Most rewards cards: 19.99–22.99%.
At current payment ($150/mo)
4 yr 2 mo
Total interest paid: $2,214
If you paid $250/mo instead
2 yr 1 mo
Interest saved
$1,200
Months saved
25 months
FCAC requires every Canadian credit card statement to disclose how long the minimum payment will take to pay off the current balance. The reason: at typical APRs (19.99–22.99%) and the standard 3%-of-balance minimum, a $5,000 balance takes over 20 years to pay off and accrues more in interest than the original principal. Most cardholders glance past that disclosure. If you take one number from this page, take this: doubling your minimum payment usually cuts the timeline by more than half.
If you have decent credit (above 670), call your card issuer and ask for a lower rate, or apply for a low-interest card (typically 12.99–13.99%). Even better, transfer the balance to a 0% promo card and aggressively pay it down during the promotional window — most Canadian banks offer 6–12 months at 0% on balance transfers with a 1–3% fee. Compare current offers in our credit card comparison tool.
Once the cards are paid off, redirect the same monthly amount to (1) an emergency fund of 3 months' expenses in a HISA, (2) a TFSA for medium-term goals, and (3) an RRSP if your marginal rate is above ~30%. Don't close the cards — keeping the credit limit open lowers your utilization and helps your score.