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What Is the Minimum Payment on a Credit Card?

3 min read
Last Updated: March 27, 2025
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Key Takeaways

  1. Your minimum payment is the lowest amount you must pay toward your monthly credit card statement balance.

  2. If you don't make your minimum payment on time, your card issuer may charge a late fee and penalty interest.

  3. Setting up automatic payments or account alerts can help you make payments on time.

Your monthly credit card statement is full of important information. The most important part is your statement balance and minimum payment amount.

The minimum payment on a credit card represents the smallest amount you must pay toward your monthly statement balance to keep your account current. If you make this payment late or miss it altogether, it could affect your credit and your chances to get new credit.

Minimum payment vs. statement balance

Your monthly credit card statements include your minimum payment amount and your statement balance. Your statement balance is the total charges as of the day your billing cycle ends.

You need to pay your minimum payment on or before your payment due date to keep your account current. If you want to avoid paying interest,  you need to pay the full statement balance. When you only make the minimum payment due, you’ll pay interest on the balance you carry past the due date (if you’re not enrolled in a 0% interest rate).

Your credit card issuer might offer a special introductory interest rate as part of a promotion. If it’s a 0% offer, you can make minimum monthly payments during that period without accruing interest. Be mindful and repay your statement balance before the intro period ends.

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Your credit card statement should also include a disclosure about your minimum payment. This disclosure will explain how long it may take to pay off your statement balance if you only make the minimum payments.

You can use the Discover credit card interest calculator to see what interest you'll owe on any credit card balance. You can set it to see how increasing your monthly payments might help you pay down your credit card debt sooner.

How is your minimum payment calculated?

When you open a credit account, you agree to specific payment terms. These terms include making a minimum monthly payment toward your balance. Typically, your minimum payment isn’t a set amount but a percentage of your statement balance. Your balance might include interest and applicable fees. This means your minimum payment can change based on what you owe.

If you carry a low outstanding balance, you'll have a low minimum payment amount; a higher outstanding balance will result in a higher minimum payment due.

Review your credit card company's terms and conditions to understand how your credit issuer calculates your minimum credit card payment.

What if your minimum payment is late?

Late payments can lower your credit score and appear on your credit report. Even if you only pay a portion of the minimum monthly payment amount, you can hurt your credit and run the risk of incurring penalty fees.

Did you know?

A card issuer may charge late fees for payments made after they’re due. Some credit card companies may also impose a higher penalty interest rate. But Discover has no late fee on your first late payment.1

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According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, late fees can't exceed the minimum amount due. But late fees can increase, especially if you’re late on payments more than twice within a short span of time.

Need help making your minimum payments on time? Consider setting up automatic monthly payments or using text and email alerts to notify you when your payment is due.

The bottom line

Your credit card minimum payment is a number you need to know. As you understand the role it plays in your borrowing, it can help you successfully handle your credit card account.

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