Personal loan calculator: monthly payment, origination fee and real APR (2026)
Edited by Moe Ameen · Published
A personal loan's payment comes from the amount, the interest rate and the term. Borrow $10,000 at 12% for 36 months and you'd pay $332.14 a month and $1,957.15 in interest. If a 5% origination fee comes out of the loan, you get $9,500 and the APR works out to about 15.61%. The Federal Reserve's average 24-month personal loan rate at banks was 11.90% in August 2026.
Key takeaways
- Monthly payment = loan × r(1+r)^n ÷ ((1+r)^n − 1), with r = annual rate ÷ 12 and n = months.
- Bankrate says origination fees typically run 1% to 10% of the loan, and are more often taken out of the money you get [4].
- The APR counts origination charges, so a fee pushes the APR above the interest rate [2].
- A fee raises the APR more on a short loan than on a long one.
- Banks' average 24-month personal loan rate was 11.90% in August 2026, per the Federal Reserve [1].
How is a personal loan payment calculated?
Multiply the loan amount by r(1+r)^n and divide by (1+r)^n minus 1, where r is the yearly rate ÷ 12 and n is the number of monthly payments.
It's the standard amortization formula, the same one our business loan calculator uses. Each payment covers that month's interest first and the rest pays down the balance. A longer term lowers the payment and raises the total interest.
| Term | Monthly payment | Total interest |
|---|---|---|
| 24 months | $470.73 | $1,297.63 |
| 36 months | $332.14 | $1,957.15 |
| 48 months | $263.34 | $2,640.24 |
| 60 months | $222.44 | $3,346.67 |
How does an origination fee change what you get?
If the fee comes out of the loan, you receive less cash but repay the full amount. If it's added to the loan, you get it all and repay more.
Bankrate says personal loan origination fees typically run 1% to 10% of the loan, and some lenders for bad credit charge up to 12% [4]. Lenders either deduct the fee from the loan proceeds or add it to the balance, and deducting is more common [4]. Its example: on a $10,000 loan with a 5% fee, you'd get $9,500 [4]. The CFPB lists origination fees among the charges a personal installment loan can carry, next to documentation fees, optional insurance and late fees [3]. More in our guide to origination fees.
| Fee | You receive | Monthly payment | Total interest | APR with the fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| None | $10,000.00 | $332.14 | $1,957.15 | 12.00% |
| 5%, taken out of the loan | $9,500.00 | $332.14 | $1,957.15 | 15.61% |
| 5%, added to the loan | $10,000.00 | $348.75 | $2,055.01 | 15.43% |
What's the difference between a personal loan's interest rate and its APR?
The interest rate is the cost of borrowing the money. The APR adds origination charges and other fees charged when the loan is made.
That's how the CFPB defines the two [2]. The calculator finds the APR as the yearly rate at which your payments add up, in today's money, to the cash you actually received. Because the fee is paid once, spreading it over more months dilutes it. With a 5% fee taken out of $10,000 at 12%, the APR is 17.23% over 24 months, 15.61% over 36 months and 14.28% over 60 months. When comparing offers, compare APR with APR. Our guide to APR vs interest rate goes further.
How much should I borrow to end up with the amount I need?
Divide the cash you need by 1 minus the fee. To get $10,000 in hand with a 5% fee taken out, borrow about $10,526.32.
$10,000 ÷ 0.95 = $10,526.32, and 5% of that is $526.32, leaving $10,000. Bankrate rounds its version of this example to $10,527 [4]. The calculator shows this figure whenever the fee is taken out of the loan. Remember you'll pay interest on the larger amount.
What is the average personal loan interest rate?
At commercial banks, the average 24-month personal loan rate was 11.90% in August 2026, according to the Federal Reserve's G.19 release.
| Period | Average rate |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 12.27% |
| 2025 | 11.50% |
| Q2 2026 | 11.86% |
| August 2026 | 11.90% |
The Fed reports these as APRs under Regulation Z. Each is a simple average of every reporting bank's most common rate, taken in the first week of the middle month of the quarter [1]. It covers banks only, and a single most-common rate per bank, so it can't tell you the rate you'd be offered. Only a lender's quote can. See how personal loans work.
Glisten tool
Personal loan calculator
Glisten tool · Personal loan calculator
— a month
Enter a loan amount, a rate from 0 to 100% and a term of 1 to 600 months. Leave the fee blank if there isn't one.
Estimates only. If a lender quotes you an APR that already includes its fee, enter that APR as the rate and leave the fee blank. The grey example figures are illustrations, not rates offered to you. Your loan agreement sets the real numbers. This runs in your browser, and nothing you type is sent anywhere or saved.
The tables above come out of this calculator. Switch the fee between "taken out" and "added" to see both versions of the same offer, and use the borrow-more figure if you need a set amount in hand. The APR is solved the same way as in our business loan calculator.
Is this right for you?
Best for
- Comparing fixed-rate personal loan offers by payment, total cost and APR.
- Seeing how much cash you'll really get after an origination fee.
Not ideal for
- Variable-rate loans, since the calculator holds one rate for the whole term.
- Lines of credit and credit cards, where the balance changes as you borrow and repay.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate a personal loan payment?
Multiply the amount by r(1+r)^n and divide by (1+r)^n − 1, with r = yearly rate ÷ 12 and n = months. $10,000 at 12% for 36 months is $332.14 a month.
Is the origination fee taken out of my loan?
Usually. Bankrate says lenders either deduct it from the proceeds or add it to the balance, and deducting is more common [4]. Your loan disclosure says which.
How much is a personal loan origination fee?
Bankrate says typically 1% to 10% of the loan, and up to 12% at some bad-credit lenders [4].
Why is my APR higher than my interest rate?
The APR includes origination charges and other fees charged when the loan is made [2]. A 5% fee on a 36-month loan at 12% gives an APR of about 15.61%.
What is the average personal loan rate right now?
The Federal Reserve's average for 24-month personal loans at commercial banks was 11.90% in August 2026 [1]. That's an average, not a quote.
Is this calculator private?
Yes. It runs in your browser, and nothing you type is sent anywhere or saved.
How we know this
On November 2, 2026 we read the Federal Reserve's G.19 consumer credit release of October 7, 2026, the CFPB's answers on loan interest rate vs APR and on personal installment loan fees, and Bankrate's guide to personal loan origination fees. Example figures are our own arithmetic with the standard amortization formula. The APR solves for the rate at which your payments equal the cash you receive, and the calculator reproduces every figure.
- G.19 Consumer Credit, release of October 7, 2026, Federal Reserve Board. Checked November 2, 2026.
- What is the difference between a loan interest rate and the APR?, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Checked November 2, 2026.
- Do personal installment loans have fees?, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Checked November 2, 2026.
- Personal loan origination fees: What to know, Bankrate. Checked November 2, 2026.