What is a good APR for a personal loan?

Strong credit commonly sees offers in the 7 to 12 percent range, average credit in the teens to twenties, and many lenders cap at 36 percent, a ceiling consumer advocates treat as the affordability line. Rates move with the market, so treat any quote as shoppable: prequalification checks use soft pulls and cost nothing.

How does the origination fee actually work?

It is typically deducted from your proceeds: borrow $15,000 with a 3 percent fee and $14,550 arrives, but you repay the full $15,000 with interest. If you need $15,000 in hand, gross up the borrowing. Some lenders charge no fee and price it into the APR instead, which is why total cost is the fair comparison.

Is a longer term better because the payment is lower?

Lower payment, higher cost. Stretching $15,000 at 12 percent from 36 to 60 months cuts the payment by about a third but adds well over a thousand dollars of interest. Pick the shortest term whose payment fits your budget, and remember most personal loans let you prepay without penalty.

Personal loan or credit card: which is cheaper?

For carrying a balance, usually the loan: average card APRs run above 20 percent while good-credit personal loans price lower, and the fixed term forces the balance to zero instead of revolving. For spending you will pay off this month, the card costs nothing. The debt consolidation calculator runs the exact comparison against your balances.

Personal Loan Calculator

Price a personal loan: monthly payment, total interest, and the origination fee handled both ways lenders charge it, deducted from proceeds or financed on top.

X f in

Monthly payment

$498.21

Cash you actually receive: $14,550.00
Origination fee: $450.00
Total interest: $2,935.75
Total of payments: $17,935.75
Total cost of borrowing: $3,385.75

Loan balance by year

Yearly amortization

Quick answer: With the example inputs this page loads by default, the headline result (Monthly payment) comes to $498.21. Price a personal loan: monthly payment, total interest, and the origination fee handled both ways lenders charge it, deducted from proceeds or financed on top. Change any input above and every figure updates instantly in your browser.

Your inputs never leave your browser, and nothing is stored. See our privacy policy .

Fact-check: results on this page are verified against an independently coded reference oracle that covers all 106 calculators on this site. See how we verify .

A personal loan's cost is set by three numbers: the APR, the term, and the origination fee. Borrowing $15,000 at 12 percent for 36 months costs $498.21 a month and $2,935.75 of interest, and a 3 percent fee adds $450, often taken out of the money you receive. This calculator prices the payment and the true all-in cost of borrowing.

What this result means

Compare offers on total cost of borrowing (interest plus fee), not the monthly payment: a longer term always shrinks the payment while growing the cost. Watch how the fee is charged, because a deducted fee means a $15,000 loan deposits only $14,550, and if you needed the full amount you must borrow more. Personal loan APRs run from single digits for strong credit to 36 percent at the regulated ceiling many lenders observe, so a rate quote is worth shopping. If the purpose is paying off cards, the debt consolidation calculator compares the loan directly against your current balances. Not advice.

Assumptions

The payment comes from the standard fixed-rate amortization formula over the term, with each month's interest rounded to the cent and the final payment absorbing rounding, the same shared engine as the site's mortgage and auto loan calculators. Personal loans are fixed-rate installment loans, so this matches how they actually amortize.
The origination fee is a one-time percentage of the loan amount. Deducted (the common structure) means the fee comes out of your proceeds and you repay the full loan amount; financed means the fee is added to the balance and accrues interest, raising the payment.
Total cost of borrowing is interest plus the fee. The advertised APR on real offers sometimes already reflects the fee (Truth in Lending APR) and sometimes is just the interest rate; this calculator treats your entry as the interest rate and prices the fee separately, the conservative reading.
Not modeled: prepayment (most personal loans have no prepayment penalty, so paying early cuts interest), late fees, variable rates, and credit insurance add-ons.
This is an estimate for educational purposes only, not a loan offer or financial advice.

Key terms

Definitions for the terms this calculator uses, in our finance glossary .

How it works

A personal loan is a plain fixed-rate installment loan, so the standard amortization formula prices it exactly: payment M = P x r(1+r)^n / ((1+r)^n - 1), with r the APR divided by 12 and n the term in months. The same shared engine behind the site’s mortgage and auto loan calculators runs the month-by-month schedule, rounding each month’s interest to the cent with the final payment absorbing the rounding.

The origination fee is where offers hide their differences, and lenders charge it two ways. Deducted, the common structure: the fee comes out of your proceeds, so the loan amount you repay is bigger than the cash you received. Financed: the fee is added to the balance and accrues interest, so you receive the full amount but pay more monthly. Total cost of borrowing, interest plus fee, is the number that makes offers comparable across both structures and across APR-vs-fee tradeoffs.

Worked example

$15,000 at 12 percent APR over 36 months with a 3 percent fee deducted.

Payment: $498.21 a month (r = 1%, n = 36).
Interest over the term: $2,935.75.
Fee: $450, so $14,550 actually arrives, and the total cost of borrowing is $3,385.75.

Financing the same fee instead: $15,450 amortizes at $513.16 a month with $3,023.81 of interest, and the full $15,000 arrives.

Scope and limitations

Fixed rate, level payments, no prepayment (most personal loans allow it penalty-free, so real interest can come in lower), no late fees or add-on products. The APR you enter is treated as the interest rate, with the fee priced separately; a Truth in Lending APR on a real offer may already fold the fee in. This is an estimate for education, not a loan offer or advice.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

What is a good APR for a personal loan?: Strong credit commonly sees offers in the 7 to 12 percent range, average credit in the teens to twenties, and many lenders cap at 36 percent, a ceiling consumer advocates treat as the affordability line. Rates move with the market, so treat any quote as shoppable: prequalification checks use soft pulls and cost nothing.
How does the origination fee actually work?: It is typically deducted from your proceeds: borrow $15,000 with a 3 percent fee and $14,550 arrives, but you repay the full $15,000 with interest. If you need $15,000 in hand, gross up the borrowing. Some lenders charge no fee and price it into the APR instead, which is why total cost is the fair comparison.
Is a longer term better because the payment is lower?: Lower payment, higher cost. Stretching $15,000 at 12 percent from 36 to 60 months cuts the payment by about a third but adds well over a thousand dollars of interest. Pick the shortest term whose payment fits your budget, and remember most personal loans let you prepay without penalty.
Personal loan or credit card: which is cheaper?: For carrying a balance, usually the loan: average card APRs run above 20 percent while good-credit personal loans price lower, and the fixed term forces the balance to zero instead of revolving. For spending you will pay off this month, the card costs nothing. The debt consolidation calculator runs the exact comparison against your balances.

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By Sam Sage Last reviewed July 2026.