Personal Loan Calculator
Estimate personal loan payments including origination fees and the true APR.
Please note: An estimate, not a loan offer. Advertised rates go to a fraction of applicants: the rate you are actually offered follows your credit assessment, and origination fees are only included here if you enter them.
What the Personal Loan Calculator does
Personal loans are unsecured, so rates are higher than for mortgages or car loans. Many carry an origination fee deducted from the disbursement, which raises the true cost above the advertised rate.
Formula
Payment = P × r × (1+r)ⁿ ÷ ((1+r)ⁿ − 1)Effective APR solves: Received = Σ Payment ÷ (1 + APR/12)ᵗ
Inputs explained
| Input | Unit | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loan amount | selected currency | Yes | Accepts more than 0. |
| Annual interest rate | % | Yes | — |
| Loan term | years | Yes | Accepts 0 or more, up to 30. |
| Origination fee | % | Optional | Deducted from the amount you receive. |
| Currency | one of 10 options | Optional | — |
How to use it
- Choose Currency.
- Enter Loan amount, Annual interest rate and Loan term.
- Optionally add Origination fee.
- Select Calculate.
Worked example
A $15,000 loan over 3 years at 11%, with a 3% origination fee.
- Loan amount
- 15000
- Rate
- 11
- Term
- 3
- Fee
- 3
Payment $491.20, you receive $14,550, effective APR ≈ 13.3%.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between interest rate and APR?
The interest rate prices the borrowing alone. APR folds in fees, so it is the number to compare across lenders.
Method and sources
Method. The standard amortizing-loan formula for the payment. Effective APR is solved by finding the rate that discounts the payments back to the amount actually received after the origination fee — the same definition regulators use to disclose APR on a fee-bearing loan.
Assumptions
- The origination fee, if entered, is deducted once at disbursement; it is not modelled as spread across the term.
- The rate holds fixed for the whole term — personal loans are usually fixed-rate, but not always.
Limitations
- No lender approval data is used. Advertised headline rates are typically offered only to the strongest applicants; the rate this calculator prices is the one you enter, not a prediction of what you will be offered.