Personal loan calculators

All three tools run in your browser. Nothing you type is sent to us. We do not supply a rate, because rates come from lenders; you type the numbers from a real quote.

How to read the consolidation result

The tool compares two paths. Path one keeps your current payment going until the balance is gone; path two takes the loan you were quoted. If the quoted loan costs less in total, consolidating saves money. If it costs more, it can still make sense when the lower payment prevents missed payments, but understand you are paying for relief.

What DTI tells you

Debt-to-income is your total monthly debt payments divided by your gross monthly income, which is how the CFPB defines it. Different lenders set different limits. If adding a loan lifts your DTI past what you can comfortably carry, a smaller amount or a longer-term plan may be the safer choice.

Reading the offers table

The right column shows the monthly payment and the total you would pay including the fee. The line under the table names the offer with the lowest total cost of borrowing. If two offers are close, choose the one with no prepayment penalty.

Three worked examples with the tools on this page

Consolidation. Suppose you owe $3,200 on one card, $2,800 on another and $1,500 on a store card, for $7,500 total. Enter each balance, its rate and its minimum. The calculator estimates how long and how much you will pay if you continue as you are. Then enter a written loan offer: the amount you receive after the fee, the number of payments and the payment amount. The difference between the two totals is your potential saving. If it is small, or negative once the fee is counted, a loan is not the better tool.

Debt-to-income. If you earn $3,800 a month before taxes and pay $1,100 in rent, $240 on a car and $90 in card minimums, your debts total $1,430 and your ratio is about 38 percent. Try adding a possible new payment to see how much room is left. Lenders look at your own numbers, so use real ones.

Comparing offers. Enter up to three offers from written quotes. The table shows total repaid and the cost over what you received. It sorts out cases where a lower payment hides a higher total.

Tips for accurate inputs

• Use gross income for DTI, not take-home pay.
• Use the statement balance and the rate printed on your statement for each card.
• Enter fees as dollars, not percentages, after converting them.
• If a lender quotes a range, calculate with the high end first.
• Save a screenshot or note with your date so you can compare later.

What the calculators cannot do

They do not know your credit, they do not shop lenders for you and they do not predict a decision. They do the arithmetic you would do with a pencil. The numbers you type stay in your browser and are not sent to us. If you want a deeper understanding of how APR is defined, read the CFPB's explanation.

Next steps once you have your numbers

Use the offer checklist to verify each lender, read how to compare personal loans to put the offers in order and pick the one with the lowest total cost that you can pay without strain.

Frequently misunderstood inputs

APR versus interest rate. The APR includes certain fees, so it is higher than the plain interest rate when fees exist. For comparing loans, use the APR from the disclosure.

Term versus payment. A longer term lowers the payment and raises the total. The offers table shows both so that you can see the tradeoff.

Minimum payments on cards. They shrink as the balance falls, so the real payoff date is later than it looks. Enter your actual payment if you pay more.