Car loan calculator

The amount you finance

The amount financed is:

vehicle price − down payment + sales tax + dealer and other fees

Type the sales tax and fees as dollar amounts. This page does not look up a state tax or a dealer’s fee schedule. A trade-in is not subtracted, and a variable rate is not modeled.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s auto loan tool is a place to compare financing questions before you sign. Regulation Z § 1026.18 lists what a closed-end credit disclosure covers, including the annual percentage rate, the amount financed and the finance charge. This calculator is not that disclosure. It divides the annual rate you type by 12 and applies that monthly rate to the amount financed above.

Monthly rate and cent rounding

The monthly rate is the annual rate divided by 12. A 6% rate is 0.5% per month.

The regular principal-and-interest payment is the standard annuity for that rate and term:

M = P × r / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n))

P is the amount financed, r is the annual rate divided by 100 and then by 12, and n is the number of months. At a 0% rate, M = P / n.

M is rounded half up to the nearest cent, and it is at least one cent. Each month’s interest is the remaining balance times the annual rate, divided by 1,200, then rounded half up to the cent. The payment is capped at the balance plus that interest. On the last month, the payment is whatever principal and interest remain, so it can be a few cents higher or lower than the regular payment. Totals add those actual payments. The balance ends at $0.00. A tiny balance can pay off before the last scheduled month; the page says when that happens.

If that last payment would be more than twice the regular payment, the calculator rejects the inputs and shows no result. Regulation Z § 1026.37(b)(5) uses that same line for a balloon payment. A rounded installment that never reduces principal, then collects the balance at the end, is that kind of balloon rather than a cent adjustment. A term of one month is still the single installment you asked for. This page does not prepare a Regulation Z disclosure.

A $25,000 example

A $30,000 vehicle, a $6,500 down payment, $1,200 of sales tax and $300 of fees finances $25,000.00. At 6% for 60 months, the regular payment is $483.32. The final payment is $483.35. Total interest is $3,999.23, and the payments add to $28,999.23. That is the $25,000 principal plus the interest.

The same $25,000 at 0% for 60 months is not 60 equal payments of $416.666…. The regular payment rounds half up to $416.67, and the final payment is $416.47, so the payments still add to $25,000.00.

What this leaves out

There is no trade-in payoff, no cash-back split, and no rate that changes after a promotional period. Taxes and fees count only as the dollars you type. A payment you already have from a lender will not be solved backward into an APR here. For a home loan’s monthly housing cost, use the mortgage payment calculator. For a tax rate applied to a price, use the sales tax calculator, then type that tax amount here if you want it financed.

Frequently asked questions

Educational estimate only. A lender’s payment, APR disclosure and fee list can differ.