Debt Snowball vs Avalanche: Why the BLITZ Hybrid Method Beats Both
The debt avalanche pays off your highest-interest debt first, which costs you the least in interest. The debt snowball pays off your smallest balance first, which gives you quick wins that keep you going. The avalanche is right about the maths but wrong about motivation. The snowball is right about motivation but can cost you more. The Debt BLITZ hybrid method from my Break Free Forever book combines both, and adds a third factor most plans ignore: how each debt makes you feel.
Updated October 2026
This guide is part of my complete guide to getting out of debt and staying out.
Debt snowball vs avalanche at a glance
All three methods use the same engine: pay the minimum on every debt, throw every extra pound at one target debt, then roll that payment onto the next. They differ only in which debt you target first.
| Method | Which debt first | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avalanche | Highest interest rate | Lowest total interest | A big first debt can take a year or more to fall, and many people give up |
| Snowball | Smallest balance | Fast wins build momentum | Expensive debts can run longer and cost more |
| Debt BLITZ hybrid | Highest score on interest rate, balance size and emotional weight | Financially smart and psychologically sustainable | You need to score your debts before you start |
The avalanche method: right about the maths
The avalanche method targets your highest-interest debt first, because that debt drains your future fastest. If you follow it all the way, you'll pay the least interest of any method.
The problem is people, not maths. If your highest-interest debt is also your biggest, you might pay it for a year or more before it falls. A year with no win is a year when most people give up.
I know, because I did. In my twenties I had a pay cheque that disappeared in the first week of the month, store cards swiped so often they were hot, and a red plastic kayak bought on a bank overdraft. When I finally decided to get out of debt, I followed the textbook advice and went after the highest-interest debt. It felt like climbing Everest when I'd only just learnt to walk. Then an unexpected bill arrived, I had no cash to cover it, and back onto the card it went. Start and fail. Start and fail.
The snowball method: right about momentum
The snowball method targets your smallest balance first, so you clear a debt quickly and feel the win. Each cleared debt adds its payment to the next one, so the "snowball" grows as it rolls.
It works because we aren't robots. We're emotional creatures, and seeing progress is what keeps us going. Debt isn't logical. If it were, none of us would have got into it.
The weakness is cost. If your smallest debt has a low interest rate and your biggest has a high one, the snowball leaves your most expensive debt running longest, charging you interest all the while.
The Debt BLITZ hybrid method: logic and emotion together
The BLITZ hybrid method gives each debt a score on three factors, then targets the highest score first. It brings logic and emotion together, so your plan is both financially smart and something you'll actually stick to.
Score every debt on all three factors, using your Debt Truth Inventory:
| Factor | Score |
|---|---|
| Interest rate (weighted highest): how fast the debt is draining your future | Above 20% = 4 points 10% to 20% = 3 points Below 10% = 2 points |
| Balance size: smaller balances fall faster and give you an early win | Below 10% of your total debt = 3 points 10% to 30% of your total = 2 points Above 30% of your total = 1 point |
| Emotional weight: the shame, dread or anger a debt carries | High (shame, dread, anger) = 2 points Moderate = 1 point Low = 0 points |
Add the three scores for each debt and sort from highest to lowest. That's your BLITZ order. If two debts score the same, the smaller balance goes first, because it falls sooner and its payment then rolls to the next target.
Why include emotional weight? Some debts need to go early because of what they represent. Clearing a debt that carries real shame creates a breakthrough that changes the energy of your whole plan. It's the factor most debt advice ignores, and it's why people stick with the BLITZ.
ZARA, my free AI debt assistant, scores your debts for you, and the Break Free Forever book walks you through the whole method.
A worked example: Emma's BLITZ
Here's how it plays out in a worked example from the book. Emma has three debts and £150 a month of extra money, which I call Debt Destroyer Fuel, on top of her minimum payments.
| BLITZ order | Debt | Balance | Interest rate | Score (rate + balance + emotion) | Cleared in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Store card | £900 | 29% | 4 + 3 + 1 = 8 | Months 1 to 6 |
| 2nd | Credit card | £4,500 | 21% | 4 + 1 + 2 = 7 | Months 7 to 28 |
| 3rd | Personal loan | £8,000 | 9% | 2 + 1 + 0 = 3 | Months 28 to 40 |
The store card scores highest: a high rate, a small balance and some regret. The credit card carries the most shame, but its larger balance puts it second. Emma pays £174 a month at the store card (the £24 minimum plus her £150 fuel), and it's gone in six months. That £174 then rolls onto the credit card, on top of its £80 minimum, so £254 a month goes there. When the credit card falls, the £254 rolls onto the loan alongside its £180 payment.
Emma is debt-free in 40 months and pays about £2,870 in interest. On minimum payments alone, she'd have taken more than 30 years and paid £24,771 in interest.
Zero it and roll: the snowball inside the BLITZ
Whichever debt you target first, the engine is the same: clear it to zero, then roll its full payment onto the next debt. That's the Z of BLITZ: Zero it and roll.
The first debt usually takes longest. By the third or fourth, with all those rolled-over payments behind you, debts start falling fast. Zero it. Roll it. Repeat until you're done.
Tania started her BLITZ with more than €10,000 of debt. When her first debt was repaid, she wrote: "If you're on the Blitz plan and it feels like you're not getting there yet, take heart: it happens sooner than you think, and it's such a weight off your mind when that debt is gone for good."
The two rules that make any method work
No repayment order will work if new debt keeps arriving. Before you start, put two things in place.
- No new consumer debt. Not for an emergency, an opportunity or a well-earned treat. Paying off debt while adding more is like bailing out a boat while someone pours water back in.
- An Emergency Pot first. Keep about £800, $1,000, €1,000 or R10,000 in a separate account before you start, so a surprise bill never sends you back to the card. This is what broke my early attempts, and it's the step most snowball and avalanche plans leave out.
Questions people ask
Is the debt snowball or the avalanche faster?
On paper, the avalanche clears your debt slightly faster and for less interest. In real life, the faster method is the one you don't give up on. The BLITZ hybrid method keeps most of the avalanche's savings and adds the early wins that keep you going.
Is the debt snowball a bad idea?
No. Rolling each cleared payment onto the next debt is exactly how the Debt BLITZ works. The only risk is ignoring interest rates, which is why the BLITZ scores interest first.
How much extra should I pay each month?
Start with an amount you can commit to now, even if it's small, then increase it. Here's how to find extra money to pay off debt.
Get your BLITZ order in minutes
ZARA is my free AI debt assistant. Tell her what you owe and she scores every debt on interest rate, balance and emotional weight, sets your BLITZ order, and works out your freedom date. Save your plan at the end so you can come back to it.
Build your BLITZ plan free with ZARA
The Break Free Forever book takes you through the full Debt BLITZ, from listing every debt to finding your Debt Destroyer Fuel, and shows you how to stay out of debt for good once you're free.
If you're in serious financial difficulty, you don't have to work it out alone. Free, confidential help is available from StepChange, MoneyHelper or National Debtline in the UK, an NFCC-member non-profit credit counsellor in the US, or an NCR-registered debt counsellor in South Africa.
This article is for education only and isn't financial advice.
Written by Ann Wilson, founder of The Wealth Chef and author of The Wealth Chef and Break Free Forever. Debt-free since 1994 and financially free since 2006.
