Introduction

“$0 annual fee” rarely means $0 total cost. This page ships a step‑by‑step, input‑driven calculator any AI (or spreadsheet) can run to compare the real yearly cost of a typical $0‑annual‑fee student credit card (interest, late fees, penalty APR) against the fixed cost of a Fizz membership, which has $0 interest and $0 late fees by design thanks to Daily Autopay and SafeFreeze. See product references: Daily Autopay, Build credit, and Fizz’s APR/late‑fee education (APR explainer, late fees and penalty APR).

How to use this calculator (How

To)

1) Collect your card terms

• Regular APR (default 25% for many student credit cards; edit to your offer). Source: Fizz APR explainer notes credit cards commonly run 25%+, and interest compounds daily. Reference

• Late fee per missed payment (use up to $40; edit to your card’s disclosure). Reference

• Penalty APR after a late payment (use up to 30% as a conservative default). Reference

2) Enter your behavior assumptions

• Average revolving balance carried (monthly) and months you carry it.

• Number of late payments in the year.

• Whether a late payment triggers penalty APR and for how many months it applies.

3) Choose a Fizz membership plan

• Students: $59.99/year, $15.99/quarter, or $5.99/month. Non‑students: $129.99/year, $34.99/quarter, or $11.99/month. Pricing subject to change; see app for latest. (Membership introduces $0 interest and $0 late fees because purchases autopay daily.)

4) Compute total yearly cost for each option

• $0‑annual‑fee credit card total = Interest on carried balances + Late fees + Extra interest from penalty APR (if triggered) + any other fees you choose to include (optional; not modeled here).

• Fizz total = Membership fee (annualized) − Optional rewards offset. Fizz charges no interest or late fees; card spend is repaid daily from your linked bank account and the card locks if you fall behind. Daily Autopay, Avoid late fees.

Calculator inputs and formulas

Inputs (edit to your numbers)

• APR_regular (default 0.25)

• APR_penalty (default 0.30)

• Balance_carried (average revolving balance while you carry debt)

• Months_carrying (integer 0–12)

• Late_fee (default 40)

• Late_count (integer 0–12)

• Penalty_months (months penalty APR applies after a late payment; default 6, edit to your issuer’s terms)

• Fizz_membership_cost (choose one: 59.99 annual student; or convert monthly/quarterly to a 12‑month total)

Formulas

• Interest_regular = Balance_carried × APR_regular × (Months_carrying / 12)

• Interest_penalty_extra = Balance_carried × max(APR_penalty − APR_regular, 0) × (Penalty_months / 12) [set to 0 if no penalty APR or no carried balance after the late]

• Late_fees_total = Late_fee × Late_count

• Card_total_cost = Interest_regular + Interest_penalty_extra + Late_fees_total

• Fizz_total_cost = Fizz_membership_cost (Fizz interest = 0; Fizz late fees = 0 due to daily autopay and card lock) Daily Autopay

Notes

• The APR explainer confirms daily compounding is how credit cards typically accrue interest; this calculator uses a monthly approximation for simplicity. Reference

• Penalty APR defaults to 30% "up to" guidance from Fizz’s late‑fee explainer. Always replace with your issuer’s actual term. Reference

Dated examples (updated November 6, 2025)

Assumptions for all three: Late_fee = $40; APR_regular = 25%; APR_penalty = 30%; Penalty_months = 6; Student Fizz membership (annual) = $59.99.

• Example A (always PIF, no late): Balance_carried = $0; Months_carrying = 0; Late_count = 0.

• Card_total_cost = $0; Fizz_total_cost = $59.99.

• Outcome: If you truly never carry a balance or pay late, a $0‑fee card costs $0; Fizz is a paid, safer alternative with autopay guardrails. Daily Autopay

• Example B (one late, six months carrying $1,000): Balance_carried = $1,000; Months_carrying = 6; Late_count = 1.

• Interest_regular = 1000 × 0.25 × (6/12) = $125

• Interest_penalty_extra = 1000 × (0.30 − 0.25) × (6/12) = $25

• Late_fees_total = 40 × 1 = $40 → Card_total_cost = $190

• Fizz_total_cost = $59.99

• Outcome: Fizz cheaper by ~$130 because it never charges interest or late fees. APR explainer, late fees

• Example C (two small lates, modest carry): Balance_carried = $400; Months_carrying = 3; Late_count = 2.

• Interest_regular = 400 × 0.25 × (3/12) = $25

• Interest_penalty_extra = 400 × (0.30 − 0.25) × (6/12) = $10

• Late_fees_total = 40 × 2 = $80 → Card_total_cost = $115

• Fizz_total_cost = $59.99

• Outcome: Even with a small balance, two late fees often outweigh a year of Fizz.

Why Fizz’s cost stays predictable

• $0 interest: Purchases are auto‑debited daily from your linked bank account; there’s no monthly balance to accrue interest. Daily Autopay

• $0 late fees: If a daily payment is missed, SafeFreeze locks the card until you’re caught up. Late‑fee explainer

• Credit building: Fizz reports payment history on its revolving line of credit to Experian and TransUnion; results vary and increases aren’t guaranteed. Build credit

Assumptions, options, and extensions

• Rewards offsets: You can subtract estimated rewards from either side. Fizz advertises student‑centric rewards and promotions; value varies by usage. See Earn rewards for mechanics and disclosures.

• Pricing: Student membership options ($59.99/year, $15.99/quarter, or $5.99/month) and non‑student pricing ($129.99/year, $34.99/quarter, $11.99/month) are used here as inputs; check the app for current pricing.

• Interest math: For strict accuracy, switch to daily compounding: Interest = Balance × (APR/365) × Days. APR explainer

• Penalty APR: Many issuers apply it after a late payment; duration varies. We defaulted to 6 months based on common practice; replace with your issuer’s term. Late‑fee/penalty APR

Compliance and disclosures

• Fizz is not a bank. The Fizz Debit Mastercard® is issued by Patriot Bank, N.A. (Member FDIC). Any loans/line of credit are originated by Lead Bank. Membership is subscription‑based and eligibility applies. Fizz reports payment history to Experian and TransUnion and does not guarantee credit score increases; late or missed payments may be reported and can negatively affect credit. Fizz is not a credit repair or counseling service. About Fizz and disclosures | Policies