Monthly payment, total interest, total cost, and effective APR — including origination fees.
Loan Details
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Monthly Payment
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Total Interest
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Total Cost
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Principal + interest + fees
Origination Fee
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Effective APR
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APR including fee cost
How to Use the Personal Loan Calculator
A personal loan is a fixed-rate, fixed-term installment loan: you borrow a set amount, repay it in equal monthly payments over the agreed term, and the balance reaches zero at the final payment. This calculator covers the four numbers that matter most before you sign — monthly payment, total interest, total cost, and the effective APR that accounts for any origination fee.
1. Loan Amount
Enter the total face value of the loan — the amount shown on the loan agreement, before any origination fee is deducted. Origination fees are typically taken out of the disbursement, so if you need exactly $10,000 in your account and the lender charges a 2% fee, you need to borrow approximately $10,204 to net $10,000 after the $204 fee.
2. APR
APR (Annual Percentage Rate) is the yearly interest rate used to compute your payment. It does not include one-time fees by default — that is what the effective APR field shows once you enter an origination fee. Most personal loans range from roughly 6% to 36% APR depending on credit profile and loan term. If a lender quotes a monthly rate instead of APR, multiply by 12 to convert.
3. Loan Term
Toggle between years and months — entering 5 years and entering 60 months produce identical results. Shorter terms mean higher monthly payments but dramatically less total interest. Longer terms lower the monthly payment but you pay interest for more months, so the total interest figure rises substantially.
As a rough rule: doubling the term roughly doubles the total interest paid, even though the monthly payment falls only modestly beyond the 4–5 year mark for typical loan sizes. For a $10,000 loan at 8% APR: 36 months — $313/month, $1,281 total interest; 60 months — $203/month, $2,166 total interest; 84 months — $156/month, $3,081 total interest.
4. Origination Fee
Many personal loans charge an origination fee of 1–8% of the loan amount. Enter it as a percentage or switch the toggle to $ and enter a dollar amount. The calculator shows:
Origination Fee ($): the dollar amount of the fee at the stated percentage.
Effective APR: the rate that makes the present value of all payments equal to what you actually receive (loan amount minus the fee). Effective APR is always higher than stated APR when a fee exists.
Total Cost: total payments plus the origination fee — the true out-of-pocket cost of the loan.
5. Amortization Schedule
Click “Show Amortization Schedule” to expand a month-by-month table showing payment, principal paid, interest paid, and remaining balance for every month of the loan. Early payments are heavily weighted toward interest because the balance is high; later payments are mostly principal. The schedule helps you visualize the payoff curve and estimate your remaining balance if you plan to prepay or refinance.
The Formulas
Monthly payment formula (standard amortizing PMT):
PMT = P × r × (1+r)ⁿ ÷ ((1+r)ⁿ − 1)
P = loan principal
r = monthly rate = APR ÷ 12 ÷ 100
n = number of monthly payments
Effective APR is solved numerically (Newton–Raphson) from:
When comparing two loan offers, use effective APR and total cost — not the stated APR alone. A lower stated APR with a high origination fee can be more expensive than a slightly higher stated APR with no fee, especially on shorter-term loans where the fee is amortized over fewer payments. Enter each offer into the calculator and compare both numbers directly.
Also consider timing: origination fees are paid upfront (or deducted from disbursement), which means their effective rate impact is largest on short-term loans. On a 12-month loan, a 3% origination fee adds roughly 5–6 percentage points to the effective APR; on a 60-month loan, the same fee adds only about 1–1.5 percentage points. The APR vs. interest rate guide explains this in detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Monthly payment = P × r × (1+r)ⁿ ÷ ((1+r)ⁿ − 1), where P is the loan principal, r is the monthly interest rate (APR ÷ 12 ÷ 100), and n is the number of monthly payments. For a $10,000 loan at 8% APR over 60 months: r = 0.006667, n = 60, monthly payment ≈ $202.76.
An origination fee is a one-time processing charge, typically 1–8% of the loan amount, deducted from the funds disbursed at closing. You borrow $10,000 but receive only $9,800 if the fee is 2%. Your monthly payment is still calculated on the full $10,000 balance, so the fee effectively raises your cost of borrowing — captured by the effective APR.
Effective APR is the interest rate that makes the present value of all scheduled payments equal to what you actually receive after fees. Because the fee reduces your net proceeds while leaving the payment schedule unchanged, the effective cost per dollar received is higher than the stated APR. A $10,000 loan at 8% APR with a 2% origination fee has an effective APR of approximately 9.0–9.5% depending on the loan term.
A longer term lowers your monthly payment but increases total interest. For a $10,000 loan at 8% APR: 36 months — $313/month and $1,281 in interest; 60 months — $203/month and $2,166 in interest; 84 months — $156/month and $3,081 in interest. The payment drops about 35% from 36 to 84 months, but total interest more than doubles. Choose the shortest term your budget can support.
Enter each offer separately and compare effective APR and total cost. Stated APR alone ignores origination fees. A 7% loan with a 4% origination fee may cost more total than an 8% loan with no fee, especially on shorter terms. Total cost (principal + interest + fees) is the clearest single comparison number.
The schedule breaks each payment into its principal and interest components and shows the remaining balance. Early payments are mostly interest because the balance is highest at the start. As the balance falls, more of each payment goes to principal. The schedule is useful for estimating your payoff balance at any future date or month.
Yes — the payment formula is identical for any fixed-rate amortizing loan. Enter the loan amount, APR, and term; the monthly payment and amortization schedule are accurate. Auto loans do not typically include escrow or PMI, so no adjustments are needed. Mortgages are more complex (taxes, insurance, PMI, points) and are better handled by a dedicated mortgage calculator.