Personal Loan Calculator
Enter your loan amount, APR, and term to see your monthly payment, total interest, and the true cost of a personal loan — including any origination fee. Add an optional extra monthly payment to see how much interest you'd save and how much sooner you'd be debt-free, then view the full amortization schedule.
Quick examples:
The loan's face value (the amount financed)
Nominal annual rate
A one-time fee some lenders charge, often 1%–10%
Enter a fee above to choose how it's applied.
Added to every monthly payment to pay the loan off faster
Loan Summary
Monthly Payment
Total Interest
Total Cost
Payoff Date
Effective APR
Amortization Breakdown
(36 payments)Remaining balance over time
Principal vs. interest
Monthly Schedule
| Month | Payment | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $332.14 | $232.14 | $100.00 | $9,767.86 |
| 2 | $332.14 | $234.46 | $97.68 | $9,533.39 |
| 3 | $332.14 | $236.81 | $95.33 | $9,296.58 |
| 4 | $332.14 | $239.18 | $92.97 | $9,057.41 |
| 5 | $332.14 | $241.57 | $90.57 | $8,815.84 |
| 6 | $332.14 | $243.98 | $88.16 | $8,571.85 |
| 7 | $332.14 | $246.42 | $85.72 | $8,325.43 |
| 8 | $332.14 | $248.89 | $83.25 | $8,076.54 |
| 9 | $332.14 | $251.38 | $80.77 | $7,825.16 |
| 10 | $332.14 | $253.89 | $78.25 | $7,571.27 |
| 11 | $332.14 | $256.43 | $75.71 | $7,314.84 |
| 12 | $332.14 | $258.99 | $73.15 | $7,055.84 |
| 13 | $332.14 | $261.58 | $70.56 | $6,794.26 |
| 14 | $332.14 | $264.20 | $67.94 | $6,530.06 |
| 15 | $332.14 | $266.84 | $65.30 | $6,263.22 |
| 16 | $332.14 | $269.51 | $62.63 | $5,993.71 |
| 17 | $332.14 | $272.21 | $59.94 | $5,721.50 |
| 18 | $332.14 | $274.93 | $57.21 | $5,446.57 |
| 19 | $332.14 | $277.68 | $54.47 | $5,168.89 |
| 20 | $332.14 | $280.45 | $51.69 | $4,888.44 |
| 21 | $332.14 | $283.26 | $48.88 | $4,605.18 |
| 22 | $332.14 | $286.09 | $46.05 | $4,319.09 |
| 23 | $332.14 | $288.95 | $43.19 | $4,030.14 |
| 24 | $332.14 | $291.84 | $40.30 | $3,738.30 |
| 25 | $332.14 | $294.76 | $37.38 | $3,443.54 |
| 26 | $332.14 | $297.71 | $34.44 | $3,145.83 |
| 27 | $332.14 | $300.68 | $31.46 | $2,845.14 |
| 28 | $332.14 | $303.69 | $28.45 | $2,541.45 |
| 29 | $332.14 | $306.73 | $25.41 | $2,234.72 |
| 30 | $332.14 | $309.80 | $22.35 | $1,924.93 |
| 31 | $332.14 | $312.89 | $19.25 | $1,612.03 |
| 32 | $332.14 | $316.02 | $16.12 | $1,296.01 |
| 33 | $332.14 | $319.18 | $12.96 | $976.83 |
| 34 | $332.14 | $322.37 | $9.77 | $654.45 |
| 35 | $332.14 | $325.60 | $6.54 | $328.85 |
| 36 | $332.14 | $328.85 | $3.29 | $0.00 |
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How This Calculator Works
A personal loan is a fixed-rate installment loan: you borrow a lump sum and repay it in equal monthly payments over a set term. This calculator takes your loan amount, APR, and term and computes your monthly payment, the total interest you'll pay, the total cost, your payoff date, and — uniquely — the effective APR once any origination fee is included. Add an optional extra monthly payment to see how much interest you save and how many months you shave off.
Monthly Payment (PMT)
M = P·i(1+i)ⁿ / ((1+i)ⁿ − 1)
P is the amount financed, i is the monthly rate (APR ÷ 12 as a decimal), and n is the term in months. The result M is the level payment that fully repays the loan to exactly $0 at the final month.
Zero-Interest Special Case
M = P / n
When the APR is 0%, the standard formula would divide by zero, so the calculator falls back to splitting the financed amount evenly across the term. Total interest is zero — though an origination fee can still push the effective APR above zero.
Each month, the balance amortizes like this: interest for the month is interest = balance × i, the principal portion is principal = M − interest, and the new balance is balance = balance − principal. Early on, most of each payment is interest; as the balance falls, more of every payment goes to principal. The calculator runs this recurrence for every month so the amortization schedule and totals always reconcile.
Effective APR (with origination fee)
netProceeds = M·[1 − (1 + iₑ)⁻ⁿ] / iₑ
An origination fee makes a loan cost more than its stated rate. The effective APR is the annualized rate iₑ × 12 that equates your stream of payments to the cash you actually receive. The fee can be handled two ways: deducted from your disbursement (you repay the full loan amount but receive less cash) or added to your balance (you receive the full amount but finance the fee). Either way, the calculator solves for iₑ numerically. For example, a $10,000 loan at 12% APR with a 3% fee deducted from proceeds nets you $9,700 but is repaid as if you borrowed $10,000 — pushing the effective APR to roughly 14.3%. When the fee is zero, the effective APR resolves back to the nominal APR within rounding.
The calculator keeps full precision internally and rounds only for display, then forces the final balance to exactly $0 to absorb floating-point drift — so the schedule's interest sum reconciles with the displayed total interest within a penny.
Tips for Borrowing Smarter
Compare APR, Not the Monthly Payment
A lower monthly payment often just means a longer term and more total interest. The APR — and especially the effective APR once fees are included — is the number that tells you what the money truly costs. Run each offer through the calculator and compare the effective APR side by side rather than chasing the smallest payment.
Watch the Origination Fee
An origination fee can quietly add several percentage points to your real cost, particularly on shorter terms. Use the fee field to see how a 1%–10% fee changes the effective APR and the cash you actually receive. A loan with a slightly higher rate but no fee can beat a low-rate loan that carries a steep origination charge.
Pay Extra to Save Interest
Because extra payments go straight to principal, even a small amount each month compounds into real savings and an earlier payoff. Turn on the extra-payment field to see the interest saved and months shaved. Before committing, confirm your lender has no prepayment penalty so every extra dollar works in your favor.
Balance a Shorter Term Against Affordability
A shorter term costs less in total interest but demands a higher monthly payment. Don't stretch so far that a missed paycheck becomes a missed payment. Try a few terms in the calculator and pick the shortest term whose monthly payment still leaves you comfortable room in your budget.
Common Ways People Use a Personal Loan
Consolidating Higher-Interest Debt
ConsolidationRolling several credit-card balances into one fixed-rate personal loan can lower your blended rate and give you a single predictable payment. Enter your consolidation loan terms here to see the monthly payment and total interest — and compare against our Debt Consolidation Calculator for the full picture.
Funding a Home Improvement
HomeAn unsecured personal loan can finance a renovation without tapping home equity. Model the loan amount, rate, and term to confirm the monthly payment fits your budget and to see the true cost of the project once interest and any fee are included.
Covering a Medical or Emergency Expense
EmergencyWhen an unexpected bill arrives, a personal loan can spread the cost into manageable monthly payments. Use the calculator to find a term whose payment you can sustain, and check the effective APR so you understand exactly what borrowing now will cost over time.
Financing a Major Purchase
PurchaseFor a big-ticket item like furniture, a wedding, or moving costs, a personal loan offers fixed payments and a clear payoff date. Plug in the amount and compare a few terms to balance an affordable payment against the total interest you're willing to pay.
What This Calculator Assumes
To keep results deterministic and evergreen, the calculator models a standard fixed-rate installment loan with these assumptions:
- •Monthly, end-of-month payments: The loan is repaid in equal monthly installments as an ordinary annuity, with interest accruing on the outstanding balance at a periodic rate of APR ÷ 12.
- •Fixed rate for the full term: The APR you enter stays constant. Variable-rate, balloon, interest-only, and step-up loans are not modeled.
- •The loan fully amortizes: The balance reaches exactly $0 at the final scheduled payment, so the schedule and totals always reconcile.
- •Origination fee is your number, handled two ways: you enter the fee as a percent or a dollar amount and choose whether it is deducted from your disbursement or added to the balance. There are no maintained lender fee tables.
- •No penalties, fees, taxes, or insurance: the math excludes prepayment penalties, late fees, insurance add-ons, and any tax treatment of interest. Extra payments are assumed penalty-free.
- •You supply the rate: the tool never estimates a rate from your credit score and never pre-fills a current market rate — every result comes from the numbers you enter and timeless amortization math.
Disclaimer: This tool provides estimates for personal planning and is not financial advice. Actual loan terms, fees, and rates depend on your lender and credit profile. For significant borrowing decisions, review your loan agreement and consult a qualified professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is my personal loan payment calculated?
Personal loans are fully amortizing, so the payment is set by the standard loan formula M = P·i(1+i)ⁿ / ((1+i)ⁿ − 1), where P is the amount financed, i is your monthly rate (APR ÷ 12), and n is the term in months. Each payment is the same size, but early payments are mostly interest and later payments are mostly principal. The calculator does this automatically and shows your payment, total interest, and total cost. For example, $10,000 at 12% APR over 36 months works out to about $332 per month.
What is an origination fee and how does it affect my loan?
An origination fee is a one-time charge some lenders take for processing the loan, typically 1%–10% of the amount borrowed. Most often it's deducted from your disbursement, so a $10,000 loan with a 3% fee nets you only $9,700 in cash — yet you still repay the full $10,000 plus interest. Less commonly, the fee is added to your balance so you finance it over the term. Either way the fee makes your loan more expensive than the interest rate alone suggests, which is exactly what the "effective APR" output captures.
What's the difference between APR and effective APR?
The APR is the stated annual interest rate the lender quotes. The effective APR also folds in the origination fee, reflecting the true annualized cost of the money you actually receive. Because the fee shrinks your disbursement (or grows your balance), the effective APR is always higher than the nominal APR when a fee exists. This calculator solves for it the same way regulators define APR — the rate that equates your payments to the net cash you got — so you can compare loan offers with different fees on an apples-to-apples basis.
How does paying extra each month help?
Any amount you pay above the scheduled payment goes straight to principal, so the balance shrinks faster and less interest accrues in every following month. Even a modest extra payment can cut months off the term and save a meaningful chunk of interest. Turn on the optional "extra monthly payment" field and the calculator shows both the interest saved and how much sooner you'd be debt-free. Just confirm your lender has no prepayment penalty before committing to extra payments.
What loan term should I choose?
A longer term lowers the monthly payment but increases the total interest you pay, while a shorter term costs more per month but less overall. Personal loan terms usually range from 12 to 84 months. Try a few terms in the calculator and watch how the monthly payment and total interest move in opposite directions. The right choice balances a payment you can comfortably afford against the total cost you're willing to accept.
Does this calculator use my credit score to estimate a rate?
No. This is a pure math tool — you supply the APR your lender quotes (or one you're considering), and it computes the payment and costs. We deliberately don't estimate rates from credit scores because real rates depend on the lender, your full credit profile, and market conditions that change constantly. Get a quoted rate from a lender or a soft-pull prequalification, then enter it here for an accurate result.
What happens at a 0% APR?
At 0% the calculator simply divides the amount financed by the number of months, so the payment is the balance split evenly and total interest is zero. This is the special case M = P / n, which avoids the division-by-zero the standard formula would hit. If there's still an origination fee, the effective APR will be greater than zero, because the fee alone makes the borrowed money cost something even when the stated interest is nil.
Is a personal loan secured or unsecured, and does that matter here?
Most personal loans are unsecured, meaning they're not backed by collateral like a house or car, which is why their rates are usually higher than a mortgage or auto loan. This calculator works for any fixed-rate installment loan regardless of whether it's secured, since the math is the same — only the rate differs in practice. It does not model collateral, repossession, or risk-based pricing; it just turns your loan amount, rate, and term into a payment and a true cost.
Why doesn't the schedule's last balance exactly match a hand calculation?
Tiny differences come from rounding for display. The calculator keeps full precision internally and only rounds when showing currency to two decimals, then forces the final balance to exactly $0 to absorb any floating-point drift. Hand calculations that round at each step will drift by a few cents. The displayed total interest reconciles with the schedule within a penny.
Can I share or save my results?
Yes. Every input is stored in the page's URL (compressed), so you can copy the link to share an exact scenario or bookmark it to return later — reloading restores the same numbers. You can also export a PDF of your results and full amortization schedule. None of the major bank or comparison-site calculators offer link sharing or PDF export.