Example 1
- Amount: 10,000
- Cost: 1,200
- Term: 12 mo.
APR 12.00%
Cost/principal 12.00%
With a 12-month term, simplified APR matches the cost-to-principal ratio.
APR calculator
Type the loan amount, the total known borrowing cost, and the term in months. The calculator estimates APR, the annual percentage rate, as (1 + cost/amount) to the power 12/months, minus 1. At 10,000, a 1,200 cost, and 12 months you get 12.00%.
Estimate (1 + cost/amount)^(12/months) − 1. Not IRR and not statutory APR. Cost parts sit under Additional options. All-in from a payment: total cost of loan.
Result
Loan amount, Total known borrowing cost, Term (months) and Interest over the term (optional). The result shows up here.
How results are calculated
Simplified APR, the annual percentage rate, on this page is one power: (1 + cost divided by amount) to the power 12 divided by months, minus 1. At 10,000, a 1,200 cost, and 12 months the cost-to-amount ratio is 12% and the APR estimate is also 12.00%. At 20,000, a 3,500 cost, and 24 months you get about 8.40%. The calculator does not solve IRR from a schedule and does not copy a statutory disclosure formula.
People compare two offers with one percent. You type a cost you already know, or you build it from parts. If you fill Interest over the term, Upfront fee(s), Recurring monthly fee, and Insurance over the term, the calculator sums them into Total known borrowing cost. 1,800 + 600 + 25 times 24 + 300 = 3,300. At 15,000 and 24 months the estimate is about 10.45%, above the 9% nominal rate in that example.
Required fields are Loan amount, Total known borrowing cost, and Term (months) when you type the cost by hand. Under Additional options the four parts can replace a typed cost. Nominal interest rate % is optional and only shows estimate minus nominal. Monthly all-in on the page is (amount + cost) divided by months. At 10,000 and 1,200 over 12 that is 933.33.
Total cost of loan builds an annuity and adds fees outside the payment. The loan installment page shows 1,112.22 from 50,000 at 12% for 5 years, without this power. This page stays with one annual figure. Do not paste a 1,112 payment into the cost field, or the calculator will treat it as the whole-term cost.
Header currency only labels the amounts. A comma and a period in 8.4 mean the same number. The calculator waits for a positive amount, a non-negative cost, and positive months. This is a teaching estimate, not a statutory APR from an offer.
Type 10,000, 1,200, and 12, click Calculate, and check 12.00%. Then try 20,000, 3,500, and 24 to see about 8.40%.
How to use
- Type Loan amount, for example 10,000, and Term (months), for example 12.
- Enter Total known borrowing cost, for example 1,200, or build it under Additional options from Interest, Upfront fee(s), Recurring monthly fee, and Insurance.
- Optionally type Nominal interest rate % to see estimate minus the nominal rate.
- Click Calculate. At 10,000, a 1,200 cost, and 12 months APR is 12.00% and cost/amount is also 12.00%.
- All-in from an annuity payment lives on total cost of loan. This calculator stays with one power.
Simplified APR from cost over principal
Estimate (1 + cost/amount)^(12/months) − 1. At 10000, a 1200 cost, and 12 months, APR is 12.00%. Not statutory APR from an offer.
- APR
- Annual percentage rate in this shortcut. 1200 / 10000 at 12 months = 12.00%. At 20000, 3500, and 24 months the estimate is about 8.40%.
- Nominal
- Optional rate for the gap line. On 15000, 24 months, and 1800+600+25×24+300 the 3300 total cost pushes the estimate above 9%.
- borrowing cost
- The Total known borrowing cost field, the numerator. 1200 on 10000 for a year matches APR 12%. Not LTV and not IRR.
Usage examples
Example 2
- Amount: 20,000
- Cost: 3,500
- 24 mo., nominal 8%
Estimate ≈ 8.40%
Close to nominal
When cost is mostly interest, the estimate often sits near the nominal rate.
Example 3
- 15,000, 24 mo., nominal 9%
- Interest 1,800 + upfront 600
- Fee 25/mo. + insurance 300
Total cost 3,300
Estimate above 9%
Upfront fees, monthly charges, and insurance push effective cost above the nominal rate alone.
When NOT to use this calculator
- It does not calculate statutory APR/APRC from bank documents.
- It does not help you choose a precise monthly instalment - use instalment or mortgage calculators instead.
- It does not show a full fee structure, only a simplified annual cost based on what you enter.
If you want to calculate:
- your instalment and total repayment → use Loan instalment or Mortgage instalment,
- full all-in cost including fees → use Total cost of loan.
Related calculators
FAQ
What APR do I get at 10,000, a 1,200 cost, and 12 months?
12.00%. (1 + 1200/10000)^(12/12) − 1 = 0.12. Cost/amount is also 12.00%.
What about 20,000, a 3,500 cost, and 24 months?
About 8.40%. (1 + 3500/20000)^(12/24) − 1 ≈ 0.0840. Close to the 8% nominal in the example, still a sketch.
Where does the 3,300 cost in example 3 come from?
Interest 1,800 + upfront 600 + fee 25 × 24 + insurance 300 = 3,300. At 15,000 and 24 months the estimate is about 10.45%.
Is this statutory APR from an offer?
No. There is no IRR from a full schedule and no statutory formula. It is a power of cost and amount, a teaching estimate.
What if I fill the parts and the cost field?
Parts under Additional options build total cost automatically. A typed 1,200 at 10,000 and 12 months stays 12.00% when you do not overwrite it with parts.
How is this different from total cost of loan?
That page shows an annuity payment and all-in in money. Here you get one percent from a power. At 50,000 and 11% for 5 years the 1,087.12 payment lives there.
Is 933.33 the monthly payment?
It is (10,000 + 1,200) / 12, this card’s monthly all-in. It is not the 1,112.22 annuity on 50,000 at 12% for 5 years.
Does a comma in 8.4 work?
Yes. 8,4 and 8.4 are the same number. Header currency only labels the amounts.
Can I type the term in years?
The field is Term (months). One year is 12, two years is 24. Typed 5 would be read as 5 months.
Is 12.00% a credit decision?
No. It is a sketch from three numbers. An offer prints its own APR from its own fees and its own formula.
Knowledge sources
APR in this calculator is a sketch from your numbers, not a statutory figure from an offer.
Page updated in 2026.