Personal Loan Calculator
Enter the loan amount, interest rate, term and origination fee to see your monthly payment, total interest, total cost and the true APR including the fee, with an amortization schedule. Everything runs privately in your browser.
Principal and interest paid by year
Amortization schedule
| # | Date | Payment | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|
Estimates for a fixed-rate loan with equal monthly payments. True APR is the annual rate that equates the money you actually receive with your scheduled payments (the US Truth in Lending method). Lenders may also charge late or prepayment fees. Not financial advice.
How to use the Personal Loan Calculator
- Enter the loan amount, the interest rate quoted by the lender and the term in years or months.
- Add the origination fee as a percentage or amount and choose how it is paid: taken out of the money you receive, added to the loan, or paid upfront.
- Press Calculate payment to see the monthly payment, total interest, total cost and true APR (results also update as you type).
- Try an extra monthly payment to see how much sooner you would be debt-free and how much interest you would save.
- Review the schedule monthly or by year and export it as CSV.
Personal loan formulas
- Monthly payment = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)−n), with r = annual rate ÷ 12 and n = number of months. At 0% it is simply P ÷ n.
- Origination fee = loan amount × fee %. If it is deducted, you receive amount − fee; if it is added, you borrow amount + fee.
- Total interest = sum of all payments − amount borrowed.
- True APR: the rate i that solves net amount received = Σ payment ÷ (1 + i)k for k = 1…n, times 12. The calculator solves it numerically.
Worked example: $10,000 at 11.5% for 3 years with a 5% fee deducted. The payment is $329.76 a month, total interest is about $1,871 and the fee is $500, so you receive $9,500 and the total cost of borrowing is about $2,371. Because you only get $9,500 but pay back as if you had $10,000, the true APR is 15.09%.
How the origination fee changes the APR
True APR for a $10,000 loan at an 11.5% interest rate, with the fee deducted from the proceeds:
| Origination fee | 2-year term | 3-year term | 5-year term |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 11.50% | 11.50% | 11.50% |
| 1% | 12.51% | 12.20% | 11.94% |
| 3% | 14.58% | 13.63% | 12.84% |
| 5% | 16.72% | 15.09% | 13.77% |
| 8% | 20.04% | 17.38% | 15.22% |
Payment and interest by term
A $10,000 loan at 11.5%, no fee. Longer terms lower the payment but raise the total interest:
| Term | Monthly payment | Total interest |
|---|---|---|
| 24 months | $468.40 | $1,242 |
| 36 months | $329.76 | $1,871 |
| 48 months | $260.89 | $2,523 |
| 60 months | $219.93 | $3,196 |
- Compare APRs, not rates. Two loans with the same rate can have very different APRs because of fees.
- Borrow what you need after the fee. If you need $9,500 in hand and the fee is 5% deducted, borrow $10,000.
- Paying off cards? Check the result against the credit card interest calculator to be sure the loan actually saves money.
Frequently asked questions
How is a personal loan payment calculated?
Fixed-rate personal loans use the standard amortization formula: payment = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n), where P is the amount borrowed, r is the annual rate divided by 12 and n is the number of monthly payments. A $10,000 loan at 11.5% for 36 months costs $329.76 a month.
What is an origination fee?
It is a one-time charge for processing the loan, typically between 0% and 10% of the amount. Many lenders deduct it from the money they send you, so on a $10,000 loan with a 5% fee you receive $9,500 but repay the full $10,000 plus interest.
Why is the true APR higher than my interest rate?
APR spreads the fee over the life of the loan. Because you receive less money but make the same payments, the effective annual rate is higher. A 5% fee turns an 11.5% rate on a 3-year loan into an APR of about 15.1%. Shorter loans are affected more, because the fee is spread over fewer payments.
Is it better to have the fee deducted or added to the loan?
If the fee is added to the balance you get the full amount you need but pay interest on the fee as well, so payments and total interest are a little higher. If it is deducted, you may need to borrow slightly more to end up with the cash you need. The calculator shows both so you can compare.
Do extra payments reduce the interest on a personal loan?
Yes, as long as your lender has no prepayment penalty. Extra payments go straight to principal, so less interest builds up each month and the loan ends early. The origination fee is not refunded, so the true APR of a loan paid off early is higher than quoted.
What is the total cost of a personal loan?
Total cost of borrowing = total interest + fees. In the default example, $1,871 of interest plus a $500 fee means the $9,500 you receive costs $2,371.