How do you use this loan calculator?
Enter the loan the way it appears in the offer or the latest statement, and the calculator returns the payment first, then the tables behind it.
- Choose the type of borrowing. A personal loan has fixed payments over a set term. A line of credit adds the interest-only payment to the results, next to the payment that would clear the balance.
- Enter the amount borrowed, or the balance owing on the line of credit.
- Enter the annual interest rate from the offer or statement.
- Enter the term in years or in months. The months option suits loans such as a 42-month term.
- Choose the payment frequency: monthly, semi-monthly (24 a year), bi-weekly (26 a year) or weekly (52 a year).
- Open “Extra payments” to add a fixed amount to every payment and see how much sooner the loan is repaid.
- Read the payment and total interest first, then the tables: every term, a grid of rates and terms, every frequency, extra payments and the amortization schedule. The CSV download lists every payment.
Inputs stay in the browser. Nothing entered is sent to a server or added to the page address.
Worked example: a personal loan over five years
Take a hypothetical $15,000 personal loan at 9.49% over 5 years, paid monthly. All figures are for illustration only.
| Step | Amount | How it is worked out |
|---|---|---|
| Rate per payment | 0.7908% | The annual rate spread over 12 payments |
| Number of payments | 60 | The term converted to monthly payments |
| Monthly payment | $314.95 | Fixed for the whole term |
| First payment split | $118.63 interest, $196.32 principal | Interest is charged on the balance |
| Total interest | $3,897 | The cost of borrowing before any fees |
| Total repaid | $18,897 | Everything paid to the lender |
That is about 26 cents of interest for every dollar borrowed. In the first year, $1,318 of the payments goes to interest and $2,461 to principal; by the fifth year, interest is down to $187. The same loan one point higher, at 10.49%, would cost $322.33 a month and $443 more interest.
How much is a loan payment over 2, 3, 5 or 7 years?
The term changes the payment more than anything else, and it changes the total interest in the opposite direction. The same $15,000 at 9.49%, paid monthly:
| Term | Monthly payment | Total interest | Total repaid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 years | $688.65 | $1,528 | $16,528 |
| 3 years | $480.42 | $2,295 | $17,295 |
| 5 years | $314.95 | $3,897 | $18,897 |
| 7 years | $245.08 | $5,587 | $20,587 |
Stretching from two years to seven cuts the payment by $443.57 a month but multiplies the interest by about 3.7. Going from five years to seven saves $69.87 a month and costs $1,690 more in interest. The calculator adds the reader’s own term to this comparison when it is not one of the four.
How does the interest rate change the loan payment?
Each point of interest adds a little to the payment and a lot to the total cost over a long term. A single-rate calculator shows one payment at a time; this grid shows the payment on the same $15,000 loan across rates and terms at once, so a quote from one lender can be compared with another at a glance.
| Rate | 2 years | 3 years | 5 years | 7 years | Interest over 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.49% | $674.93 | $466.52 | $300.50 | $230.00 | $3,030 |
| 9.49% | $688.65 | $480.42 | $314.95 | $245.08 | $3,897 |
| 11.49% | $702.53 | $494.57 | $329.81 | $260.72 | $4,789 |
| 13.49% | $716.58 | $508.96 | $345.07 | $276.89 | $5,704 |
Six points of difference, from 7.49% to 13.49%, adds $44.57 to the five-year monthly payment and $2,674 to the interest. Credit history is one of the main factors in the rate offered; see how to check your credit score in Canada for free before applying, and compare offers in the personal loans in Canada comparison.
Are bi-weekly loan payments cheaper than monthly?
Only slightly, unless the payments are accelerated. Over the same term, a bi-weekly schedule spreads the same yearly amount into 26 smaller payments, and the balance falls a little sooner, so interest drops by a few dollars. Accelerated payments work differently: half the monthly payment every two weeks adds up to 13 monthly payments a year instead of 12. The worked example, by frequency:
| Frequency | Payment | Number of payments | Total interest | Paid off in |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $314.95 | 60 | $3,897 | 5 years |
| Semi-monthly | $157.24 | 120 | $3,868 | 5 years |
| Bi-weekly | $145.12 | 130 | $3,866 | 5 years |
| Weekly | $72.51 | 260 | $3,853 | 5 years |
| Accelerated bi-weekly | $157.48 | 118 | $3,465 | 4 years, 6 months |
Regular bi-weekly payments save only $31 over five years. The accelerated schedule saves $432 and finishes about six months early, because more money goes to the balance each year, not because of the frequency itself. A frequency that lines up with a pay schedule mainly helps the budget.
How much do extra payments save on a loan?
Every extra dollar paid goes straight to principal, and interest stops being charged on it from that day. Adding a fixed amount to each monthly payment on the worked example:
| Extra each month | Monthly total | Paid off in | Total interest | Interest saved |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| None | $314.95 | 60 payments | $3,897 | — |
| $50 | $364.95 | 50 payments | $3,213 | $684 |
| $100 | $414.95 | 43 payments | $2,737 | $1,160 |
| $250 | $564.95 | 30 payments | $1,904 | $1,993 |
Loan agreements set the prepayment rules, including whether extra payments or a full early payout are allowed and whether any charge applies, so check the agreement before counting on the saving. When several debts are being repaid at once, extra money usually does the most work on the highest-rate balance; the debt payoff calculator compares the avalanche and snowball orders across several debts. A printed debt free tracker keeps that list of balances and minimums on one page while the plan runs.
How is a line of credit payment calculated?
A line of credit charges interest on the balance owing, usually at a variable rate linked to the lender’s prime rate, and the agreement sets the minimum payment. When the minimum is close to the interest, the balance barely moves. Choosing “Line of credit” in the calculator adds the interest-only payment and compares it with paying the balance off over the chosen term.
Take a hypothetical $10,000 balance at 7.2%, paid monthly over 3 years:
| Approach | Monthly payment | Interest over 3 years | Still owing after 3 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interest only | $60.00 | $2,160 | $10,000 |
| Pay it off in 3 years | $309.69 | $1,149 | Nothing |
Interest-only payments cost more over three years than paying the balance off, and the whole balance is still owed at the end. Because the rate is variable, the calculator’s figures hold only while the rate stays where it is; running it again at a higher rate shows the effect of a rate increase. The same logic applies to credit cards, where the credit card payment calculator shows the cost of minimum payments.
What is the maximum interest rate on a loan in Canada?
The Criminal Code sets the general ceiling. Since January 1, 2025, a criminal rate means an annual percentage rate of interest above 35% on the credit advanced, calculated using generally accepted actuarial practices and principles. Before that date, the threshold was an effective annual rate above 60%. Entering into an agreement to receive interest at a criminal rate, offering or advertising one, or receiving payment at that rate is an offence.
Three details matter when reading a loan offer:
- Fees count as interest. Section 347 defines interest as all charges and expenses paid for the credit, including fees, fines, penalties and commissions, with limited exceptions such as certain insurance charges and official fees. A loan with a stated rate below 35% can still have a higher annual cost once fees are added.
- Payday loans follow a separate rule. Under section 347.1, a licensed payday lender in a province designated by the federal government falls under that province’s rules instead, when the loan is $1,500 or less for 62 days or less and the total cost of borrowing stays within the limit fixed by regulation.
- Some agreements are exempt by regulation. Section 347.01 allows the federal government to exempt types of agreements from section 347 by regulation, so the lender or the loan documents are the place to confirm which rule applies to an unusual offer.
The calculator flags any rate entered above 35%, and rates within five points of it, as a prompt to check the full cost of the offer. It does not calculate a fee-inclusive annual percentage rate, so the lender’s cost of borrowing disclosure is the place to confirm it. The figures come from the Criminal Code on the Justice Laws Website, and the page’s sources box shows when they were last checked.
How does the loan payment maths work?
A personal loan with fixed payments is an instalment loan, and the calculator uses the standard loan formula:
- Rate per payment = the annual rate divided by the number of payments a year (12 monthly, 24 semi-monthly, 26 bi-weekly, 52 weekly).
- Number of payments = the term in months converted to the chosen frequency; five years bi-weekly is 130 payments. When a term in months does not convert evenly, it is rounded to the nearest whole payment and the calculator says so.
- Payment = amount borrowed × rate per payment ÷ (1 − (1 + rate per payment) raised to the power of minus the number of payments).
Each payment first covers the interest on the balance for that period, and the rest repays principal. The last payment is adjusted by cents so the balance ends at zero. The test suite checks the payment against a hand-worked example, verifies that the principal column always adds back to the amount borrowed, and checks early payoff against the closed-form formula for the number of payments; the methodology page explains how YieldMaple builds and tests its calculators.
How is this different from the car loan calculator?
The maths is the same, but a car purchase adds steps that a personal loan does not have: provincial sales tax on the vehicle, a trade-in that can reduce that tax, dealer fees and negative equity from an old car loan. For a vehicle, the car loan calculator builds the amount financed from the price, tax and trade-in first. This calculator starts from the amount borrowed, so it suits personal loans, lines of credit, consolidation loans, student-style instalment loans and any other fixed-payment borrowing.
Common loan payment mistakes
- Comparing offers by the payment alone. A lower payment on a longer term can cost far more in total. Compare total interest and fees as well as the payment.
- Ignoring fees. Setup, administration and optional insurance charges raise the real cost of borrowing even when the rate looks competitive.
- Treating a line of credit like a fixed loan. The rate can rise, and interest-only payments never reduce the balance.
- Assuming bi-weekly always saves money. Regular bi-weekly payments save very little; the saving comes from paying more each year, as accelerated payments do.
- Consolidating and then borrowing again. A consolidation loan only helps if the cleared cards or lines stay paid off; the debt consolidation loans comparison sets out what to check.
- Borrowing for an emergency with no cushion. A small savings buffer can avoid high-interest borrowing; the emergency fund calculator helps size one.
When should you talk to a professional about a loan?
The calculator shows the maths of a loan; it cannot tell whether a loan fits a budget or whether an offer is fair. Before signing, consider asking the lender for the cost of borrowing disclosure, and read the agreement for the prepayment terms, fees, insurance and what happens after a missed payment. When debts have become hard to manage, a non-profit credit counsellor or a Licensed Insolvency Trustee can explain the options. This page is educational and is not financial advice.