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Debt Descent is a native debt-payoff planner for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Add your debts, compare the Snowball and Avalanche methods, and see exactly when you’ll be debt-free. There’s no account or sign-up, and nothing is ever sent to me.
Frequently asked questions
Is my financial data private? Yes. Your data lives on your device and in your own private iCloud, where I can’t see it. There are no accounts, analytics, or servers of my own. See the Privacy Policy.
Does my data sync between my iPhone, iPad, and Mac? Yes, automatically, and it’s free for everyone. Just be signed in to iCloud with the same Apple Account on each device; there’s nothing to set up in the app. If you’re not signed in, Debt Descent works fully on-device, and syncing picks up when you sign in.
I signed out of iCloud and the app looks empty. Is my data gone? No. When you sign out of iCloud (or turn iCloud off for Debt Descent), the system removes the synced copy from that device, which is standard for synced apps. Your data is still in your own private iCloud and comes right back when you sign in again. If you want a copy that stays on the device regardless, use Export to JSON before signing out.
What does Debt Descent Pro include, and how much is it? Pro is a one-time $14.99 purchase (no subscription) that unlocks the five payoff methods beyond the free Snowball and Avalanche (one of them a custom order you set yourself), the what-if slider and per-debt payoff tests, planned windfalls, refinance modeling (including applying the deal in one step), amortization schedules, PDF/calendar export, and due-date reminders. One purchase unlocks Pro on your iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
I bought Pro but don’t see it on a new device. It should unlock automatically when you’re signed in with the same Apple Account. Pro is Family Sharing enabled too, so the members of your Family Sharing group get it on their devices without buying it again. If it doesn’t appear, open the paywall (tap any “PRO” feature, or the ••• menu, then “Unlock Debt Descent Pro”) and tap Restore Purchases.
I have an offer code. Where do I enter it? In Settings, tap Redeem a code…, or tap Redeem a Code on the paywall. Apple’s redeem sheet opens, and Pro unlocks once the code goes through.
How do I import a statement? Use Import Statement (the ••• menu, or File ▸ Import Statement on Mac) and pick a PDF, or a photo of the statement, which is how a Mac uses a Continuity Camera capture. On iPhone and iPad you can also tap Scan (beside “Add a debt”) to photograph a paper statement with the camera. Either way, Debt Descent reads the balance, APR, minimum, and due date on your device, and shows you every field to confirm before anything is saved.
Can it read my paystub? Yes. Open Income & bills and tap Scan a paystub to photograph one with the camera (iPhone and iPad), or Read from a paystub… to use a photo or a PDF. A review sheet shows the net pay and pay frequency it found so you can check both against the stub, and nothing is saved until you confirm. They land in Income & bills as your take-home pay and cadence. Like statement reading, it runs on your device, and the paystub is never uploaded.
Can Debt Descent connect to my bank? No. There’s no account and no bank linking, and nothing leaves your device. Balances come from your statements instead: import the PDF, scan the paper one, or update the balance by hand when the statement posts.
One monthly payment covers several of my debts. Can Debt Descent track that? Yes, and payment groups are free for everyone. On the Payments tab, add a payment group, pick the debts it covers, and enter the monthly amount that reaches them. Log the payment once and Debt Descent splits it across the group to the cent, following the servicer’s own schedule when every member has a fixed payment. If your plan keeps a fee (it drafts more than it sends to your creditors), record that in the Plan fee field. The app then matches your bank statement while keeping the fee out of your payoff math.
A debt in a payment group shows a different due date than its statement. Why? Because that’s the date your money goes out. A debt enrolled in a group shows the group’s payment date everywhere: upcoming payments, reminders, calendar export. The creditor’s own due date isn’t overwritten; it comes back the moment the debt leaves the group.
My student loan is in deferment. How do I enter it? Add or edit the loan and turn on In deferment — nothing due yet, then set the date the deferment ends. Until that date the loan sits out of your plan: nothing is due, it stays off upcoming payments and reminders, and the payoff math skips it. When the date arrives it rejoins the plan on its own, and its payment comes out of your extra first, so the monthly total you’ve committed doesn’t change. Enter the eventual monthly payment if you know it (the row shows it as “$150/mo after”) or add it later. If the loan is subsidized (no interest accrues while it’s deferred), also turn on No interest during deferment (subsidized) and the balance holds still until the date. Deferment is available for loans, not cards.
I want to watch a balance without paying it off in the plan (a mortgage, a 0% loan). Choose Track only in the debt’s menu. The debt stays in your list with its balance and due date, and its row reads “Tracked · not in the plan”, but the payoff math, your extra, and the debt-free date leave it out. Choose Put back in plan when you want it back in. Mortgage is one of the debt kinds, alongside cards, loans, and medical debt.
I logged a payment, but the balance doesn’t include the interest my card charged. That’s intentional. Debt Descent treats your balance as “what your statement says”: logging a payment takes exactly what you paid off the tracked balance, and the app never adds its own interest estimate, because card interest depends on average daily balance, posting dates, and fees, so any figure the app invented would drift from your actual statement. When your next statement posts, update the balance (edit the debt, or import the statement) and that catches the interest charge. Your plan (the debt-free date, total interest, and method comparisons) does fully model interest at each debt’s APR; only the live balance stays anchored to your statements, so you can always verify it against them.
Why didn’t I get a milestone card for a debt I paid off? Milestone cards on the Plan tab mark your first payment, a quarter, half, and three quarters paid off, a debt paid off, and debt-free, and they only cover the last 45 days. A payoff from before you installed 1.16 won’t get one. It’s still in your Payments history, and the next milestone you reach gets its card. Each card has a Share your progress button, and you can dismiss it once you’ve seen it.
Can I use Siri or Shortcuts? Yes. Ask Siri “When am I debt-free in Debt Descent” or “How much interest am I saving in Debt Descent”, or say “Log a payment to [debt name] in Debt Descent” to record one. The Shortcuts app has those actions plus “Set my [debt] balance” and “Add a debt”, so you can chain them into your own shortcuts. On the Mac the same actions appear in Spotlight. Your debts are in Spotlight as well: type a card’s name to see its balance, and select it to open the debt in the app.
Is there a widget? Yes, for the home screen, the lock screen, and the Mac desktop. It shows your debt-free date, what’s left, and how far along you are, and its Log payment button opens the app to record one. The widget reads a snapshot the app writes, so after you install 1.16, open Debt Descent once and the widget fills in. With no debts yet it says “Add a debt”.
Can I watch today’s interest add up? Yes. In Settings ▸ Plan, turn on Interest today tile (it’s off by default). The Plan tab then shows how much interest has accrued so far today and how much it’s costing per day.
Is there a menu bar item on the Mac? Yes. In Settings ▸ Plan, turn on Show in the menu bar. Your method’s glyph and your debt-free month sit in the menu bar, and clicking them shows what’s left with a Log Payment button.
Why are amounts in £ or € instead of $? Amounts follow your device’s region, so the app shows £, €, CA$, and so on where that’s the local currency. The app’s text is in English either way.
How do I back up my data? Use Export to JSON (••• menu / File menu) to save a complete backup, and Import from JSON to restore it on any device. Backup and restore are free for everyone. Your data is never behind the paywall. (iCloud sync keeps your devices in step, but it isn’t a backup. Deleting a debt removes it everywhere, so an occasional JSON export is still the safety net.)
How do I start over? Use Purge All Data (••• menu) to erase everything and start blank. On an empty app the menu also offers Load Sample Data, a fabricated demo set. It only appears while there are no debts, so it can’t replace your data by accident.