Down Payment Calculator

A down payment is the portion of a home's price you pay upfront in cash, with the rest covered by your mortgage. It's one of the biggest hurdles to buying a home and one of the most important numbers in the process, because it affects your loan size, your monthly payment, whether you'll pay mortgage insurance, and even the interest rate you're offered.

Down payments are usually discussed as a percentage of the home price. The widely cited benchmark is 20%, and for good reason: putting down 20% or more lets you avoid Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) in the US, the extra monthly charge lenders require when your down payment is smaller because the loan is riskier to them. On a conventional loan, reaching that 20% threshold can save a meaningful amount each month.

That said, 20% is not required. Many loan programs allow much smaller down payments — conventional loans can go as low as 3%, and government-backed options like FHA loans accept around 3.5%, with some programs offering 0% down for eligible buyers. The trade-off is that a smaller down payment means a larger loan, a higher monthly payment, more interest over the life of the loan, and usually PMI until you build enough equity. A larger down payment does the opposite: smaller loan, lower payments, less interest, no PMI, and often a better rate.

The down payment is also separate from closing costs — the fees to finalize the purchase, typically another 2% to 5% of the price — so buyers need cash for both. And lenders like to see that your down payment comes from your own savings or documented gifts, not new debt.

Deciding how much to put down is a balance. A bigger down payment improves your loan terms and lowers your long-term cost, but draining your savings to reach 20% can leave you without an emergency fund. Many buyers weigh the monthly savings and PMI avoidance against keeping cash in reserve. This calculator shows your down payment in both dollars and percent, the loan you'll need, and whether PMI is likely — the key figures for planning your purchase.