acalculator

What will my student loan cost?

Find your student loan payment and total interest, with this year's federal rates, fees, and standard plan built in.

Your numbers

Repayment plan
Monthly payment
$261.66

Borrowing $30,000.00 at 6.52% and repaying it over 15 years costs $261.66 a month and $17,099.19 of interest.

Amount borrowed $30,000.00Total interest $17,099.19
64% amount borrowed36% total interest
Years to repay
15
Interest rate
6.52%
Amount borrowed
$30,000.00
Total interest
$17,099.19
Total of payments
$47,099.19
Loan fee
$317.10
Money paid out to you
$29,682.90
Months
180

Monthly payment: $261.66. Borrowing $30,000.00 at 6.52% and repaying it over 15 years costs $261.66 a month and $17,099.19 of interest.

How much of what you repay is interest?

Where does each year of payments go?

What does every payment look like?

The results are estimates for information only. They are not financial, tax, or legal advice. Check the numbers with your lender or a qualified professional before you decide. Terms of use

How to calculate

Computes the monthly payment, total interest, and loan fee of a federal Direct Loan at the 2026–27 rates, or a private loan, with interest that builds before repayment starts.

Example with the default inputs (Loan type Undergraduate Unsubsidized, 6.52%, Amount borrowed $30,000.00, Repayment plan Standard plan, Months until repayment starts 0): Borrowing $30,000.00 at 6.52% and repaying it over 15 years costs $261.66 a month and $17,099.19 of interest.

Method: Monthly rate r = rate ÷ 12; interest before repayment = amount × r × months waited (none on Direct Subsidized); the level payment repays the principal and that interest in n months when each payment goes first to unpaid interest, then to principal (at no waiting, payment = amount × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n)).

  • Federal rates and fees are those for Direct Loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027, fixed for the life of the loan.
  • The standard plan sets 10, 15, 20, or 25 years by the amount borrowed, taken as your total federal principal.
  • Interest before repayment is simple interest on the amount borrowed and is not added to the principal; it is paid first when repayment starts.
  • The whole amount is disbursed at once, and interest is charged monthly at the rate ÷ 12.
  • Values are not rounded to the cent between months; the Department truncates the loan fee to the cent.

Machine-readable copies: Markdown, JSON.

Worked examples

Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.

  1. Loan type Undergraduate Unsubsidized, 6.52%, Amount borrowed $20,000.00, Repayment plan Standard plan gives Years to repay 10, Monthly payment $227.30, Total interest $7,275.94, Loan fee $211.40.Source: hand calculation in content.mdx; Python 3 in docs/progress/WP-31/python/student_loan.py
  2. Loan type Graduate Unsubsidized, 8.07%, Amount borrowed $60,000.00, Repayment plan Standard plan, Months until repayment starts 6 gives Years to repay 20, Interest before repayment $2,421.00, Monthly payment $523.46, Total interest $65,629.43.Source: hand calculation in content.mdx; Python 3 in docs/progress/WP-31/python/student_loan.py
  3. Loan type Private or other loan, Amount borrowed $10,000.00, Interest rate 0%, Loan fee 2%, Years to repay 5, Months until repayment starts 12 gives Monthly payment $166.67, Total interest $0.00, Money paid out to you $9,800.00, Years to repay 5.Source: hand calculation in content.mdx: 10,000 ÷ 60 at 0%
  4. Loan type Undergraduate Subsidized, 6.52%, Amount borrowed $5,500.00, Repayment plan Choose the years, Years to repay 10, Months until repayment starts 48 gives Loan fee $58.13, Monthly payment $62.51, Total interest $2,000.88.Source: FY27 sequester announcement: the fee on a $5,500 loan is $58.13 (truncated); hand calculation in content.mdx

How it works

Write A for the amount borrowed and r for the monthly rate (the yearly rate ÷ 12, as a decimal).

  1. Rate and fee. For a federal loan they come from the list below; for a private or other loan you enter them.

    For loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027:

    • Direct Subsidized (undergraduate): rate 6.52%, fee 1.057%.
    • Direct Unsubsidized (undergraduate): rate 6.52%, fee 1.057%.
    • Direct Unsubsidized (graduate or professional): rate 8.07%, fee 1.057%.
    • Direct PLUS (parents, graduate students): rate 9.07%, fee 4.228%.

    The fee is A × fee rate; for a federal loan it is truncated (not rounded) to the cent, as the Department does. The money paid out to you is A minus the fee.

  2. Years. On the standard plan (federal loans only), the years come from A: under $25,000, 10; from $25,000, 15; from $50,000, 20; from $100,000, 25. Otherwise you choose the years. The number of payments is n = years × 12.

  3. Interest before repayment. U = A × r × months until repayment. It is 0 for Direct Subsidized Loans. It is simple interest: it is not added to the principal, so it does not earn interest itself.

  4. Monthly payment. With U = 0, payment = A × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n) (A ÷ n at 0%). With U above 0, each month the interest A_k × r is charged on the principal A_k, and a payment first pays all unpaid interest, then principal. The payment is the level amount M for which n such payments leave nothing owed; it lies between A × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n) and (A + U) × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n), and the page finds it with a root finder.

  5. Schedule. Month by month: interest = principal × r; owed = unpaid interest + interest. If this is payment n, or M covers the owed interest and the whole principal, the payment is the owed interest plus the principal and everything is paid. Otherwise, if M is at least the owed interest, unpaid interest becomes 0 and the principal falls by M − owed; if not, the unpaid interest becomes owed − M.

  6. Totals. Total interest is U plus the sum of the monthly interest; total of payments is A plus the total interest.

Assumptions

  • Federal rates and fees are for loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027, and are fixed for the life of the loan.
  • The standard plan tier uses the amount borrowed as your total federal principal. If you have other federal loans, their principal counts too.
  • The whole amount is paid out at once, and each month is 1/12 of a year. Federal loans accrue interest daily, so a servicer's figures can differ by a few dollars.
  • Interest before repayment is not added to the principal, as for federal Direct Loans since July 1, 2023. Private loans that capitalize it cost a little more.
  • Values are not rounded between months. A federal loan fee is truncated to the cent.

Worked examples by hand

$20,000 of undergraduate Direct Unsubsidized Loans on the standard plan. $20,000 is under $25,000, so the plan is 10 years (n = 120). r = 0.0652 ÷ 12 = 0.0054333 and (1 + r)^−120 = 0.521923, so the payment is 20,000 × 0.0054333 ÷ (1 − 0.521923) = $227.30. The interest is 120 × 227.2995 − 20,000 = $7,275.94. The fee is 20,000 × 1.057% = $211.40, so $19,788.60 is paid out.

$60,000 of graduate Direct Unsubsidized Loans, 6 months before repayment. $60,000 is from $50,000, so the plan is 20 years (n = 240). r = 0.0807 ÷ 12 = 0.006725, so the interest before repayment is 60,000 × 0.006725 × 6 = $2,421. The payment lies between 60,000 × 0.006725 ÷ (1 − 0.200168) = $504.48 and 62,421 × 0.006725 ÷ 0.799832 = $524.84; the level payment that clears both in 240 payments, paying the unpaid interest first, is $523.46. The total interest is $65,629.43.

A private loan of $10,000 at 0% with a 2% fee, over 5 years, a year before repayment. There is no interest, so the payment is 10,000 ÷ 60 = $166.67. The fee is $200, so $9,800 is paid out.

$5,500 of Direct Subsidized Loans over 10 years, 48 months before repayment. The government pays the interest before repayment, so none builds. The payment is 5,500 × 0.0054333 ÷ (1 − 0.521923) = $62.51 and the interest is $2,000.88. The fee is 5,500 × 1.057% = $58.135, truncated to the cent: $58.13.

Other questions people ask

What are the federal student loan rates for 2026–27?

For Direct Loans first disbursed from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027 the fixed rates are 6.52% for undergraduate Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans, 8.07% for graduate or professional Unsubsidized Loans, and 9.07% for PLUS Loans. Each rate is fixed for the life of the loan.

What is the loan fee?

Federal Direct Loans charge a fee taken out of each disbursement: 1.057% for Subsidized and Unsubsidized Loans and 4.228% for PLUS Loans first disbursed from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2027. You repay the full amount borrowed, so on $20,000 you receive $19,788.60 but repay $20,000 plus interest.

How many years is the standard repayment plan?

For loans made on or after July 1, 2026, federal law sets the standard plan's period by your total outstanding principal: under $25,000, 10 years; $25,000 to under $50,000, 15 years; $50,000 to under $100,000, 20 years; $100,000 or more, 25 years. Payments are fixed each month. Older loans had a 10-year standard plan; choose "Choose the years" to model that.

Does interest build while I am in school?

On Direct Unsubsidized and PLUS Loans, yes: interest starts when the loan is paid out. On Direct Subsidized Loans the government pays it while you are in school and during the grace period. The page adds the interest for the months you enter before repayment, and since July 1, 2023 that interest is not added to the principal when repayment starts; your first payments pay it off.

Can I pay less each month?

Income-driven plans such as the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) base the payment on your income instead of the balance, and can lower it, but you may pay more interest over time. This page shows a fixed payment; use the Loan Simulator on StudentAid.gov to compare income-driven plans.

How do private student loans differ?

Private loans set their own rates, fees, and terms, often based on your credit, and many add unpaid interest to the principal when repayment starts. Choose "Private or other loan" and enter the rate, fee, and years from your offer.