Personal Loan Comparison Calculator
Compare multiple personal loan offers side by side — monthly payment, total interest, and total cost including fees — to find the cheapest. Runs in your browser.
Comparison
| Lender | Monthly | Interest | Total cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lender A ✓ best | $483.30 | $2,398.94 | $17,398.94 |
| Lender B | $473.51 | $2,496.47 | $17,496.47 |
| Lender C | $387.68 | $3,608.78 | $18,608.78 |
Best = lowest total cost (all payments + fees), the most honest comparison since APR alone ignores fees and term length. A lower monthly payment from a longer term often costs more overall. Informational, not a loan offer.
About this tool
Lenders advertise personal loans by monthly payment or headline rate, which makes offers hard to compare honestly — a lower APR with an origination fee, or a smaller monthly payment from a longer term, can actually cost more. This calculator lines up several offers and computes, for each, the true monthly payment (via standard amortization), the total interest, and the total cost including fees, then highlights the cheapest by total cost. That total-cost view is the fair comparison: it captures rate, term length, and fees together, whereas APR alone misses fees and a low monthly payment hides a long, expensive term. Add as many offers as you have, adjust amounts and terms to compare apples to apples, and read the winner. Use it when shopping pre-qualified offers from banks, credit unions, and online lenders. It is informational, not a loan offer or endorsement. Everything runs in your browser.
How to use it
- Enter each offer's loan amount, APR, term, and any origination fee.
- Add a row per offer you're comparing.
- Read the monthly payment, total interest, and total cost for each.
- Pick the lowest total cost — not just the lowest monthly payment.
Frequently asked questions
- Why compare total cost instead of APR or monthly payment?
- APR ignores fees and the effect of term length, and a low monthly payment often just means a longer, more expensive loan. Total cost — every payment plus fees — captures all of it, so it is the fairest single number for choosing the cheapest offer.
- How is each monthly payment calculated?
- Standard amortization: payment = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n), where P is the loan amount, r the monthly rate (APR ÷ 12), and n the term in months. Total cost is that payment times the term plus any fees.
- What is an origination fee?
- A one-time fee some lenders charge to set up the loan, often 1–8% of the amount, sometimes deducted from the funds you receive. It raises the real cost, which is why this comparison adds it into total cost.
- Should I always pick the lowest total cost?
- It is usually the right financial choice, but also weigh monthly affordability, prepayment penalties, funding speed, and lender reputation. If two offers are close, those factors can break the tie.
- Does a longer term ever make sense?
- If you need a lower monthly payment for cash-flow reasons, yes — but you will pay more total interest. The tool shows both so you can decide consciously rather than being lured by the smaller payment.
- Is this a loan offer or recommendation?
- No. It is an informational comparison of figures you enter; actual terms come from lenders and depend on your credit and the market.