Debt-to-income calculator

The four DTI zones

• ≤36% back-end (Healthy): Lenders love you. You have substantial room for retirement savings (≥15% of income recommended), emergency fund growth, and lifestyle. Almost any mortgage product is available.
• 36-43% (Caution): Still within conventional lending limits for most mortgages, but your buffer is thin. A medical emergency, lost job, or interest rate spike on variable debt could push you into stress quickly.
• 43-50% (Stretched): Most conventional lenders decline. FHA may approve with compensating factors (high credit score, large down payment, cash reserves). At this DTI you're functionally house-poor — debt payoff or income growth becomes the financial priority.
• ≥50% (Critical): Above almost all lender ceilings. Any unexpected expense triggers a debt spiral. Top action: identify and aggressively pay down the highest-APR debt first (usually credit cards), or restructure (debt consolidation at a lower rate, balance transfer 0% APR offers).

Why DTI matters more than credit score for big purchases

Credit score (FICO) measures your history of paying debt on time. DTI measures your current capacity to add more debt. A 780 FICO with 48% DTI gets declined for a mortgage; a 680 FICO with 28% DTI sails through. Lenders care more about whether you can afford the new payment than whether you've been a good past borrower — defaults happen when capacity collapses, not when credit history alone is weak.

The order to attack high DTI

1. Kill smallest credit card balance. The minimum payment line item disappears completely — instant DTI drop.
2. Refinance high-APR debts (credit cards, personal loans) to lower-rate alternatives (0% balance transfer, HELOC if owning home with equity, personal loan from credit union).
3. Negotiate auto loan extension if you have a short remaining term making the monthly payment large. Counterintuitive: extending term lowers monthly payment but raises total interest. For DTI purposes, only the monthly matters.
4. Income growth. A 10% raise compounds permanently and helps DTI mechanically. Asking for a raise or job-hopping (typical 20%+ bumps) is the highest-leverage move.
5. Co-signed debt review. Co-signed loans count against your DTI even if the primary signer pays. If you co-signed for an adult child or partner, get the loan refinanced into their name alone before any major credit application.

Lender-specific DTI ceilings (2026)

Related calculators

• How much house can I afford — DTI applied to home price
• How much car can I afford — 20/4/10 rule for auto loans
• Credit card payoff calculator — fastest path to drop the CC line from your DTI
• Take-home pay calculator — what's actually arriving each month