<prompt> Human: Edit: Thank you for the excellent advice ITT! I believe given my situation and risk tolerance, paying the debt off at once is the way to goI pay 350 each month for my student loans under income based repayment, which comes out to 4300 a year. If I invested my 40,000 savings, I would need an 11 return to make around 4300, and it is unlikely I would be able to find an investment opportunity that gives 11. If I pay off the 25,000 debt at 6.8 interest, I would still have 6 months of emergency savings left over. I dont have any other debt.Am I making the best decision?  <response>: Markets fluctuate, todays sure thing can turn into tomorrows total loss. The surest return on investment that youll ever find is the elimination of debt. Better to have a sure shot at 0, than the possibility of an increase in value. Fortunately, youve got enough to do both. Pay off the debt, drop 10k into your retirement account, and squirrel away 5k in something more liquid for a rainy day. 