Loan Calculator
Calculate monthly payments, total interest and full repayment schedule for any loan
Repayment Schedule
| Period | Payment | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 💳 Calculate above to see your repayment schedule | ||||
How to Use the Loan Calculator
Enter your loan amount, annual interest rate, and repayment term to see your estimated monthly payment. Choose a loan type using the tabs above to load typical defaults for personal, auto, student, or business loans.
How Loan Payments Are Calculated
Loan payments use the same amortization formula as mortgages. Each monthly payment covers interest on the remaining balance plus a portion of the principal. As the balance decreases over time, less of each payment goes to interest and more goes toward repaying the principal.
What Is a Good Interest Rate for a Personal Loan?
Personal loan interest rates typically range from 5% to 36% depending on your credit score, income, and lender. Rates below 10% are considered good. Auto loans tend to have lower rates (4–8%) because the vehicle acts as collateral. Student loans vary by country and provider.
Should I Choose a Shorter or Longer Loan Term?
A shorter loan term means higher monthly payments but significantly less total interest paid. A longer term lowers your monthly payment but increases the total cost of the loan. Use the calculator to compare both scenarios before deciding.
Currency Support
Switch between USD, EUR, GBP, and PLN using the currency selector. All values update instantly.
How Loans Actually Work
Built and verified by Andrius R. · Updated June 2026
Every amortized loan — personal loans, car loans, most mortgages — follows the same mechanics. Understanding three numbers (rate, term, and total interest) is enough to evaluate almost any offer, and to spot the tricks built into bad ones.
A worked example
| Term | Monthly payment | Total interest | Total repaid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | $434.85 | ~$6,091 | $26,091 |
| 3 years | $654.77 | ~$3,572 | $23,572 |
The 3-year loan costs $220 more per month but saves about $2,500 in interest. This is the universal loan trade-off: longer terms buy lower payments with more total cost. Neither is "right" — but you should always know which one you're choosing.
APR vs interest rate: not the same thing
The interest rate is the cost of borrowing the money. The APR includes that rate plus mandatory fees (origination fees, certain closing costs) spread over the loan term. Two loans with identical rates can have very different APRs. When comparing offers, compare APRs — it's the only number designed to make loans comparable, and lenders are legally required to disclose it in most countries.
How to read an amortization schedule
Each payment splits between interest (charged on the remaining balance) and principal (which reduces it). On the 5-year example above, the first payment includes 20,000 × (0.11 ÷ 12) ≈ $183 of interest, so only ~$252 reduces the debt. By the final year, almost the whole payment is principal. Practical consequence: paying a loan off early saves the most when done early, because that's when the balance — and therefore the interest meter — is highest.
What actually determines the rate you're offered
- Credit score — the dominant factor. The gap between a good and poor score on a personal loan can be 10+ percentage points.
- Debt-to-income ratio — lenders typically want total debt payments under ~36–43% of gross income.
- Secured vs unsecured — loans backed by collateral (a car, a house) are cheaper because the lender's risk is lower.
- Term length — longer terms often carry slightly higher rates on top of the extra interest from duration alone.
Red flags in loan offers
- Prepayment penalties. A loan that charges you for paying it off early removes your best cost-control tool. Avoid where possible.
- "Low monthly payment" framing with no term stated. Any payment can be made low by stretching the term. Ask for total repayment cost.
- Precomputed interest (sometimes on subprime auto loans): interest is fixed upfront, so early payoff saves nothing.
- Add-on products folded into the principal — payment protection, warranties — which you then pay interest on for the entire term.
Should you pay a loan off early?
Mathematically: compare the loan's rate to what the money could earn elsewhere. Paying off an 11% loan is a guaranteed 11% return — better than any savings account and better than the stock market's long-run average. Paying off a 3% loan early, while a high-yield account pays 4%+, costs you money. The exception is psychological: being debt-free has real value the spreadsheet doesn't capture, and that's a legitimate input too.
// Compare Terms
Try different loan terms to see how monthly payments and total interest change.
// APR vs Rate
The annual interest rate shown here is the base rate. The APR includes fees and is the true cost of borrowing.
// Early Repayment
Paying extra each month reduces your balance faster and cuts total interest paid significantly.
// Credit Score
A higher credit score usually means a lower interest rate. Even a 1% difference saves thousands over the loan term.