Here’s How To Pay Off $30k in Debt Before the End of 2026
Written by
Marc Guberti
Edited by
Brendan McGinley
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Paying off debt and staying out of debt is one of the best ways to build a solid financial foundation that will give you more flexibility later in life. While it is possible to chip away at your debt a little bit each month, having a grand goal for the end of the year can keep you focused and inspire you to get more aggressive with cutting debt.
This is the game plan you can use to deplete debt from your balances so you can start investing in your future.
Know Your Numbers
Say you’re carrying $30,000 worth of debt. The first step toward achieving any financial goal is to know your numbers. Data leads people to well-informed decisions that can have a tangible impact on their long-term goals. Ashley Morgan is a debt and bankruptcy lawyer in northern Virginia who suggests breaking down the $30,000 goal and then looking at your own finances.
“On the most basic level, to pay off $30,000 in one year, you need to pay $2,500 per month without interest,” Morgan said. “A lot of people do not know where they are spending money each month. Putting together a budget and monitoring where you are spending money each month can be empowering. You want to be intentional about how you spend your money.”
Review your income and expenses to determine if it is feasible to put $2,500 toward the principal each month. You may have to cut expenses or temporarily pick up a side hustle to make ends meet. Some people go back to living with their parents until they pay off credit card debt to save on housing. The extent to which you have to change your life depends on your finances, what’s preventing you from paying $2,500 per month toward your debt and how much you want to change your current financial situation.
Choose the Right Debt Payoff Method for You
Any money you put toward balances will get you closer to a debt-free future, but the debt payment method you use can impact how quickly you become debt-free and your motivation. Nika Booth is a student loan and debt repayment expert and founder of Debt Free Gonnabe. Booth paid off $75,000 in consumer debt and had $133,000 in student loans forgiven. She laid out the two debt payoff strategies you can use to chip away at your balances.
“Whether it’s the avalanche method (paying off the highest interest first) to save on interest or the snowball method (paying off the smallest balance first) to build momentum, having a clear order prevents decision fatigue. Then, combine extra debt payments with income boosts from side hustles, overtime, selling unused items, bonuses or tax refunds to get out of debt faster,” Booth said.
Booth and Morgan both mentioned cutting expenses and picking up a side hustle or a part-time job. You don’t have to do the extra work forever, but paying off debt now prevents interest from accumulating.
Forgive Yourself for Past Money Mistakes
The basis of getting into debt involves spending more than you earn. While regular living costs contribute to that, impulse spending and unnecessary purchases also fuel debt. If you just started to take debt repayment more seriously, you may feel regret about past money mistakes. Booth says that this type of thinking process is unproductive and offered advice for people who are letting past mistakes take up too much headspace.
“Getting out of debt requires the acknowledgement of and forgiveness of past money mistakes that may have led to being in debt,” Booth said. “When you separate who you are from what you owe and release the shame around money, progress feels empowering instead of exhausting, which is what makes people stick with it.”
Forgiving yourself for past money mistakes doesn’t mean falling into the same traps. If you have pinpointed impulse spending as a bad money habit, you can forgive yourself, but you must then avoid impulse spending as you make your way to a debt-free lifestyle. Then, any activities you take toward paying off debt are viewed more through the lens of progress than the weight of previous mistakes.
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