments, though they apply their own criteria and typically assess gross income rather than net.
For the purposes of this tool, a DTI below 100% of annual net income is considered healthy, between 100% and 200% is stretched, and above 200% is under pressure. These are indicative thresholds, not lender-specific criteria. The practical significance is that a high DTI combined with a high monthly burden often indicates that the debt position needs addressing before taking on new credit, rather than after. Our guide to whether debt consolidation is right for you covers how lenders assess overall affordability in more detail.
Why does the APR ranking only show unsecured debts?
The APR ranking shows all debts with a balance and APR above zero, including secured debts. A mortgage will typically appear at the bottom of the list because its APR is lower than most unsecured products. The ranking is designed to show where the highest interest costs are concentrated, and for most people that will be credit cards and overdrafts near the top of the list rather than mortgage debt near the bottom.
The remaining interest figure shown alongside each debt in the APR ranking is the total interest that would accumulate on that debt if payments continued at the current monthly amount until the balance was cleared. This figure is what drives the value of consolidating or accelerating repayment: a debt with a high APR and significant remaining interest stands to save the most if replaced with a lower-rate product over a comparable term.
What should I do if the tool shows I am in the pressure tier?
The pressure classification indicates that monthly debt repayments are consuming more than 30% of net income or that total debt exceeds two years of net income. This does not automatically mean consolidation is the right answer. In some circumstances, consolidation can worsen the position by extending the repayment period and increasing the total interest cost, particularly if the available consolidation APR is not significantly lower than the existing rates.
The most useful first step when the position is in the pressure tier is to contact a free debt advice service before making any changes. StepChange (stepchange.org) and National Debtline (nationaldebtline.org) are both regulated, free to use, and cover the full range of options including debt management plans, consolidation, income maximisation, and insolvency solutions where appropriate. Taking advice before making changes preserves the most options and avoids decisions that can make a stretched position worse.
How is this tool different from the other debt consolidation tools on this site?
This tool is a starting point rather than a decision tool. It gives you a complete picture of your debt position across all dimensions: composition, affordability, cost, and time to clear. The other tools in the debt consolidation section then focus on specific decisions once you know what the full picture looks like. The prioritisation tool identifies which unsecured debts are worth consolidating. The true cost calculator shows whether consolidation saves money overall. The debt-free date calculator shows when each debt clears and what extra payments save.
The recommended workflow is to use this tool first to understand the full picture, then use the matched tool suggestions to navigate to whichever specialist tool is most relevant to the specific decision or concern your debt position raises. Starting with the snapshot means the subsequent tool inputs are grounded in a complete and accurate picture rather than a partial view of individual debts.
Squaring Up
Getting the full debt picture in one place is the essential first step before making any changes. Monthly payment burden, DTI, the cost of individual debts, and the time to clear them all point in different directions and need to be seen together to make sense of the overall position. Including the mortgage gives the most accurate picture of the affordability ratios. The APR ranking and the matched tools are most relevant to the unsecured portion, where consolidation or accelerated repayment typically has the greatest impact.
The health classification reflects the worst metric, not the average. A healthy burden percentage combined with a stretched DTI produces a stretched classification, and both gauges matter. Where the position is in the pressure tier, free debt advice from StepChange (stepchange.org) or National Debtline (nationaldebtline.org) is a more useful starting point than any calculation tool alone, because advisers can identify options that are not visible through arithmetic.
Ready to see what you could borrow?
Checking won’t harm your credit score Check eligibilityAll figures produced by this tool are based on the information you enter and are illustrative only. The tool runs entirely in your browser – no data is sent to any server. Remaining interest and time-to-clear calculations use standard amortisation and assume fixed payments throughout. Debt-to-income and payment burden ratios are indicative guides only – lenders apply their own affordability criteria and typically assess gross income. The health classification is not a lender assessment and does not indicate whether any specific application would be accepted or declined. If you are experiencing difficulty managing debt repayments, contact a free debt advice service such as StepChange (stepchange.org) or National Debtline (nationaldebtline.org). This tool does not constitute financial advice.