How to Lower Debt to Income Ratio: The Math

On this page

• How to lower debt to income ratio: what moves it
• Which debt to pay first for the biggest DTI drop
• The trade-off: DTI order isn't interest order
• How mortgage lenders count what you pay down
• FHA loans
• VA loans
• Ask for a lower required payment
• Raise gross income
• Does debt consolidation lower your debt to income ratio?
• Work backward from the ratio you need
• If the payments don't fit at all
• Bottom line
• Common questions
• Sources

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How to lower debt to income ratio, in one line: make your required monthly debt payments smaller, or make your gross monthly income bigger. Those are the only two parts of the ratio, which the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) defines as all your monthly debt payments divided by your gross monthly income. Below, with the math shown, is which move shifts the number most for each dollar you have.

If you haven't worked out your ratio yet, or want to know what counts as high, start with our guide to what is a good debt to income ratio. This page assumes you have the number and want it lower.

How to lower debt to income ratio: what moves it

The CFPB's debt-to-income worksheet says your total monthly debt payment includes credit card, student, auto, and other loan payments, as well as court-ordered fixed payments, like child support, and that gross monthly income is all of your income before taxes and insurance. If you're applying for a home loan, the new housing payment joins the debts: VA's rule, for example, adds the Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance (PITI) of the loan being applied for to your long-term obligations.

So there are four levers:

1. Remove a payment by paying a debt off.
2. Shrink a payment by paying a balance down, if the required payment falls with it, or by asking the creditor for a lower one.
3. Raise gross income.
4. If you're buying a home, take on a smaller housing payment.

The worksheet puts the first one plainly: as your debt decreases, so will your debt-to-income ratio.

Which debt to pay first for the biggest DTI drop

Here's an example with made-up numbers, run through the same formula our calculator uses. Someone earns $5,000 a month before taxes and plans to apply for a mortgage with a $1,500 monthly housing payment. They have $2,400 saved that they can put toward debt.

$2,370 ÷ $5,000 = 47.4%. For card A's minimum, assume the issuer sets it at 3% of the balance (a made-up assumption; your statement shows your real minimum).

The same $2,400 can go to three places:

Paying off the car loan cuts the ratio by 8 points. The same money on the cards moves it by about 1.5. The reason is the ratio of payment to balance: the car loan's payment is $400 on $2,400 owed (about 16.7 cents of monthly payment per dollar of balance), while card A's assumed minimum is 3 cents per dollar.

To find your own best target, divide each debt's required payment by its balance and look at the highest. A debt you can pay off completely removes its whole payment.

The trade-off: DTI order isn't interest order

This order can be the opposite of the debt avalanche, which pays the highest interest rate first to save the most interest. Say card A charges 27% and the car loan 7% (both made up). While $2,400 sits on the card instead of the car loan, it costs roughly $40 a month more in interest ($2,400 × 20% ÷ 12 = $40). If you need the lower DTI for an application soon, that cost may be worth it. If you don't, the avalanche order may save more. Our debt avalanche vs snowball guide compares the two orders, and the payoff planner shows both with your numbers.

How mortgage lenders count what you pay down

If you're lowering your DTI for a home loan, your lender's rules decide what counts. Two federal programs spell some of them out.

FHA loans

HUD's FHA handbook says lenders must use the monthly payment shown on the credit report for the Revolving Charge Account, and where the report shows none, the payment on the current statement or 5% of the outstanding balance. So for an FHA loan, what counts is the payment the lender sees, not the balance.

The same handbook lets lenders leave out closed-end debts (such as a car loan) if they will be paid off within 10 months from the date of closing and the cumulative payments of all such debts are less than or equal to 5 percent of the Borrower's gross monthly income. Then comes the catch: The Borrower may not pay down the balance in order to meet the 10-month requirement. The handbook also says lenders must document that the funds used to pay off debts before closing came from an acceptable source, and that the borrower didn't take on new debts left out of the ratio.

VA loans

VA's rule treats significant liabilities as accounts that are, generally, of a relatively long term, i.e., 10 months or over. Shorter ones aren't ignored: the rule says other accounts for terms of less than 10 months must be considered in determining ability to meet family expenses, and gives the example of monthly payments of $300 on an auto loan with a remaining balance of $1,500, which would be included.

In the example above, paying the car loan off in full is what removes it. Ask your lender how it will treat a debt before you move money around, and keep records of where the money came from.

Ask for a lower required payment

You don't always need cash to shrink a payment. The CFPB suggests you try reaching out to your individual creditors to see if they will agree to lower your payments, and notes that some creditors might be willing to accept lower minimum monthly payments. If you're behind, the FTC's advice is to call the creditors you owe money to. Don't wait, and try to work out a new payment plan with lower payments you can manage.

Card companies' own versions of this are covered in our credit card hardship program guide, including the downsides.

Raise gross income

DTI divides by gross income, the amount before taxes and deductions, so it's your pay before taxes that counts. In the example, after paying off the car loan, a $300 monthly raise takes the ratio from 39.4% to $1,970 ÷ $5,300 = 37.2%.

Keep two things in mind. The CFPB worksheet says that if your income varies from month to month, it's better to estimate lower. And a lender may not count new income right away. FHA's handbook, for example, says a lender may use part-time income if the Borrower has worked a part-time job uninterrupted for the past two years and the current position is reasonably likely to continue.

Does debt consolidation lower your debt to income ratio?

Only when the new payment is smaller than the ones it replaces. The CFPB puts the catch this way: although your monthly payment might be lower, it may be because you're paying over a longer time, which could mean that you will pay a lot more overall, including fees or costs for the loan.

Back to the example. Cards A and B total $7,200 with $220 of minimums. Say a loan for $7,200 at 13% APR were available (made up, with no fees):

The 36-month loan raises the DTI, because its payment is higher than the card minimums. The 60-month loan lowers it by about a point, and costs $1,095.86 more in interest than the 36-month loan. In this example, paying off the car loan does more for the ratio than either.

Consolidation can still make sense for other reasons. Our guide to how debt consolidation works goes through the costs.

Work backward from the ratio you need

If a lender or program has given you a number, turn it into dollars. Multiply the target by your gross income to get the most you can pay in debt each month, then subtract the housing payment.

In the example, a 36% target (the CFPB worksheet's planning guideline for homeowners, mortgage included) works out to 0.36 × $5,000 = $1,800 of total payments. Take away the $1,500 housing payment and $300 is left for every other debt. Even with the car loan gone, the other payments add up to $470, so this person would still be $170 over.

This is where the fourth lever, the housing payment, comes in. With a $1,300 housing payment instead of $1,500 (also made up), the total would be $1,770 and the ratio $1,770 ÷ $5,000 = 35.4%.

Try your own numbers before and after each move. Enter your payments, your gross income and, if a lender gave you one, its limit.

If the payments don't fit at all

DTI runs on gross pay, so it can't tell you whether your payments fit what actually reaches your account. A budget can: our guide to making a budget works from take-home pay. If you're lowering your DTI because the payments are already too much, rather than for an application, talking to a credit counselor is another way in. The FTC notes that many counseling organizations charge low fees, but says to make sure you ask how much they'll charge you. If a counselor suggests a debt management plan, the FTC says it can take 48 months or more to complete. Our debt management plan guide explains how those plans work.

Bottom line

How to lower debt to income ratio comes down to arithmetic: remove or shrink required payments, or raise gross income. Per dollar, paying off a small debt with a large payment can do the most, consolidation helps only by lowering the payment, and a mortgage lender's counting rules decide what actually counts. Check the numbers with your lender before you move money. The Debt Check can show which ways of bringing your payments down fit your debts.

Common questions

Which debt should I pay off first to lower my DTI?

For the biggest drop in DTI per dollar, look at each debt's required monthly payment divided by its balance. Paying off a whole debt removes its full payment from the ratio, so a small loan with a big payment can move the number more than the same money put on a large card balance. That isn't always the cheapest order for interest, so weigh both.

Does paying down a credit card lower my debt-to-income ratio?

Only by as much as the required payment goes down. FHA's handbook, for example, tells the lender to use the monthly payment shown on the credit report for a revolving account, or the payment on the current statement or 5% of the balance when the report shows none.

Does debt consolidation lower your DTI?

Only if the new monthly payment is smaller than the payments it replaces. The CFPB says a consolidation payment might be lower, but that it may be because you're paying over a longer time, which could mean paying a lot more overall. A shorter loan can raise your DTI instead.

Can I pay down a car loan so a mortgage lender ignores it?

Not for an FHA loan. FHA lets a lender leave out closed-end debts that will be paid off within 10 months of closing if their payments add up to no more than 5% of gross monthly income, but says the borrower may not pay down the balance to meet the 10-month requirement. VA's rule says debts with less than 10 months left must still be considered.

Does a raise or a side job lower my DTI?

More gross income lowers the ratio, because DTI divides your monthly debt payments by gross monthly income. For a mortgage, the lender decides which income counts: FHA's handbook, for example, lets a lender use part-time income if you've worked the part-time job uninterrupted for the past two years and it's reasonably likely to continue.

Sources

1. 1CFPB: What is a debt-to-income ratio?
2. 2CFPB Your Money, Your Goals: Debt-to-income calculator
3. 3CFPB: What do I need to know if I'm thinking about consolidating my credit card debt?
4. 4HUD: Single Family Housing Policy Handbook 4000.1 (Update 18)
5. 538 CFR 36.4340: VA underwriting standards (Cornell LII)
6. 6FTC: How to get out of debt

By DebtCheckUSA Editorial Team. First published November 7, 2026. Advertiser disclosure