Mortgage Payment Calculator
A mortgage payment calculator answers the most basic question first: what leaves your bank account every month. Enter the amount you are borrowing, the interest rate and the length of the loan, and it returns the principal-and-interest payment along with what the loan costs in total.
It is the starting point for the other tools on this site. The payoff calculator takes this payment and asks when the loan ends; the refinance calculator asks whether a new payment ever clears its closing costs.
Results update as you type.
Using this mortgage payment calculator
Enter three numbers and the calculator returns the payment a fixed-rate loan actually requires each month, plus two figures people forget to ask for: the total interest over the whole term, and the total of every payment combined. Those last two are where a long term quietly charges you.
The payment shown is principal and interest only — the P&I line on your statement. Property taxes, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance and HOA dues sit outside it, which is why your real monthly outlay is usually higher than the number on this page.
Filling it in
- Loan amount is the money you are borrowing, not the price of the house. Take the purchase price and subtract your down payment — $400,000 less $80,000 is a $320,000 loan. If you already own the home, enter the balance you are refinancing. Type digits; the box ignores commas.
- Interest rate is the annual rate written as a percentage, so 6.5 means 6.5% rather than 0.065. The calculator divides it by twelve itself. Shopping two offers? Run it twice and compare the monthly payment and the total interest column, not the rate alone.
- Loan term is the number of years until the balance reaches zero: 15, 20, 25 and 30 are the usual US options. A shorter term raises the payment and cuts the total interest, which is exactly the trade the third result box makes visible.
Two assumptions are baked in: the rate never changes, and every payment is made on schedule with nothing skipped. That makes the answer clean arithmetic rather than a forecast — an ARM, a forbearance or one missed month all move the real total.
If your question is what happens when you put extra money at the balance each month, take the payment this page produces into the mortgage payoff calculator. If you are still deciding how much cash to put down, the down payment calculator turns a purchase price into the loan you are pricing here.
How it works
Payment = B × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n). B is the loan amount, r is the monthly rate (your annual rate ÷ 12) and n is the number of monthly payments (years × 12). At a 0% rate that formula divides by zero, so the calculator falls back to the simple case: loan ÷ months.
Total of payments is the payment multiplied by the number of payments, and total interest is that figure minus the amount borrowed. Both are arithmetic, not a forecast: they assume no missed payments, no refinancing and no extra money applied to principal.
The result is principal and interest only. Taxes, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance and HOA dues are excluded on purpose — they move on their own schedule, and mixing them in hides what the loan itself costs.
Example
$320,000 loan · 6.5% rate · 25-year term
- Monthly payment: $2,161 in principal and interest.
- First payment split: about $1,733 interest and $427 principal.
- Total of payments across 300 months: $648,199.
- Total interest: $328,199. Stretch the same loan to 30 years and the payment falls to $2,023 while the interest climbs to about $408,000.
Worked example using the figures above — an illustration, not financial advice. Your loan documents decide the real numbers.
Mortgage Payment Calculator FAQ
What is the monthly payment on a $320,000 mortgage?
At 6.5% over 25 years it is $2,161 a month in principal and interest. About $1,733 of that first payment is interest and only $427 goes to principal — the split flips later in the term.
What is included in the payment this calculator shows?
Principal and interest only. Property tax, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance below 20% down, HOA dues and servicer fees all sit outside it, which is why the payment on your statement is usually larger.
Does the loan term change the total cost much?
It dominates it. A $320,000 loan at 6.5% costs $328,199 in interest over 25 years at $2,161 a month. Stretch it to 30 years and the payment drops to $2,023 while interest rises to roughly $408,000.
What is the difference between this and a mortgage payoff calculator?
This page prices the payment for a loan you are taking out or refinancing. The payoff calculator starts from a payment and answers when the loan ends and what an extra payment each month saves — they are meant to be used in that order.
Why is my real mortgage payment higher than this number?
Escrow. Taxes and insurance are collected monthly alongside the P&I, and a loan above 80% of the value usually carries mortgage insurance too. On a $400,000 home those extras commonly add a few hundred dollars a month.
Related calculators
- Mortgage Payoff CalculatorFind your payoff date and interest saved.
- Down Payment CalculatorSee the cash you need at closing, the loan it leaves behind and the payment that follows.
- Amortization CalculatorSee how each mortgage payment splits between interest and principal, plus your payoff date and total interest.
- Refinance Break-Even CalculatorEnter closing costs and your old and new payments to see how many months until refinancing pays for itself.
- Mortgage Recast CalculatorSee your new monthly payment after a lump sum recast, and how much the payment drops.
- Property Tax CalculatorTurn an assessed home value and a local tax rate into an annual and monthly property tax number.
- How Much House Can I Afford?Enter income, down payment, rate, term and your comfort zone to estimate the house price you can carry.
- Rent vs Buy CalculatorA rent vs buy comparison from your own numbers: month-one cost and total cost across your stay, with rent growth, upkeep and investment return.
- PMI CalculatorWork out the monthly private mortgage insurance below 20% down, how long it runs and what it costs in total.
Last updated October 5, 2026. Every figure is an estimate produced in your browser — see the methodology and its limits.