What this calculator works out
Most payment calculators stop at principal and interest, which is the part of the bill that repays the loan itself. That number alone can be a long way from what you actually pay each month. This tool builds the whole payment, one line at a time:
- Principal and interest (P&I): calculated from your loan amount (home price minus down payment), your interest rate, and your term, using the standard amortization formula. On a fixed-rate loan this is one level amount for the life of the loan.
- Property tax: enter the annual figure and the calculator divides it by 12, the same way a lender collects it.
- Home insurance: also entered annually and split across 12 months.
- PMI: entered as a monthly dollar amount. A note appears under the inputs whenever your down payment is below 20%, because that is when a conventional lender usually adds it. To work out the dollar figure itself, use the PMI calculator.
- HOA dues: not part of the loan, but a real monthly housing cost, so the total includes them if you have them.
- Extra payment: any additional amount you would put toward principal each month.
The donut and the legend show how the total splits, and the three summary rows show your loan amount, the total interest over the scheduled term, and the total of all payments. Everything recalculates as you type, in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded.
A worked example you can check
This is the reference case used across the site. A $400,000 home with 20% down ($80,000) leaves a $320,000 loan at 6.5% over 30 years, with property tax of $4,800 a year and home insurance of $1,800 a year:
| Line | Monthly |
|---|
| Principal & interest | $2,022.62 |
| Property tax ($4,800/yr) | $400.00 |
| Home insurance ($1,800/yr) | $150.00 |
| PMI (none at 20% down) | $0.00 |
| Total monthly payment | $2,572.62 |
Taxes and insurance add $550 a month here, more than a fifth of the payment, which is the whole reason a principal-and-interest-only estimate can mislead. Over the full 30 years that loan runs up $408,142.36 in interest, for a total of payments of $926,142.36 including the escrow lines. Type those inputs into the calculator above and you will get the same numbers back.
How to read the amortization schedule
Open the schedule and you get one row per scheduled payment: the payment number, the payment amount, how much of it goes to principal, how much goes to interest, and the balance left afterwards. The schedule covers principal and interest only, because taxes, insurance, PMI, and HOA are separate bills rather than part of the loan.
The interesting part is how the split moves. On the reference loan, payment 1 is $2,022.62 made of $1,733.33 interest and $289.28 principal, because interest is charged on the whole outstanding balance. The payment never changes, but the balance shrinks, so the interest slice shrinks with it and principal takes over. Principal first exceeds interest at payment 233 (year 19, month 5), and the balance first drops below half the original $320,000 at payment 257. By the final payment, only $10.90 of it is interest. Rows at each 12-month mark are highlighted so you can scan year by year.
The other tools on this site
Three calculators, each doing one job:
- Extra payment payoff, in the form above. Put $200 a month into the extra payment field on the reference loan and the schedule ends at 23 years 5 months instead of 30, which is 6 years 7 months early, with $105,428.67 less interest paid. The payoff note under the results reports the new payoff date and the interest saved for whatever figure you enter.
- PMI calculator, on the how much is PMI page. Enter a price, down payment, and PMI rate and it returns the monthly premium, your loan-to-value, and roughly when you can request removal and when it ends automatically.
- Affordability calculator, on the how much house can I afford page. Enter income, debts, and a down payment and it turns the 28/36 lender guideline into a target home price.
Every guide on this site
Start with what's in a mortgage payment for the full breakdown of PITI, escrow, and the amortization formula, then the FAQ for short answers to the questions people ask most. For the individual pieces: down payment explained, how much PMI costs and how to remove it, closing costs explained, discount points, and the mortgage terms glossary for anything on your paperwork you do not recognize. For the decisions: how much house you can afford, 15- vs 30-year terms, biweekly payments, and the refinance break-even point. Background on the tool itself is on the about page, and how your numbers are handled is on the privacy page.
Figures on this page are computed from the inputs shown and are for illustration. Rates, taxes, insurance, and PMI vary by lender and location. This site is general information, not financial advice; confirm every figure with your lender.