Estimate monthly payments, total interest, and payoff details for your loan using a fast, browser-based loan calculator.
Lenders quote a monthly payment, but two loans with the same monthly payment can carry wildly different lifetime interest costs. A 60-month auto loan vs. an 84-month auto loan at the same APR has a lower monthly payment on the 84-month, but you'll pay roughly 40% more total interest. Modeling the full amortization before you sign is the only way to see that trade-off. Once the loan is closed, the math is locked in.
| Loan type | Typical APR range (May 2026) | Common term | Secured? | Where rates come from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal loan | 6%-36% (avg ~12.27% at 700 FICO) | 24-84 months | Usually unsecured | Bankrate Monitor |
| Auto loan (new, 60-mo) | 5%-13% (avg ~7.04%) | 36-84 months | Secured by vehicle | Bankrate Auto |
| Auto loan (used, 60-mo) | 6.5%-15% (avg ~11.40%) | 36-72 months | Secured by vehicle | Bankrate Auto |
| Federal student (undergrad subsidized) | 6.39% fixed (2025-26 disbursement) | 10-25 years (standard 10) | Unsecured | FSA announcement |
| Mortgage (30-yr fixed) | ~6.51% (Freddie Mac PMMS, week of May 21, 2026) | 15/20/30 years | Secured by home | Freddie Mac PMMS |
| HELOC | 6%-18% (avg ~7.41%, variable) | 10-yr draw + 20-yr repay | Secured by home equity | Bankrate HELOC |
| Credit card (revolving) | 18%-29% APR | Revolving, no fixed term | Unsecured | Federal Reserve G.19 |
Secured loans (auto, mortgage, HELOC) always price lower than unsecured (personal, credit card) because the lender can foreclose or repossess if you default. The rate gap is the cost of "trust me, I'll pay."
The calculator uses the standard amortized loan formula:
M = P [ r(1+r)n ] / [ (1+r)n - 1 ]
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| M | Monthly payment |
| P | Principal (loan amount) |
| r | Monthly interest rate = APR / 12 (in decimal form — 6% APR = 0.005 per month) |
| n | Total number of monthly payments (e.g., 60 for a 5-year loan) |
Worked example: $20,000 personal loan at 12% APR over 60 months. r = 0.12/12 = 0.01, n = 60. M = 20000 × [0.01 × 1.01^60] / [1.01^60 - 1] ≈ $444.89/month. Total paid: 60 × $444.89 = $26,693. Total interest: $6,693. This same formula drives auto loans, mortgages, and most personal loans — the only thing that changes across loan types is P, r, and n.
The interest rate is the percentage charged on the unpaid principal each year, expressed annualized but compounded monthly on most consumer loans. The APR (Annual Percentage Rate) adds in finance charges — origination fees, points, mortgage broker fees, and similar costs — and re-expresses the total as an effective yearly rate. Per the CFPB's official definition, APR is "a broader measure of the cost of borrowing money than the interest rate" and is usually higher. Example: a personal loan quoted at 10% interest with a 5% origination fee on a 3-year term has an APR closer to 13.6%. The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) requires lenders to disclose APR on loan estimates and closing disclosures specifically so you can compare offers on the same yardstick. When you're shopping, compare APRs, not headline interest rates.
Almost all consumer installment loans (personal, auto, mortgage, student) are amortized: each payment is split between interest (calculated on the current balance) and principal (which reduces that balance). Early payments are interest-heavy, late payments are principal-heavy — the total payment stays constant but the split shifts. A few products use simple interest computed only on the original principal (some short-term commercial loans, certain payday products), and revolving credit (credit cards, HELOCs) is technically neither — it charges interest on the average daily balance with no fixed payoff schedule. If a personal-loan lender doesn't specify, assume amortized. The calculator on this page produces an amortized schedule.
Paying half your monthly amount every two weeks results in 26 half-payments per year = the equivalent of 13 monthly payments instead of 12. That extra payment goes 100% toward principal, which shrinks the balance faster and reduces all future interest accruals. Bankrate's worked example: a $250,000 30-year mortgage at 5% switched to bi-weekly pays about $189,734 in interest and pays off 4 years 9 months early vs. the standard monthly schedule. On a 60-month auto loan the absolute dollar savings is smaller (a few hundred dollars) but the months shaved is still meaningful. Two caveats: (1) confirm your servicer applies the half-payment immediately rather than holding both halves until month-end (otherwise no interest savings); (2) the same effect is achievable by simply adding 1/12 of your monthly payment to each month yourself — bi-weekly billing isn't magic, the math is.
Yes — that's exactly what APR is designed to capture. If a lender quotes both a "note rate" and an "APR," enter the APR into this calculator so origination, points, and other prepaid finance charges are reflected in the monthly payment math. If the lender only quotes a note rate and tells you the origination fee separately, you have two equivalent ways to model it: (1) reduce the principal by the fee (because you're receiving less cash) and use the note rate, or (2) calculate the true APR yourself and use it with the gross principal. Both approaches produce the same total cost. The CFPB's APR disclosure rule under TILA is specifically meant to spare borrowers from doing this math manually.
Fixed rates are locked for the life of the loan — your payment never changes. Variable rates (typical of HELOCs, some private student loans, and adjustable-rate mortgages) reset periodically based on an index (Prime, SOFR, or a Treasury index) plus a margin. Variable rates start lower in most rate environments but can climb. Fixed is the right call when (a) you'll hold the loan to maturity, (b) rates are expected to rise, or (c) payment certainty is worth more to you than the savings. Variable can win when (a) you'll pay off quickly, (b) rates are expected to fall, or (c) the initial gap is large enough to offset realistic worst-case adjustments. Most personal loans, federal student loans, and standard fixed-rate mortgages are fixed. HELOCs and credit cards are variable by default.
Most consumer loans in the U.S. do not carry prepayment penalties — federal student loans are explicitly prohibited from charging them, and the major personal-loan lenders (SoFi, LightStream, Discover, Marcus, Upgrade) advertise no-prepayment-penalty terms. Some auto lenders and a handful of mortgage lenders do impose them, typically as a percentage of the remaining balance if you pay off within the first 1-3 years. The Dodd-Frank Act significantly restricted prepayment penalties on qualified mortgages, so they're rare on conforming home loans originated after 2014. Always read the loan agreement's prepayment terms section before signing — the answer must be disclosed there. If the lender won't waive a penalty, factor the expected payoff cost into your APR comparison.
The first 30 days late typically don't hit your credit because lenders generally don't report until a payment is 30+ days past due. Once a 30-day late is reported, the damage scales sharply with your starting score: borrowers with excellent credit (760+) can drop 63-83 points on a single 30-day late, while fair-credit borrowers (600-650) drop 17-37 points (Experian / FICO research; see Experian's reporting timeline). A 90-day late on excellent credit can drop the score 113-133 points. Past 120-180 days the loan is typically charged off and sold to collections, which is a separate (additional) derogatory mark. Late-payment marks remain on your credit report for 7 years from the date of the original missed payment. The single best preventive measure: set autopay for at least the minimum, then pay extra manually when you can.
A HELOC (home equity line of credit) is technically a revolving credit line, not a traditional installment loan — during the "draw period" (typically 10 years) you borrow as needed and pay interest only on the drawn balance, then a "repayment period" (typically 20 years) converts the outstanding balance to a standard amortized payoff at the prevailing variable rate. For the repayment-period calculation, this loan calculator works perfectly — enter the outstanding balance as the principal, the current variable rate as the APR, and the remaining repayment-period months as the term. The result is the fully-amortized monthly payment you'd owe if rates stayed flat. Run the calculator at a higher rate (e.g., +2 percentage points) to stress-test what happens if rates climb during repayment — HELOC rate caps usually allow significant movement before the lifetime ceiling kicks in.