Personal Loan Calculator

Canada rules and figures

• Banks must give the APR and the loan term when advertising a rate on a fixed-amount loan, and must show the APR as prominently as the interest rate.
• FCAC disclosure examples also state how interest is compounded, such as twice a year on fixed-rate mortgages.
• Mortgage APR is subject to section 6 of the Interest Act, which is why mortgages use half-yearly compounding.
• The current consolidated Cost of Borrowing Regulations text was not read; these notes come from FCAC pages and decisions.
• The cost of borrowing is the total of interest and fees over the life of the loan, so a loan with a lower rate but higher fees can cost more.

Sources: FCAC: Information box examples (checked 2026-11-08); Consumer Measures Committee: Agreement for harmonization of cost of credit disclosure laws (checked 2026-11-08); FCAC: Decision #128 (checked 2026-11-08)

How the personal loan calculator works

Payments are equal and monthly, and interest is worked out each month at one twelfth of the annual rate on the remaining balance. The fee does not alter the payment, but it reduces the money you receive, so the APR the tool solves for is higher than the interest rate you type.

payment = amount × h × (1 + h)^months ÷ ((1 + h)^months − 1), with h as the annual rate ÷ 12

• The rate box is labelled Annual percentage rate (APR) and cost of borrowing (%) and is used as the loan's interest rate.
• The APR in the results is solved from the amount received after the fee and all the payments.
• Mortgages are different: they compound twice a year, but this loan calculator uses monthly interest for personal loans.
• Years and extra months add up to the number of payments, so 4 years is 48 payments.
• A rate of 0% is accepted and splits the amount evenly over the months.

How to use the personal loan calculator

1. Enter amount and rate. Type the amount you plan to borrow and the rate from the lender's quote.
2. Set the term. Put whole years in the first box and any remaining months in the second.
3. Add the fee. Enter any administration or origination fee in dollars, or 0 if there is none.
4. Review the cost. Read the payment, the interest, the APR from your figures and the total cost with the fee.
5. Check the schedule. The amortization tab shows how the first twelve payments divide between interest and principal.

Example: An $18,000 loan at 11% repaid across four years, with a $150 fee

Forty-eight payments of $465.22 include $4,330.53 of interest; adding the fee, the cost comes to $22,480.53. Payment 1 splits into $165.00 of interest and $300.22 of principal. The APR from these figures is 11.45%, a little above the 11% rate because of the fee. A 2-year term costs $838.94 a month and $2,134.59 of interest, while 6 years costs $342.61 a month and $6,668.17.

When something else is a better fit

• When you would like to clear the loan early, use the Early Payoff Calculator.
• When you are weighing several lenders, use the Loan Comparison Tool.
• When you need the exact cost of borrowing, use the disclosure box your lender gives you before you sign.

Questions about the personal loan calculator