Ladabo

Loan Calculator

Monthly payment plus the true APR once fees are counted.

€
%
months
€

Any fee taken out of the money you receive, or added at the start.

Results update as you type. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Monthly payment —
Total interest —
Total cost of borrowing — Interest plus fees.
Effective annual rate — What the loan really costs once the fee is counted.
Cash actually in your hand —

How this is worked out

The monthly payment comes from the standard amortising formula — the same one used for mortgages and car finance:

payment = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n)

The more interesting number is the effective annual rate. A lender can advertise 7.9% and still charge you a 500 arrangement fee. You then make payments sized for a 12,000 loan while only receiving 11,500. The real cost of that money is higher than 7.9%.

This page finds the rate that makes your payment schedule match the cash you actually received. That is the number to compare between lenders — not the headline rate.

A worked example

Borrow 12,000 over 48 months at 7.9% with no fee:

  • Monthly payment: about 292
  • Total interest: about 2,030

Now add a 500 arrangement fee. The payment does not change, but you only receive 11,500. The effective annual rate rises to roughly 9.9% — two full points above the advertised figure, and the total cost of borrowing goes from 2,030 to 2,530.

A competitor advertising 8.9% with no fee would be the cheaper loan, even though its headline number looks worse.

What this doesn't cover

  • Regulated APR figures published by lenders follow a legal calculation method that may treat fees, insurance and payment timing slightly differently. Use this to compare offers on a like-for-like basis, not to challenge a lender's published APR.
  • It assumes equal monthly payments and a fixed rate. Interest-only periods, balloon payments and variable rates are not covered.
  • Payment protection insurance, if sold alongside, is not included.

Common questions

What is the difference between the interest rate and the APR?

The interest rate is what you are charged on the balance. The APR is meant to fold in compulsory fees so that two loans can be compared with one number. Where a loan has no fees, they are effectively the same. Where there are fees, the APR is always the higher and more honest figure.

Is a longer term cheaper?

The monthly payment is lower, but you pay interest for more months, so the total cost is higher — often much higher. Stretching a 12,000 loan from four years to seven can add well over a thousand in interest. Pick the shortest term whose payment you can comfortably sustain.

Should I include the fee in the amount borrowed?

Enter the full amount the loan is written for as the amount borrowed, and the fee separately. The calculator then shows both the payment you owe and the cash you actually receive.

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