Personal Loan Calculator: Payment, Fees and True APR

Name: Personal Loan Calculator: Payment, Fees and True APR
Author: Acun Özdilek

This personal loan calculator shows your monthly payment, the cash you actually receive and the true APR once the origination fee is counted.

Example numbers

The answerfrom an example

You receive $9,500 and pay a true APR of 15.60%, not the 12.00% quoted.

Worked on $10,000 at 12% over 3 years with a 5% origination fee. Change anything below to use yours.

Monthly payment: $332.14
True APR: 15.60%
Cash you receive: $9,500

The figures behind it

Monthly payment: $332.14
True APR: 15.60%; The rate at which your payments are worth exactly the cash you receive.
Cash you receive: $9,500
Origination fee: $500
Total interest: $1,957
Total cost of borrowing: $2,457; Interest plus the fee.

Where your repayments go$11,957

79%

16%

Cash you receive$9,500
Origination fee$500
Interest$1,957

Payment scheduleShow

Item	Amount
Loan balance
Loan balance	$10,000
Origination fee
Origination fee	$500
Cash received
Cash received	$9,500
Monthly payment
Monthly payment	$332.14
Payments
Payments	36
Total interest
Total interest	$1,957
Total cost of borrowing
Total cost of borrowing	$2,457
Interest rate
Interest rate	12.00%
True APR
True APR	15.60%

What this result assumes

The true APR is the rate at which your monthly payments are worth exactly the cash you receive. That is how the Truth in Lending Act defines the APR, which is why it counts the origination fee and the interest rate does not.
A fee entered as a percentage is worked out on the loan amount you enter. If your lender works it out on a different figure, enter the dollar fee from your offer instead.
A fixed fee is spread over fewer payments on a shorter term, so the term is worth varying to see how far the true APR moves.
If you borrow more to cover a fee that is taken out of the loan, the fee then sits in the balance you repay.

A fee taken out of the loan leaves you with less than you borrowed, and a fee added to the balance means you repay more than you received. The true APR counts the fee as part of the cost, so two offers with different fees can be compared on one number.

Methodology

Reviewed October 6, 2026 by Acun Özdilek

The cash you receive and the balance you repay

An origination fee is charged one of two ways. Taken out of the loan, you owe the full amount but receive the amount less the fee: borrow $10,000 with a 5% fee and $9,500 reaches your account. Added to the balance, you receive the full $10,000 and owe $10,500.

The monthly payment is worked out on the balance you owe, at the quoted rate, over the term. The interest is the total of the interest in each monthly payment, rounded to the cent, so it matches the loan calculator for the same balance. That page also has the month-by-month schedule and extra payments.

How the true APR is solved

The true APR is the rate at which your monthly payments, discounted back to today, are worth exactly the cash you received. The calculator finds it by trying rates until the two match to well within a hundredth of a percentage point.

With no fee, the cash you receive equals the balance, so the true APR is the quoted rate. A fee means you repay as though you had more than you got, so the APR comes out at or above the quoted rate. The APR calculator does the same sum with points and several separate fees.

Fee taken out or added to the balance

The two ways of charging the fee change different numbers. Taken out, the payment stays at the level for the amount you borrowed and the cash shrinks. Added, the cash stays whole and the balance and payment grow. Above a zero rate you also pay interest on the fee.

At the defaults, $10,000 at 12% over 36 months with a 5% fee, taking the fee out gives a true APR of 15.60% on $9,500 of cash. Adding it gives 15.43% on $10,000, with a payment of $348.75 instead of $332.14. Enter your own offer to see how the two compare for it.

Assumptions

The rate is fixed and every payment is made on time for the full term.
The fee is charged once, when the loan is made. There are no other fees and no prepayment penalty.
A fee entered as a percentage is worked out on the loan amount you enter.
Payments are monthly, with interest at one twelfth of the annual rate each month.
The APR assumes you keep the loan for the full term. Paying it off early spreads the fee over fewer months.

Sources

Common questions

What is an origination fee on a personal loan?

It is a one-time charge for making the loan, quoted as a percentage of the loan or as a dollar amount. Some lenders take it out of the money they send you and others add it to what you owe. On $10,000, a 5% fee is $500.

How is APR different from the interest rate on a personal loan?

The interest rate prices the money you borrow. The APR also counts the origination fee, by asking what rate your payments represent on the cash you actually received. A $10,000 loan at 12% over 36 months with a $500 fee taken out has a true APR of 15.60%.

Is it better to have the fee taken out or added to the loan?

It depends on what you need the money for and on the offer. If you need the full amount in hand, adding the fee gets it to you but raises the balance and the payment. If a smaller amount is enough, taking the fee out keeps the balance lower. Enter your offer both ways and compare the cash you receive, the payment and the true APR in your own numbers.

Should I borrow more to cover the fee?

If the fee is taken out and you need a set amount of cash, you have to borrow more to end up with it. The fee then sits in the balance you repay, and if it is a percentage, the larger loan carries a larger fee. Check the payment on the larger amount before you commit.

How does the loan term change the effect of the fee?

The fee is a fixed amount, so a shorter loan spreads it over fewer payments and each payment carries more of it. On $10,000 at 12% with a 5% fee taken out, the true APR is 15.60% over 36 months. Try a shorter and a longer term to see how far it moves for your loan.

Can I use this to compare a personal loan with paying my debts directly?

It shows what one loan costs. To weigh a consolidation loan against paying your current debts as they are, use consolidation loan vs paying direct. For more ways to plan a payoff, see the debt calculators.

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