Loan Offer Comparison Calculator
Which loan offer really costs least — before and after you prepay.
Side by side
Swipe the table sideways to see every offer.
The lowest total cost, interest, fees, rate, EMI and APR in each row are marked.
Total cost over the full term
How this was calculated
Results are estimates for general information and planning, not financial advice. Banks and institutions may calculate differently (rounding, fees, rate changes). Confirm figures with your lender or a qualified adviser before deciding.
About the Loan Offer Comparison Calculator
The lowest headline rate is not always the cheapest loan. A flat rate charges interest on the whole amount for the whole term, fees and insurance add-ons come off what you receive, and a prepayment charge can wipe out the saving of paying early. Enter up to four offers for the same amount — rate (flat or reducing balance), tenure, processing fee, other charges, insurance and prepayment charge — and see each one’s EMI, total interest, fees, total cost and true annual rate (APR), with the cheapest marked.
Add a planned prepayment to see which offer wins if you pay part of the loan early, and try a floating rate rise or cut to see how an offer’s EMI or term would change. Tax on fees (such as 18% GST on loan fees in India) is included when you enter it. Everything stays in your browser.
How to use it
- Choose the currency, enter the loan amount you need and, if your country taxes loan fees, the tax on fees (18% for GST in India).
- For each offer, enter the lender’s name, the interest rate and whether it is reducing balance or flat, and the tenure in months or years.
- Add the processing fee (% of the loan or an amount), other one-time charges, any insurance premium (tick if it is added to the loan) and the prepayment charge.
- For a floating rate, enter a rate change to try, after which EMI, and whether the lender changes the EMI or the number of EMIs.
- Switch on the planned prepayment if you expect to pay a lump sum early, and choose whether you keep the EMI (shorter loan) or the end date (lower EMI).
- Compare the table: the lowest total cost and APR are marked. Copy the summary or download the CSV.
Examples
Total cost: Bank A 18,009 · Bank B 18,859 · Lender C 21,000 · APR 11.19%, 11.70% and 12.83%
The 7% flat rate looks lowest but equals 12.83% on a reducing balance.
Prepayment charge: Bank A 4% · Bank B none · Lender C 2%
Total cost: Bank B 13,180 · Bank A 13,806 (incl. a 1,200 charge) · Lender C 14,890 — Bank B wins; each loan ends after 26 EMIs
Fees with tax 2,950 · you receive 97,050 · EMI 3,299.00 · total cost 21,714 · APR 13.62%
Common uses
- Choose between personal, car or home loan offers from different lenders.
- See what a “low” flat rate or a zero-fee offer really costs.
- Decide whether a prepayment charge is worth paying to close a loan early.
- Check the APR in a loan offer or key fact statement.
How each offer is worked out
- Reducing balance: EMI = P × i ÷ (1 − (1 + i)^−n), where i is the yearly rate ÷ 12 and n the number of EMIs. Each month’s interest is charged on what is still owed.
- Flat rate: EMI = (P + P × rate × years) ÷ n, so the interest is charged on the full amount for the whole term. The calculator also finds the reducing-balance rate those EMIs really cost and uses it for prepayments, as lenders do when they state what is left to repay.
- Fees: the processing fee (% of the loan or an amount) and other one-time charges, plus the tax on them you enter. They come off what you receive.
- Insurance: paid up front, or added to the loan — then it is repaid with interest like the rest.
- Total cost = total interest + fees and tax + insurance + any prepayment charge.
APR: the true annual rate
The APR is the rate at which the money you actually receive (the loan less fees and up-front insurance) equals the present value of everything you repay. The calculator finds that monthly rate and multiplies it by 12, the method of the US Truth in Lending rules (Regulation Z, appendix J: “the unit-period rate × the number of unit-periods in a year”). The effective annual rate, (1 + monthly rate)^12 − 1, is the form used in the UK and the EU, where the APR equates the present values “on an annual basis” (FCA CONC App 1.2).
In India, the Reserve Bank requires lenders to show an APR in the key fact statement of a loan: the “annual cost of credit to the borrower which includes interest rate and all other charges”, including charges collected for third parties such as insurance (RBI circular on the Key Facts Statement). Compare the calculator’s APR with the one in your offer letter.
Prepayments and floating rates
A prepayment is paid together with the EMI you choose. After it, either the EMI stays the same and the loan ends sooner (this saves the most interest) or the end date stays and the EMI falls. The prepayment charge is the offer’s % of the amount prepaid, plus the tax on fees.
A floating rate can move in either direction. Enter a change to try — for example +1 point after 12 EMIs — and whether your lender would raise the EMI or keep it and add EMIs. If a kept EMI no longer covers the interest, the calculator says so instead of showing a loan that never ends.
Limitations
- Interest is worked out monthly on the balance (rate ÷ 12); lenders that charge daily interest, or round EMIs, can differ by small amounts.
- A floating rate is modelled with one change you choose; real rates move many times and in either direction.
- Lenders state flat-rate foreclosure balances in different ways; check the amount in your loan agreement before you prepay.
- Taxes on interest, tax benefits on loans, late-payment charges and part-payment limits are not included.
Privacy
Everything is calculated in your browser. The figures you enter are never uploaded or stored.
Frequently asked questions
How do I compare loans with different fees and rates?
Compare the total cost — interest plus every fee, tax and insurance — or the APR, which spreads the fees over the loan as a yearly rate. In the example, Bank A at 10.5% with a 1% fee costs 18,009 over three years, Bank B at 11% costs 18,859 and a 7% flat-rate offer costs 21,000.
What is the difference between a flat and a reducing interest rate?
A reducing rate is charged on what you still owe, so the interest shrinks as you repay. A flat rate is charged on the original amount for the whole term. That makes a flat rate look much lower: 7% flat over three years costs as much as about 12.83% reducing.
What is APR and how is it different from the interest rate?
The interest rate is what the lender charges on the balance. The APR also counts the fees and insurance, by asking which yearly rate turns what you really receive into the payments you make. A 1% fee on a three-year loan at 10.5% gives an APR of about 11.19%.
Is it worth prepaying a loan with a prepayment charge?
Often, but check: the charge is paid at once, while the interest saved builds up over the remaining months. In the example, prepaying 30,000 after a year saves Bank A’s borrower 4,202 even after its 4% charge (1,200), but Bank B, with no charge, becomes the cheaper loan.
Should I keep the EMI or the tenure after a prepayment?
Keeping the EMI ends the loan sooner and saves more interest; keeping the tenure lowers the EMI and frees up monthly cash. The calculator shows both — switch between them under the planned prepayment.
Does insurance added to the loan cost more?
Yes: a premium added to the loan is borrowed too, so you pay interest on it for the whole term. Paying it up front costs less in interest but lowers the money you receive. Either way it is part of the total cost and the APR.