$12,000 at 9.5% for 4 years
- Total paid
- $14,470.93
- Total interest
- $2,470.93
- Payments
- 48 months
This is fixed-rate payment math only. Compare the result with the written APR, fees, prepayment terms, and lender disclosure before signing.
Loan Calculator
Use this free loan calculator to solve for monthly payment, loan amount, estimated interest rate, or payoff term. Each mode also shows total paid and total interest for the fixed-rate estimate.
Estimate, not advicePayment, amount, rate, and termExample inputsTab-only history
Formula steps
- Convert annual rate 9.5% to monthly rate 0.7916666667%.
- Use 48 monthly payments across 4 years.
- Apply the fixed-payment amortization formula to estimate the monthly payment.
- Total interest equals total paid minus principal.
Examples
Recent answers
Recent payment, amount, rate, and term estimates will appear here.
Loan estimates stay in your browser and do not include APR fees, penalties, insurance, taxes, variable-rate changes, or approval rules.
Inputs and recent answers stay in this browser tab and are not sent to a server.
How to use the Loan Calculator
- Enter the requested dollar amounts, rates, terms, tax settings, or contribution details.
- Use rates as percentages, such as 6.5 for 6.5%, and check whether a field asks for a monthly or annual amount.
- Press the calculate button to see the answer, supporting metrics, and formula steps.
- Use the result as a planning estimate only, then copy it if the assumptions look right.
What people use it for
Calculate a monthly payment when loan amount, rate, and term are known.
Estimate how much principal fits a monthly payment, rate, and term.
Estimate the interest rate behind a quoted payment.
Estimate how many months a fixed payment takes to clear a loan.
Compare total paid and total interest before checking a written offer.
Quick examples
Solve payment
$12,000 at 9.5% for 4 yearsAbout $301.48/month and $2,470.93 interest
Solve loan amount
$500/month at 6% for 5 yearsAbout $25,862 in principal before fees
Solve rate
$25,000 with $483.32/month for 5 yearsAbout 6% annual interest before fees
Solve term
$12,000 at 9.5% with $400/monthAbout 35 months with a smaller final payment
Need the guide or a nearby tool?
Need a slower walkthrough, a related calculator, or the full library? These links keep you close to the task you started.
- How to use the Loan CalculatorSee slower examples, input meanings, formula notes, result limits, and mistakes to avoid.
- FinanceBrowse related calculators and utilities in the same category.
- Loan Payment And Debt Payoff Calculator HubCompare this with the nearby tools and checks in the same job path.
- Calculator and utility guidesFind more guides that use real tool inputs and example numbers.
- All free toolsSearch every live tool, converter, calculator, AI helper, and browser utility.
Frequently asked questions
Plain-language answers about when to use the estimate, what your numbers mean, what is left out, and how privacy works.
When should I use the Loan Calculator?
Use it when you want to test the exact inputs on this page: Calculate a monthly payment when loan amount, rate, and term are known. Estimate how much principal fits a monthly payment, rate, and term. The result is a check against your assumptions, not proof that a lender, tax app, broker, platform, or provider will use the same number.
What do the main Loan Calculator inputs mean?
Mode means the missing loan number you want to solve: payment, amount, rate, or term. Loan amount means the starting principal before fees or add-ons. Monthly payment means the fixed amount paid each month in amount, rate, or term mode. Interest rate means the nominal yearly contract rate used for payment math, entered as 9.5 for 9.5%. Loan term means how long repayment lasts. Four years means 48 monthly payments.
What can this Loan Calculator solve?
Choose Payment, Loan amount, Rate, or Term. Enter the other three fixed-loan values, then calculate the missing value plus total paid and total interest. The model assumes monthly payments and a fixed rate.
How does payment mode find the monthly loan payment?
It converts the annual interest rate into a monthly rate, turns the term into monthly payments, then uses the fixed-payment amortization formula. For $12,000 at 9.5% over 4 years, that is about $301.48 per month before fees.
How do I calculate loan amount from a monthly payment?
Choose Loan amount, then enter the monthly payment, annual interest rate, and term. The calculator rearranges the payment formula to estimate principal. A $500 monthly payment at 6% for 5 years supports about $25,862 in principal before fees and lender rules.
Can I calculate an interest rate from payment?
Yes. Choose Rate, then enter loan amount, monthly payment, and term. The calculator searches for the fixed monthly rate that balances those numbers, then converts it to a nominal annual rate. The answer is not APR because fees are not included.
How does term mode estimate payoff time?
Term mode adds one month of interest, subtracts the payment, and repeats until the balance reaches zero. The payment must be higher than the first month of interest. The final payment may be smaller than the regular payment.
Why should I look at total interest?
The monthly payment can hide the real cost. A longer term can make the payment smaller while adding more interest. Total interest shows how much extra money is paid above the original loan amount if the rate and payment stay fixed.
Should I enter interest rate or APR?
Use the contract interest rate for basic payment math. APR can include certain fees, so CFPB says it is useful for comparing offers, but this simple calculator cannot know every fee unless the loan terms give you a clean rate to enter.
Does this include lender fees?
No. Origination fees, finance charges, application fees, late fees, insurance, taxes, and prepayment penalties are not included. Check the written offer, Truth in Lending disclosure, or Loan Estimate before signing.
Does this create an amortization table?
No. This page solves one missing loan value and gives summary totals. Use the Amortization Calculator when you want the month-by-month split between principal, interest, and remaining balance.
Can I use this for a 0% loan?
Yes. If the rate is 0%, the calculator divides the principal by the number of payments. A $3,000 loan over 12 months is $250 per month before fees or penalties.
Is the result a loan approval?
No. Approval can depend on credit, income, debt-to-income ratio, collateral, documents, lender rules, and the exact offer. This page only estimates payment math from the numbers you type.
What is the Loan Calculator doing with my numbers?
In plain language: Payment mode uses the standard amortized-loan formula. Amount mode rearranges that formula for principal. Rate mode solves for the monthly rate iteratively. Term mode applies monthly interest and payments until the balance reaches zero. Every mode assumes a fixed rate, monthly payments, and no added fees. Rate mode estimates nominal annual interest, not an official APR. Term mode is not an official payoff statement.
How should I read the Loan Calculator answer?
Read the main missing value first, then compare total paid and total interest. In term mode, check the final payment too. If one scenario looks easy only because it stretches the loan, compare another mode or term.
What does this estimate leave out?
These are fixed-rate estimates only. They are not a lender quote, APR disclosure, approval decision, payoff statement, or Loan Estimate, and they do not include fees, taxes, insurance, payment dates, prepayment penalties, late fees, variable-rate changes, or lender-specific rounding. Use an official lender disclosure for APR, finance charge, amount financed, total of payments, late fees, prepayment penalties, taxes, insurance, and approval conditions.
What should I double-check before copying the result?
Compare the estimate with the written loan offer, APR, fees, payment schedule, prepayment terms, and any Loan Estimate or Truth in Lending disclosure that applies.
Does the site save my finance inputs?
No. The calculator runs in your browser tab. Recent answers stay only on the page while you use it, and they are not sent to a server.