Loans Calculators
5 free loans tools
See the full cost of borrowing, not just the advertised rate.
Two loans with the same headline rate can cost very different amounts once fees, term and payment frequency are accounted for. These calculators break a loan down into its actual components — the interest you pay, the principal you retire, and the point at which the balance genuinely starts falling.
Loan Calculator
Estimate monthly payments and total interest on any personal, auto or student loan.
Open calculatorInterest Rate Calculator
Work out the interest rate (APR) implied by a loan's payment and term.
Open calculatorHELOC Calculator
Estimate home equity line of credit payments during draw and repayment periods.
Open calculatorLoan Comparison Calculator
Compare two loans side by side to see which costs less overall.
Open calculatorAPR Calculator
Find a loan's true annual cost (APR) once upfront fees and points are included.
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Interest rate and APR are not the same number
The interest rate covers only the cost of the borrowed money. APR folds in origination fees, points and other mandatory charges, which is why a loan advertised at a low rate can carry a materially higher APR. When comparing offers, APR is the fairer comparison — but only across loans of the same term, since APR does not account for how long you are paying.
Early payments are worth more than late ones
In the first years of an amortized loan, most of each payment services interest and very little reduces the balance. That is why an extra payment made in year two saves far more than the same payment made in year fifteen. An amortization schedule makes this visible: it shows exactly when the split flips and principal starts to dominate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an amortization schedule?+
A month-by-month table showing how each payment divides between interest and principal, and what the balance is afterwards. It reveals that early payments are mostly interest — the single most useful thing to understand before taking a long-term loan.
Does paying a loan early always save money?+
Almost always, since interest accrues on the outstanding balance. The exceptions are loans with prepayment penalties, and situations where the money would earn more elsewhere — a 4% loan is rarely worth clearing ahead of a higher-returning investment.
How is a monthly loan payment calculated?+
From the principal, the periodic interest rate and the number of payments, using the standard amortization formula. Each payment is identical, but its split between interest and principal shifts steadily toward principal over the term.