A person that has made up their mind and is serious about getting debt free, will do what they want. But paying off the smallest debt first is always going to be faster than a higher debt. It allows you to see an end result sooner, thus providing encouragement to maintain the momentum. For most, attempting to pay off that $80K debt before the $25K debt results in discouragement of feeling they'll never see that light at the end of the tunnel. They usually give up and just quit trying. If one just ignores the interest rate and just "works it" from the smallest first, they can see actual tangible results that much sooner.
With an $80K debt at 10% interest and a 25K debt at 1% interest, there is no question one can pay off the smaller debt first. That instantly frees up the amount of that payment allowing the person to see actual, physical and tangible results much sooner. Thus, that payoff adds to the motivation to keep going with the next debt, now that you have that much more extra from the paid off debt to throw at it. So that's why the interest rate is a moot point a vast majority of the time.
But the bottom line is, those who "truly" desire to get out of debt, are going to do it their way. But before deciding what "their way" will be, the smart ones will ask questions to educate themselves and potential increasing the choices they can pick from for "their way". So putting interest rate over total amount of the debt isn't necessarily a bad thing, or the wrong way. For many, it's the long way. But so what if it works for you?
