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DebtFree calculator

Loan Payment Calculator

Enter a loan amount, interest rate and term to see the monthly payment on a fixed-rate loan and the total interest you’d pay over its life. It suits car loans, personal loans and debt consolidation loans, and it compares your term with shorter and longer ones side by side.

Your numbers

The loan’s interest rate. The APR can be a little higher because it includes certain fees.

Calculated in your browser. Nothing you enter is saved or sent anywhere.

Results

Monthly payment
$400.76
Total interest
$4,046
Total of payments
$24,046

What this means

Borrowing $20,000 at 7.50% for 60 months means a payment of about $400.76 a month and $4,046 of interest over the life of the loan.

In the first month, $125.00 of the payment is interest. That share shrinks each month as the balance falls, so more of every payment goes to the balance.

Stretching the same loan to 72 months would lower the payment to $345.80 but raise total interest to $4,898.

Remaining balance by month$0$5.4k$10.8k$16.2k$21.6k091827364554
Remaining balance by month
The same loan over different terms
TermMonthly paymentTotal interest
24 months$899.99$1,600
36 months$622.12$2,396
48 months$483.58$3,212
60 months (yours)$400.76$4,046
72 months$345.80$4,898
84 months$306.77$5,768
  • Assumes a fixed rate and equal monthly payments. A lender’s figures can differ slightly because of rounding, fees, or how it counts days.

How this calculator works

You enter three numbers: the amount borrowed, the annual interest rate and the term in months. The calculator assumes a fixed rate and equal monthly payments that pay the loan off exactly by the final month, which is how a standard amortizing installment loan works. It shows the payment, the total interest and the total of all payments.

A table repeats the calculation for common terms from 24 to 84 months, plus yours, and a chart traces the remaining balance month by month. The explanation also shows how much of the first payment is interest and what adding 12 months to the term would do to the payment and to the total interest.

The formula

Each month, interest is charged on the balance still owed, at one-twelfth of the annual rate. The payment stays the same, so early payments are mostly interest and later ones mostly principal. The formula finds the one level payment that covers each month’s interest and brings the balance to zero on schedule. At 0%, the payment is the amount divided by the months.

A worked example

Suppose, for illustration, you borrow $15,000 at a fixed 9.5% for 48 months. The payment is about $376.85 a month, and total interest comes to about $3,089. In the first month, $118.75 of the payment is interest. After a year of payments, about $11,764 is still owed, and the interest share keeps shrinking from there.

The table shows the trade-off in the term. Stretching the loan to 72 months cuts the payment by about $103 but adds about $1,648 of interest. Shortening it to 36 months raises the payment by about $104 and saves about $791. Neither is right in general; it depends on what the monthly budget can carry and on the rate each term is offered at.

A worked example
TermMonthly paymentTotal interest
36 months$480.49$2,298
48 months$376.85$3,089
60 months$315.03$3,902
72 months$274.12$4,737

What the result doesn’t tell you

The rate you enter is the interest rate, which isn’t always the APR. A loan’s APR also reflects certain fees, such as an origination charge, so it can be higher, and a fee taken out of the loan proceeds leaves you with less cash than you borrowed. The calculator also can’t model a rate that changes, such as an introductory rate that ends.

A lender’s figures can differ slightly because of rounding, fees or how it counts days, and the calculator doesn’t model extra payments, late fees or optional add-ons. For a car, the payment is only part of the cost of owning it: insurance, fuel and maintenance sit outside the loan. Comparing actual written offers is the final check.

  1. Confirm the amount financed, including any fees or add-ons.
  2. Compare the APR as well as the interest rate.
  3. Check whether the rate is fixed for the whole term.
  4. Ask how extra payments are applied and whether prepayment is penalized.

Common questions

Does a longer loan cost more?

At the same rate, yes. A longer term lowers each payment but keeps the balance around longer, so more interest builds up. In the example above, going from 48 to 72 months cuts the payment by about $103 and adds about $1,648 of interest. Lenders may also offer different rates for different terms, so it helps to compare actual offers.

What is the difference between the interest rate and the APR?

The interest rate is what the lender charges for borrowing the money. The APR combines that rate with certain other charges made when the loan is set up, such as origination fees, into one yearly figure, so it can be higher than the rate. For comparing offers, the APR is usually the more complete number. This calculator uses the interest rate to work out the payment.

How much of my payment goes to interest?

In any month, interest equals the remaining balance times one-twelfth of the annual rate. On a new $15,000 loan at 9.5%, that’s $118.75 in the first month. Because the payment stays level while the balance falls, the interest part shrinks and the principal part grows each month, until the final payments are almost all principal.

Can I use this calculator for a mortgage?

It can estimate the principal-and-interest part of a fixed-rate mortgage, since the term goes up to 480 months. A mortgage payment often also includes property taxes, homeowners insurance and sometimes mortgage insurance, collected through escrow, which this calculator leaves out. An adjustable-rate mortgage can change after its first period, so a fixed-rate calculation won’t match it from then on.

Does paying extra reduce the interest?

On a standard amortizing loan, extra money applied to principal lowers the balance that future interest is charged on, which can reduce total interest and shorten the loan. This calculator doesn’t model extra payments. Before counting on the savings, it’s worth asking the lender how extra payments are applied and whether the loan carries a prepayment penalty.

Terms on this page

Sources and further reading

Examples are illustrative and focus on U.S. personal finance. This page is educational, not individual financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. Read our editorial approach or report a correction.

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