diff --git a/HISTORY.md b/HISTORY.md
index 4c42f0e..b58f790 100644
--- a/HISTORY.md
+++ b/HISTORY.md
@@ -8,6 +8,11 @@
 - **[Export] Richer export — JSON + date ranges** — `GET /api/export` now accepts a `from`/`to` date range (in addition to `year`) for CSV or JSON, and there's a new `GET /api/export/user-json` full portable JSON export (same assembly as the SQLite/Excel exports). The Download pane gains a JSON card and a filtered "Payments export" (date range + CSV/JSON). Test `tests/exportRicher.test.js`.
 - **[Data] "Erase my data" (danger zone)** — a self-service reset: `POST /api/user/erase-data` (rate-limited, type-to-confirm) transactionally wipes your financial + imported data (bills, payments, transactions, bank connections, categories, imports, rules) while **preserving your account, login, 2FA and preferences**, then re-seeds default categories and audits the action. Red-accented card in Export & backups with a type-to-confirm dialog. Test `tests/eraseUserData.test.js` (wipes only the requesting user, preserves others + the account).
 
+### 🔍 Snowball review
+
+- **[Debt] Payoff projection no longer fakes a "freedom" date when a debt can't be paid off** — if a debt's minimum payment never overcomes its interest and the rolling snowball can't cover it either, it never reaches $0. The simulation previously excluded that debt from `months_to_freedom` (a `Math.max` over payoff months treated "never" as 0), so it reported the *other* debts' last month as your payoff date — misleadingly optimistic. Now `months_to_freedom`/`payoff_date` are `null` when any active debt never clears, the result is flagged `capped`, and each such debt is marked `never_paid` (`services/snowballService.js`, `services/aprService.js`). (Snowball review #1)
+- **[Debt] Added the missing test coverage for all payoff math** — the debt-payoff engine (`calculateSnowball`/`calculateAvalanche`/`calculateMinimumOnly`/`amortizationSchedule`/`monthsToPayoff`/`debtAprSnapshot`) had **zero** automated tests despite being the most math-heavy code in the app. Added `tests/snowballMath.test.js` (12 tests) with hand-calculated examples (0% and 12% APR amortization rows, snowball rolling, avalanche-beats-snowball interest, skip reasons, APR breakdown) and the unpayable-debt edge above. (Snowball review #5)
+
 ### 🐛 QA Fixes
 
 - **[SimpleFIN] Purging a soft-deleted bill orphaned its matched transactions** — found on the live SimpleFIN DB: 3 transactions were `match_status='matched'` with `matched_bill_id=NULL`. Root cause: bills are soft-deleted (retained for recovery), then the retention GC (`pruneSoftDeletedFinancialRecords`, `services/cleanupService.js`) hard-deletes them past the 30-day window. `transactions.matched_bill_id` is `ON DELETE SET NULL`, so the purge nulled the pointer but left `match_status='matched'` — a limbo row **excluded from spending/analytics (`match_status != 'matched'`) yet attributed to no bill**, silently dropping that spend. The purge now releases those matches back to `'unmatched'` in the same transaction and self-heals any pre-existing orphans; retention behaviour is unchanged. Verified on a copy of the live DB (3→0 orphans, 0 transactions lost). Regression: 3 tests in `tests/backupAndCleanup.test.js`. (QA-B5-04)
diff --git a/services/aprService.js b/services/aprService.js
index 59d1bf3..a12ee61 100644
--- a/services/aprService.js
+++ b/services/aprService.js
@@ -167,20 +167,23 @@ function calculateMinimumOnly(debts, startDate = new Date()) {
     payoff_display: d.payoffMonth ? monthDisplay(d.payoffMonth) : null,
     total_interest: round2(d.totalInterest),
     months:         d.payoffMonth,
+    never_paid:     d.payoffMonth === null,
   }));
 
+  // Only report a payoff date if every active debt actually clears (see _simulate).
+  const allPaid       = active.every(d => d.payoffMonth !== null);
   const maxMonth      = Math.max(0, ...active.map(d => d.payoffMonth || 0));
   const totalInterest = sumMoney(active, d => d.totalInterest);
 
   return {
-    months_to_freedom:   maxMonth || null,
+    months_to_freedom:   allPaid && maxMonth ? maxMonth : null,
     total_interest_paid: round2(totalInterest),
-    payoff_date:         maxMonth ? monthLabel(maxMonth)   : null,
-    payoff_display:      maxMonth ? monthDisplay(maxMonth) : null,
+    payoff_date:         allPaid && maxMonth ? monthLabel(maxMonth)   : null,
+    payoff_display:      allPaid && maxMonth ? monthDisplay(maxMonth) : null,
     debts:               debtResults,
     skipped,
     extra_payment:       0,
-    capped:              month >= MAX_MONTHS,
+    capped:              month >= MAX_MONTHS || !allPaid,
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/services/snowballService.js b/services/snowballService.js
index fee0eab..8239211 100644
--- a/services/snowballService.js
+++ b/services/snowballService.js
@@ -111,20 +111,26 @@ function _simulate(orderedDebts, extraPayment, startDate) {
     payoff_display: d.payoffMonth ? monthDisplay(d.payoffMonth) : null,
     total_interest: round2(d.totalInterest),
     months:         d.payoffMonth,
+    never_paid:     d.payoffMonth === null, // minimum never overcomes interest
   }));
 
+  // A payoff date only exists if EVERY active debt actually reaches $0. If a
+  // debt's minimum never overcomes its interest (and the snowball can't cover
+  // it), it never pays off — reporting the other debts' last month would be a
+  // misleadingly optimistic "freedom" date, so return null and mark it capped.
+  const allPaid       = active.every(d => d.payoffMonth !== null);
   const maxMonth      = Math.max(0, ...active.map(d => d.payoffMonth || 0));
   const totalInterest = sumMoney(active, d => d.totalInterest);
 
   return {
-    months_to_freedom:   maxMonth || null,
+    months_to_freedom:   allPaid && maxMonth ? maxMonth : null,
     total_interest_paid: round2(totalInterest),
-    payoff_date:         maxMonth ? monthLabel(maxMonth)   : null,
-    payoff_display:      maxMonth ? monthDisplay(maxMonth) : null,
+    payoff_date:         allPaid && maxMonth ? monthLabel(maxMonth)   : null,
+    payoff_display:      allPaid && maxMonth ? monthDisplay(maxMonth) : null,
     debts:               debtResults,
     skipped,
     extra_payment:       extra,
-    capped:              month >= MAX_MONTHS,
+    capped:              month >= MAX_MONTHS || !allPaid,
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/tests/snowballMath.test.js b/tests/snowballMath.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..52ee64c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/snowballMath.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,137 @@
+'use strict';
+
+// Debt-payoff math (Snowball review #5 + #1). Pure functions — hand-calculated
+// examples, plus the unpayable-debt edge where a minimum never overcomes interest.
+const test = require('node:test');
+const assert = require('node:assert/strict');
+
+const { calculateSnowball, calculateAvalanche } = require('../services/snowballService');
+const {
+  monthlyInterest, monthsToPayoff, amortizationSchedule,
+  calculateMinimumOnly, debtAprSnapshot,
+} = require('../services/aprService');
+
+// ── primitives ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+test('monthlyInterest = balance × APR/12', () => {
+  assert.equal(monthlyInterest(1000, 12), 10);   // 1% / month
+  assert.equal(monthlyInterest(1000, 0), 0);
+  assert.equal(monthlyInterest(-5, 12), 0);      // clamped
+});
+
+test('monthsToPayoff — hand examples + edge cases', () => {
+  assert.equal(monthsToPayoff(1000, 0, 100), 10);   // no interest: 1000/100
+  assert.equal(monthsToPayoff(0, 12, 100), 0);      // already paid
+  assert.equal(monthsToPayoff(1000, 12, 0), null);  // no payment
+  assert.equal(monthsToPayoff(1000, 12, 5), null);  // 5 < 1000×1% interest → never
+  assert.ok(monthsToPayoff(1000, 12, 100) > 10);    // interest adds a few months
+});
+
+test('amortizationSchedule — APR=0 is principal-only', () => {
+  const s = amortizationSchedule(1000, 0, 100);
+  assert.equal(s.length, 10);
+  assert.deepEqual(s[0], { month: 1, payment: 100, principal: 100, interest: 0, balance: 900 });
+  assert.equal(s[9].balance, 0);
+});
+
+test('amortizationSchedule — first row of a 12% APR loan', () => {
+  const s = amortizationSchedule(1000, 12, 100);
+  // interest = 1000×0.01 = 10; principal = 90; balance = 910
+  assert.deepEqual(s[0], { month: 1, payment: 100, principal: 90, interest: 10, balance: 910 });
+});
+
+test('amortizationSchedule — unpayable / invalid returns []', () => {
+  assert.deepEqual(amortizationSchedule(1000, 12, 5), []);   // payment < interest
+  assert.deepEqual(amortizationSchedule(0, 12, 100), []);    // no balance
+  assert.deepEqual(amortizationSchedule(1000, 12, 0), []);   // no payment
+});
+
+// ── snowball simulation ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+test('calculateSnowball rolls a freed minimum into the next debt (0% hand example)', () => {
+  // A(200/min100) then B(300/min100), no interest, no extra.
+  // m1: A→100, B→200 · m2: A→0 (payoff m2, roll +100), B→100 · m3: B→0 (payoff m3)
+  const r = calculateSnowball([
+    { id: 1, name: 'A', current_balance: 200, minimum_payment: 100, interest_rate: 0 },
+    { id: 2, name: 'B', current_balance: 300, minimum_payment: 100, interest_rate: 0 },
+  ], 0);
+  assert.equal(r.months_to_freedom, 3);
+  assert.equal(r.total_interest_paid, 0);
+  assert.equal(r.debts.find(d => d.id === 1).payoff_month, 2);
+  assert.equal(r.debts.find(d => d.id === 2).payoff_month, 3);
+  assert.equal(r.capped, false);
+});
+
+test('calculateAvalanche pays less interest than snowball when order matters', () => {
+  const debts = [
+    { id: 1, name: 'Low APR',  current_balance: 1000, minimum_payment: 100, interest_rate: 5 },
+    { id: 2, name: 'High APR', current_balance: 1000, minimum_payment: 100, interest_rate: 30 },
+  ];
+  const sb = calculateSnowball(debts, 200);   // attacks id 1 first (given order)
+  const av = calculateAvalanche(debts, 200);  // reorders → attacks id 2 (30%) first
+  assert.ok(av.total_interest_paid <= sb.total_interest_paid, 'avalanche ≤ snowball interest');
+  assert.equal(av.months_to_freedom != null, true);
+});
+
+test('UNPAYABLE debt: minimum below interest → months_to_freedom null, capped, never_paid (#1)', () => {
+  // 1000 @ 24% APR = 20/mo interest, min 10 → balance grows forever.
+  const r = calculateSnowball([
+    { id: 1, name: 'Stuck', current_balance: 1000, minimum_payment: 10, interest_rate: 24 },
+  ], 0);
+  assert.equal(r.months_to_freedom, null, 'no honest payoff date');
+  assert.equal(r.payoff_date, null);
+  assert.equal(r.capped, true);
+  assert.equal(r.debts[0].never_paid, true);
+});
+
+test('UNPAYABLE debt among payable ones does not fake a freedom date (#1)', () => {
+  // The rolled snowball ($50) is far too small to ever cover Stuck's ~$300/mo
+  // interest, so Stuck never clears even after Payable is gone.
+  const r = calculateSnowball([
+    { id: 1, name: 'Payable', current_balance: 50,    minimum_payment: 50, interest_rate: 0 },
+    { id: 2, name: 'Stuck',   current_balance: 10000, minimum_payment: 10, interest_rate: 36 },
+  ], 0);
+  assert.equal(r.months_to_freedom, null, 'one unpayable debt ⇒ not free');
+  assert.equal(r.capped, true);
+  assert.equal(r.debts.find(d => d.id === 1).payoff_month, 1); // payable one still records its month
+  assert.equal(r.debts.find(d => d.id === 2).never_paid, true);
+});
+
+test('calculateSnowball skips zero / missing balances', () => {
+  const r = calculateSnowball([
+    { id: 1, name: 'Zero', current_balance: 0,    minimum_payment: 50, interest_rate: 0 },
+    { id: 2, name: 'Null', current_balance: null, minimum_payment: 50, interest_rate: 0 },
+    { id: 3, name: 'Real', current_balance: 100,  minimum_payment: 100, interest_rate: 0 },
+  ], 0);
+  assert.equal(r.debts.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(r.skipped.length, 2);
+  assert.deepEqual(r.skipped.map(s => s.reason).sort(), ['no_balance', 'zero_balance']);
+});
+
+// ── minimum-only baseline ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+test('calculateMinimumOnly flags its skip reasons', () => {
+  const r = calculateMinimumOnly([
+    { id: 1, name: 'NoBal',  current_balance: null, minimum_payment: 50, interest_rate: 0 },
+    { id: 2, name: 'Stuck',  current_balance: 1000, minimum_payment: 5,  interest_rate: 12 }, // 5 < 10 interest
+    { id: 3, name: 'NoMin',  current_balance: 500,  minimum_payment: 0,  interest_rate: 0 },
+    { id: 4, name: 'Good',   current_balance: 300,  minimum_payment: 100, interest_rate: 0 },
+  ]);
+  const reasons = Object.fromEntries(r.skipped.map(s => [s.name, s.reason]));
+  assert.equal(reasons.NoBal, 'no_balance');
+  assert.equal(reasons.Stuck, 'payment_below_interest');
+  assert.equal(reasons.NoMin, 'no_minimum_payment');
+  assert.equal(r.debts.length, 1);        // only "Good" is active
+  assert.equal(r.months_to_freedom, 3);   // 300 / 100
+});
+
+// ── APR snapshot ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+test('debtAprSnapshot breaks down a minimum payment', () => {
+  const snap = debtAprSnapshot({ current_balance: 1000, interest_rate: 12, minimum_payment: 50 });
+  assert.equal(snap.monthly_interest, 10);        // 1000 × 1%
+  assert.equal(snap.principal_per_min_pmt, 40);   // 50 − 10
+  assert.equal(snap.interest_pct_of_min, 20);     // 10/50
+  assert.equal(snap.annual_interest_estimate, 120);
+  assert.equal(debtAprSnapshot({ current_balance: 0 }), null);
+});