Work out your monthly payment, total repayment, and total interest on any fixed-rate loan.
Enter three numbers — the amount you want to borrow, the annual interest rate, and the term in years — and the calculator returns your fixed monthly payment, the total amount you will repay, and the total interest that repayment includes. It works for car loans, personal loans, student loans, and any other amortising loan with a fixed rate.
Behind the scenes it uses the standard amortisation formula that virtually every lender uses:
M = P × [r(1+r)ⁿ] ÷ [(1+r)ⁿ − 1]
where P is the principal, r is the monthly rate (annual rate ÷ 12), and n is the number of monthly payments. Each payment is split between interest and principal, and the split shifts toward principal as the balance falls — that is why the first years of a loan feel like slow progress.
Borrow $10,000 at 6.5% over 5 years and the formula gives a monthly payment of about $195.66. Over 60 payments you repay roughly $11,740, meaning the loan costs about $1,740 in interest. Stretch the same loan to 8 years and the payment drops to about $134, but total interest almost doubles to around $2,860 — a smaller payment is not the same thing as a cheaper loan.
Yes. The maths of amortisation is identical in every currency — the dollar sign is just a label. Enter amounts in pounds, euros, rupees, or anything else and read the results in the same currency.
Small differences usually come from fees rolled into the loan, a different day-count convention, or the first payment period being longer or shorter than a full month. The calculator gives the standard textbook figure, which is normally within a dollar or two of a lender's quote.
The interest rate is the pure cost of borrowing; APR (annual percentage rate) also includes most compulsory fees, so it is usually a little higher and is the better number for comparing offers from different lenders.