Loan Comparison Calculator
Put up to three loan offers side by side and see which one is genuinely cheapest — comparing the monthly payment, total interest, fees, and the true cost to borrow, not just the advertised rate.
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Submit your requirement once and regulated banks & NBFC partners come back with offers — free, no obligation, no impact on your credit score to ask.
Estimates only, for like-for-like comparison. A lender's real figures can differ because of how fees are folded into APR, insurance add-ons, rounding, the first payment date, or daily-interest accrual. “Cost to borrow” is total interest plus the fees you enter; always confirm the exact numbers and the full fee list with each lender before signing.
TL;DR
Enter each offer's amount, interest rate, term, and fee in the columns above and the tool shows the monthly payment, total interest, fees, and cost to borrow (interest + fees) for each — then highlights the cheapest. The lesson most borrowers miss: the loan with the lowest advertised rate is not always the cheapest once fees are counted, and the lowest monthly payment usually just means a longer term and more total interest. Compare like-for-like — same amount, same term — and let the total cost decide.
The five numbers that decide which loan is cheapest
A loan advert shows you one big number — the rate — and hopes you stop there. To actually compare offers, you need five:
- The amount — keep it identical across offers. Comparing a $18,000 offer to a $20,000 one tells you nothing about which lender is cheaper.
- The APR, not the “from” rate — APR folds mandatory fees into a single percentage, so it is the fairest headline number. The advertised “rates from” figure is usually offered to only a fraction of applicants.
- The term — a longer term shrinks the monthly payment but grows the total interest. Compare the same term, or you are comparing affordability, not cost.
- The fees — processing, arrangement, or origination fees can add hundreds. A low rate with a big fee can lose to a higher rate with no fee (see the table below).
- The cost to borrow — total interest plus all fees. This single number is the honest price of the loan, and it is what the tool above ranks on.
Why the lowest rate isn't always the cheapest loan
Here are two real-shaped offers for the same $20,000 loan over 5 years. Offer A has the lower rate and the lower monthly payment — yet it is the more expensive loan, because its 3% arrangement fee outweighs the interest it saves. This is exactly the trap comparing by rate alone walks you into.
| Offer | Rate | Monthly | Interest | Fee | Cost to borrow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A — low rate, 3% fee | 8.5% | $410 | $4,623 | $600 | $5,223 |
| B — higher rate, no fee | 9.0% | $415 | $4,910 | $0 | $4,910 |
Illustrative figures, standard amortization on a $20,000 loan over 60 months. Offer A looks cheaper on both the rate and the monthly payment, but its $600 fee makes it cost about $313 more to borrow than Offer B. Cost to borrow = total interest + fees.
How the tool ranks offers
Each column uses the same amortizing-loan formula every bank uses to get the monthly payment, then rolls up the totals:
- Monthly payment — what you pay each month, for affordability. The tool flags the offer with the lowest one.
- Total interest — every payment summed, minus the amount you borrowed.
- Fees — entered as a percentage of the amount or a flat figure; the toggle at the top switches between them.
- Cost to borrow — interest plus fees. The lowest wins the “Cheapest” badge.
- Total repayable — the amount plus interest plus fees: every dollar that will leave your account.
For a fair result, keep the amount and term identical in each column. If one lender only offers a longer term, remember its lower monthly payment is buying time, not saving money — check the cost to borrow.
Frequently asked questions
How do I compare two loan offers correctly?
Compare like-for-like: use the same loan amount and the same term for each offer, then compare the total cost to borrow — total interest plus all fees — not just the monthly payment or the advertised rate. A loan with a lower headline rate but a big processing fee can cost more overall than one with a slightly higher rate and no fee. Always compare APR to APR, because APR folds mandatory fees into a single percentage. The tool above does this for you across three offers at once.
Should I pick the loan with the lowest monthly payment?
Not automatically. A lower monthly payment often just means a longer term, which usually means you pay more total interest over the life of the loan. Look at the total cost to borrow alongside the monthly payment: choose the lowest monthly payment you can comfortably afford only if its total cost is also competitive. The tool shows both figures for every offer so you can weigh affordability against cost.
What is the difference between the interest rate and the APR?
The interest rate is the cost of borrowing the principal alone. The APR also includes mandatory lender fees such as origination or arrangement fees, so it is usually a little higher and is the fairer number for comparing offers. When two lenders quote different rates and different fees, comparing APR to APR — or comparing cost to borrow in this tool — tells you which loan is genuinely cheaper.
Do fees really matter when comparing loans?
Yes, sometimes more than the rate. A processing or arrangement fee of 2–5% on a large loan can add hundreds or thousands to the cost and can outweigh a small rate advantage — as the table above shows. That is why this tool adds fees into the cost to borrow, so a low-rate, high-fee loan is compared fairly against a slightly higher-rate, no-fee one. Also watch for fees the rate hides: prepayment penalties, insurance bundling, and lock-in charges.
Does comparing loans affect my credit score?
Using this calculator has no effect on your credit score at all — it is just math on numbers you type in. Requesting a formal quote can often be done as a soft search, which also does not affect your score; only a full application creates a hard inquiry. To compare safely, gather soft-search or indicative quotes, run them here, and only submit a full application to the one or two lenders you actually want.
Can you get lenders to compete for my loan?
Yes. Once you know your numbers here, you can submit a single requirement through our free loan-referral service and regulated banks and NBFC partners come back with offers, so you can compare real quotes rather than advertised rates. We only make the introduction; each lender independently decides whether to make an offer and on what terms. There are no fees to you, and asking does not commit you to anything.