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Calculator
Personal Loan Calculator
Use this tool to price a personal loan before you talk to a lender. Type an amount, a rate and a term, and it returns the fixed monthly payment, the total interest and the overall cost.
By the Personalloaner Editorial Team · Last updated 2026-09-16
How we get paid: if you apply through the link above, a lending partner may send us a referral fee. It never changes the rate you are offered or what we publish. We are not a lender and we do not process applications. The lowest rates are only available to the most qualified applicants. Full disclosure.
Enter your numbers and press Calculate. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
How we get paid: if you apply through the link above, a lending partner may send us a referral fee. It never changes the rate you are offered or what we publish. We are not a lender and we do not process applications. The lowest rates are only available to the most qualified applicants. Full disclosure.
How this calculator works
Payments on a personal loan are level. Each one clears the interest for that month and then reduces the principal, which is why the balance falls a little faster as time goes on.
The underlying formula is the standard amortization equation:
M = P * r * (1 + r)^n / ((1 + r)^n - 1)
M = monthly payment
P = amount borrowed
r = annual interest rate divided by 12, then by 100
n = number of monthly payments
To get total interest, multiply the payment by the number of payments and subtract the amount borrowed. A 0% rate reduces the payment to P / n.
Treat the rate you type as your own working assumption. Lenders derive their rates from credit history, the amount and the term, so a real offer can come back different.
Common questions
How does the tool work out the monthly payment?
It solves the standard amortization equation shown above. In that equation r is the annual rate divided by 12 and then by 100, and n counts the monthly payments. Each installment clears the month's interest and part of the principal.
Why does a longer term cost more in the end?
A longer term spreads the same principal over more months, so each payment is smaller. Interest keeps accruing for longer, though, and the total — payment times number of payments, less the amount borrowed — grows with it.
Which rate belongs in the box?
Any rate you want to test, or one from an offer you already hold. Rates hinge on the lender, your credit history, the amount and the term, so treat the input as a what-if rather than a quote.
Do fees show up in the result?
They do not. The tool handles principal and interest only, so origination and other upfront fees sit outside it. The APR calculator shows what those fees do to the yearly cost of credit.
