Mortgage Calculator
Work out your monthly mortgage payment in seconds. Enter the home price, down payment, interest rate and loan term to see your monthly principal-and-interest payment, total interest over the life of the loan, and a year-by-year amortization schedule.
Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment, total interest and a yearly amortization schedule for any home loan.
FAQs
What is amortization?
Amortization is the process of paying off a loan in fixed installments where each payment is split between interest and principal. Because interest is charged on the remaining balance, early payments are interest-heavy and later payments are principal-heavy.
Is a 15-year or 30-year mortgage better?
A 15-year loan has much higher monthly payments but far less total interest and usually a lower rate. A 30-year loan costs more overall but keeps payments — and risk if income drops — lower. Compare both with this calculator before deciding.
How it works
Enter the home price and your down payment — the difference is the loan amount. Add the annual interest rate and the loan term in years (30, 20 or 15 are most common). The calculator uses the standard amortization formula to find the fixed monthly payment covering principal and interest.
Example: a $400,000 home with $80,000 down leaves a $320,000 loan. At 6.5% over 30 years the monthly payment is about $2,022. Over the full term you would pay roughly $408,000 in interest — more than the loan itself, which shows why rate and term matter so much.
The amortization table breaks each year into interest paid, principal paid and remaining balance. Early years are mostly interest; later years are mostly principal. Making even one extra payment a year can shave years off the loan.
Note: this covers principal and interest only. Real monthly housing costs also include property tax, homeowner's insurance and possibly PMI — often bundled as PITI in escrow.
The True Cost of a Mortgage
On a 30-year loan, total interest can exceed the amount borrowed. A $320,000 loan at 6.5% costs about $408,000 in interest over 30 years. At 5% it costs about $298,000 — a single percentage point saves over $100,000. Small rate differences compound enormously over decades.
This is why shopping for rates, improving your credit score before applying, and considering a larger down payment pay off far more than most people expect.
Why Extra Payments Are So Powerful
Because early payments are mostly interest, any extra principal payment now avoids interest on it for the rest of the loan. Paying just $200 extra per month on the example above cuts roughly 7 years off the term and saves about $120,000 in interest.
Even one extra payment per year — or rounding your payment up to the next $100 — makes a visible dent. Check your loan allows penalty-free overpayments first.
PITI: The Payment Beyond the Payment
Lenders quote principal and interest, but your actual monthly housing bill is PITI: principal, interest, property tax and insurance. Tax and insurance are often collected monthly into escrow and can add 30–50% on top of the P&I figure.
With less than 20% down, most loans also add private mortgage insurance (PMI) until you reach 20% equity. Budget on PITI, not just the calculator's headline number.