{
  "id": "personal-loan",
  "version": "6b7156e27165",
  "status": "published",
  "name": "Personal Loan Calculator",
  "question": "What will my personal loan cost?",
  "summary": "Computes the monthly payment, total cost, and APR of a fixed-rate personal loan with an origination fee taken from the loan or added to it.",
  "category": "finance",
  "subcategory": "loans",
  "url": "https://www.acalculator.org/finance/personal-loan-calculator",
  "markdown": "https://www.acalculator.org/finance/personal-loan-calculator.md",
  "kind": "schedule",
  "method": "payment = L × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n), with L the balance you repay, r the rate ÷ 12, and n the months; the APR is 12 × j, where j is the monthly rate at which n payments repay the cash you receive.",
  "assumptions": [
    "The rate is fixed and interest is charged monthly at the rate ÷ 12 on the balance.",
    "The fee is a percentage of the loan amount, taken from the money you receive or added to the balance.",
    "Payments are made at the end of each month, starting one month after the start date.",
    "The APR follows the actuarial method of Regulation Z (12 CFR 1026.22), with the fee as a prepaid finance charge.",
    "Values are not rounded to the cent between months; only the display is rounded."
  ],
  "inputs": {
    "$schema": "https://json-schema.org/draft/2020-12/schema",
    "type": "object",
    "properties": {
      "amount": {
        "title": "Loan amount",
        "description": "The amount of the loan you apply for, before any fee.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "USD",
        "exclusiveMinimum": 0,
        "maximum": 10000000
      },
      "rate": {
        "title": "Interest rate",
        "description": "The yearly interest rate of the loan, charged monthly at the rate divided by 12.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "percent",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 50
      },
      "term": {
        "title": "Loan term (months)",
        "description": "The number of monthly payments, for example 24, 36, or 60.",
        "type": "integer",
        "minimum": 1,
        "maximum": 120
      },
      "fee": {
        "title": "Origination fee",
        "description": "A one-time fee charged as a percentage of the loan amount.",
        "type": "number",
        "x-unit": "percent",
        "minimum": 0,
        "maximum": 20
      },
      "feeway": {
        "title": "The fee is",
        "description": "Whether the fee is taken out of the money you receive or added to the balance you repay.",
        "type": "string",
        "enum": [
          "deduct",
          "add"
        ]
      },
      "start": {
        "title": "Loan start date",
        "description": "The day the loan starts. The first payment is one month later.",
        "type": "string",
        "format": "date"
      }
    }
  },
  "outputs": {
    "payment": {
      "label": "Monthly payment",
      "description": "The level monthly payment that repays the loan over its term.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "apr": {
      "label": "APR",
      "description": "The annual percentage rate: 12 times the monthly rate at which the payments repay the cash you receive, so the fee counts as a cost.",
      "format": "percent"
    },
    "cash": {
      "label": "Cash you get",
      "description": "The money paid out to you: the loan amount minus a fee taken from it.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "feeAmount": {
      "label": "Origination fee",
      "description": "The fee in dollars: the fee rate times the loan amount.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "loan": {
      "label": "Balance you repay",
      "description": "The balance the payments repay: the loan amount, plus the fee when it is added to the loan.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "interest": {
      "label": "Total interest",
      "description": "All the interest paid over the term.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "paid": {
      "label": "Total of payments",
      "description": "Every monthly payment added up.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "cost": {
      "label": "Cost of the loan",
      "description": "The total of payments minus the cash you get: the interest plus the fee.",
      "format": "money"
    },
    "payoff": {
      "label": "Paid off in",
      "description": "The month of the last payment, when a start date is given.",
      "format": "month-year"
    }
  },
  "defaultAnswer": {
    "inputs": {
      "amount": 15000,
      "rate": 12,
      "term": 36,
      "fee": 5,
      "feeway": "deduct",
      "start": "2026-09-29"
    },
    "outputs": {
      "payment": 498.21464719276787,
      "apr": 15.605201735420147,
      "cash": 14250,
      "feeAmount": 750,
      "loan": 15000,
      "interest": 2935.7272989396442,
      "paid": 17935.727298939644,
      "cost": 3685.7272989396442,
      "payoff": "2029-09-29"
    },
    "text": "Borrowing $15,000.00 at 12% over 36 months costs $498.21 a month; with the fee, the APR is 15.61% and the loan costs $3,685.73 in all."
  },
  "examples": [
    {
      "given": {
        "amount": 10000,
        "rate": 12,
        "term": 36,
        "fee": 5,
        "feeway": "deduct"
      },
      "expect": {
        "payment": 332.14309812851167,
        "cash": 9500,
        "apr": 15.605201735420136,
        "cost": 2457.1515326264307
      },
      "source": "hand calculation in content.mdx; APR by the Regulation Z actuarial method, Python 3 in docs/progress/WP-31/python/personal_loan.py"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "amount": 10000,
        "rate": 12,
        "term": 36,
        "fee": 5,
        "feeway": "add"
      },
      "expect": {
        "payment": 348.75025303493726,
        "loan": 10500,
        "cash": 10000,
        "apr": 15.427464184760641,
        "interest": 2055.009109257753
      },
      "source": "hand calculation in content.mdx; APR by the Regulation Z actuarial method (Python 3)"
    },
    {
      "given": {
        "amount": 5000,
        "rate": 9,
        "term": 24,
        "fee": 0,
        "feeway": "deduct",
        "start": "2026-10-01"
      },
      "expect": {
        "payment": 228.4237113958637,
        "apr": 9,
        "interest": 482.1690735007753,
        "payoff": "2028-10-01"
      },
      "source": "hand calculation in content.mdx: with no fee the APR equals the rate"
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    "Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, What is the difference between a loan interest rate and the APR? https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-the-difference-between-a-loan-interest-rate-and-the-apr-en-733/",
    "Regulation Z (Truth in Lending), 12 CFR 1026.22, Determination of annual percentage rate. https://www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/regulations/1026/22/",
    "Regulation Z, 12 CFR 1026 appendix J, Annual percentage rate computations for closed-end credit transactions (actuarial method). https://www.consumerfinance.gov/rules-policy/regulations/1026/j/",
    "Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Can I prepay my loan at any time without penalty? https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/can-i-prepay-my-loan-at-any-time-without-penalty-en-843/"
  ],
  "related": [
    "loan",
    "business-loan",
    "loan-payoff",
    "credit-card-interest"
  ],
  "changelog": []
}