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Technical Debt Paydown Simulator
Model tech debt reduction over time, calculate velocity impact, and project ROI. Plan sustainable debt paydown strategies with data-driven insights.
Current State
Total estimated effort to resolve all tech debt
Time Allocation
0% (No debt work)50% (Half capacity)
= 32.0 engineering days per month
0% (No impact)50% (High impact)
Paying down debt will increase velocity by up to 10.0 points
Debt Items (3)
Simulation
How far to project (1-36 months)
ROI Analysis
Positive ROI
Net Gain: 16 story points over 12 months
Months to Paydown
4
Months to Break-Even
6.5
Opportunity Cost
-64
Velocity Gain
+80
Prioritized Debt Items
#1CRITICAL
Monolith refactoring
Effort: 30 days
Impact: 9/10
#2HIGH
Test coverage improvement
Effort: 20 days
Impact: 7/10
#3MEDIUM
Legacy API deprecation
Effort: 15 days
Impact: 6/10
Velocity Projection
Month 0
40 pts
Month 3
48 pts
Month 6
50 pts
Month 9
50 pts
Month 12
50 pts
Velocity increases as debt is paid down, eventually reaching 50 points
Recommendations
•
Focus on critical items first: Highest impact debt will accelerate velocity gains
•
Consistent allocation: Maintain 20% allocation every sprint for predictable paydown
•
Track velocity: Measure actual velocity improvements to validate impact assumptions
⭐ Unlock Pro Features
Pro ($29/month):
- ✓ Multi-scenario comparison
- ✓ Velocity impact analysis
- ✓ Risk reduction visualization
- ✓ Excel export with projections
- ✓ Quarterly planning recommendations
Team ($99/month):
- ✓ Everything in Pro
- ✓ Monte Carlo simulation for uncertainty
- ✓ Team capacity modeling
- ✓ Multi-year roadmap integration
- ✓ Historical debt tracking