Unsecured borrowing, priced honestly.
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A personal loan is usually unsecured: nothing is pledged as collateral, so the lender is relying on your credit and income alone. That pushes rates above secured auto and home loans for the same borrower, and it makes your individual credit profile matter more. In exchange you get a fixed rate, a level monthly payment, and a fixed end date, which is easier to plan around than revolving credit.
Terms typically run 24 to 84 months. Enter the amount you are borrowing, the APR from your offer, and the term, and the calculator returns the payment, total interest, payoff date, and a full amortization schedule. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
Illustrative example, not a market quote: $15,000 at 12% over 48 months is $395.01 a month, $3,960.36 in total interest, and $18,960.36 paid in all.
Personal-loan APRs span a wide range because they are priced to credit. Below is the same $15,000 over 48 months at four example rates, chosen to show the spread rather than to quote a market.
| Example APR | Monthly payment | Total interest | Total paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8% | $366.19 | $2,577.30 | $17,577.30 |
| 12% | $395.01 | $3,960.36 | $18,960.36 |
| 18% | $440.62 | $6,150.00 | $21,150.00 |
| 24% | $489.03 | $8,473.32 | $23,473.32 |
Between the 8% and 24% rows the payment differs by $122.83 a month, and total interest differs by $5,896.02 on identical borrowing. Comparing two or three real offers is worth more than any amount of optimizing the term.
| Term | Monthly payment | Total interest | Total paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 months | $706.10 | $1,946.45 | $16,946.45 |
| 36 months | $498.21 | $2,935.73 | $17,935.73 |
| 48 months | $395.01 | $3,960.36 | $18,960.36 |
| 60 months | $333.67 | $5,020.00 | $20,020.00 |
| 72 months | $293.25 | $6,114.21 | $21,114.21 |
At 12%, moving $15,000 from a 24-month term to a 72-month term cuts the payment by $412.85 but raises total interest by $4,167.76. Lenders often present the longest term first because the monthly figure looks friendliest. The total-paid column is the one that tells you what the loan costs.
Many personal loans carry an origination fee, commonly deducted from the money you receive rather than billed separately. On a $15,000 loan a 5% fee is $750.00, so $14,250.00 lands in your account while you repay the full $15,000 at $395.01 a month.
Priced against the cash you actually got, that payment stream works out to an effective annual rate of roughly 14.8% instead of the stated 12%. If a fee is deducted up front, borrow with that in mind: to net a specific amount you need to request more than that amount. In the United States the disclosed APR is required to fold in most such fees, which is why comparing APR to APR is more reliable than comparing headline interest rates. Our APR versus interest rate explainer goes through the difference.
Secured borrowing, when it is available, is usually cheaper. On an identical $20,000 over 60 months at illustrative rates of 7% secured and 12% unsecured, the unsecured loan costs $48.86 more a month and $2,931.90 more in interest overall. The trade is that a secured loan puts a lien on the thing you bought.
With no collateral to fall back on, an unsecured lender is pricing you rather than an asset. The inputs are broadly the same across lenders: credit history and score, income and how stable it looks, the share of that income already committed to debt payments, and the amount and term you are asking for. Longer terms and larger amounts sometimes carry higher rates because the lender is exposed for longer.
Most lenders will show you an indicative offer from a soft credit check that does not affect your score, with a hard inquiry only when you accept. That makes it practical to collect two or three real offers and compare them properly. Compare the APR, the origination fee, the term, and the total paid, and be sure the term is the same across every quote before you decide which is cheapest.
The structural difference matters as much as the rate. A personal loan has a fixed payment and a scheduled end, so the $15,000 example is gone in 4 years with $3,960.36 of interest. Put the same $395.01 a month against a $15,000 revolving balance at an illustrative 24%, with no new charges added, and it takes 6 years and $13,423.94 of interest.
That is the same money going out every month with a very different result, and it assumes the balance is never added to. A revolving account stays open, which is what makes it convenient and what makes the payoff date drift. The loan closes when the last payment lands.
Most personal loans can be prepaid, and it saves real money. Adding $100 a month to the $15,000 example clears it 11 months early and cuts interest from $3,960.36 to $2,959.81. Check your agreement first: a minority of personal loans carry a prepayment penalty, and a few use rebate-of-interest methods that make early payoff less rewarding than simple amortization suggests.
This page explains how the arithmetic works and is not financial advice. Which loan, rate, and term suit you depends on your circumstances.
Debt consolidation, large one-off expenses, and emergencies. Because the rate is fixed and the payment level, it is easier to budget than revolving credit-card debt at a similar or higher rate.
Advertised rates are the best case for the strongest credit profiles. Your offer reflects your credit score, income, existing debts, and the term you pick.
If the fee is deducted from the disbursement, you receive less than the amount you repay, which raises your effective cost above the stated interest rate. A disclosed APR normally folds such fees in, so compare APR to APR.
It depends on the rates you are comparing. A personal loan has a fixed rate and a fixed payoff date, while a card balance can revolve indefinitely, but a personal loan at a higher rate than your card would not be an improvement.
Usually yes, and it saves interest; enter an extra monthly amount above to see how much. Check your agreement first: a minority of personal loans carry prepayment penalties.