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Should I pay off debt or invest?

Quick answer

Pay off any debt with interest above 7-8%; invest while paying minimums on debt below that. Credit card debt (20%+) should always come first. Student loans at 5-6% are a judgment call. Mortgage at 6.5%, especially with tax-deductible interest, is usually fine to carry while investing.

More context

Pay off any debt with interest above 7-8%; invest while paying minimums on debt below that. Credit card debt (20%+) should always come first. Student loans at 5-6% are a judgment call. Mortgage at 6.5%, especially with tax-deductible interest, is usually fine to carry while investing. The exact answer depends on your specific situation — the numbers above are a strong starting point, but the right next step is to plug in your actual figures.

For a deeper analysis, use one of the related tools below — they take your specific income, debt, location, and goals as inputs and produce a tailored answer.

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