CARMIND

Tools

Auto loan calculator

Monthly payment, total interest, and a year-by-year amortization. Plug in your credit-union pre-approval rate to compare against the dealer's captive-lender quote.

$

OTD price minus your trade-in and cash down.

%

The rate from your pre-approval or the dealer quote.

60 months is the sweet spot. 72 or 84 lengthens the upside-down window and adds thousands in interest.

Monthly payment

$601.14

60 months @ 7.5% APR

Loan amount
$30,000
Total of payments
$36,068
Total interest20.2% of loan amount
$6,068
Principal paidInterest paid
$0$9k class="relative z-10"8k$27k$36kStartYr 1Yr 2Yr 3Yr 4Yr 5

Total of payments builds from $0 at signing to $36,068 by month 60. The amber band is interest, which front-loads — most of it accrues in the first half of the term.

Year-by-year breakdown

YearStarting balancePrincipal paidInterest paidEnding balance
Year 1$30,000$5,138$2,076$24,862
Year 2$24,862$5,537 class="relative z-10",677 class="relative z-10"9,325
Year 3 class="relative z-10"9,325$5,967 class="relative z-10",247 class="relative z-10"3,359
Year 4 class="relative z-10"3,359$6,430$784$6,929
Year 5$6,929$6,929$285$0

Use this number against the dealer's quote

Walk into the dealership with two things: this calculator's monthly payment using your credit-union pre-approval rate, and a written pre-approval letter from that credit union. The captive lender's first offer will almost always be one to two percentage points higher than your pre-approval. Hand the dealer your number and tell them you'll finance through them only if they match.

Most dealers can match, because the captive lender pays a small bonus to the dealer for routing the loan through them. They'd rather give up that bonus than lose your deal. The full play-by-play lives in the financing guide.

Frequently asked

What APR will I actually qualify for?
Captive lenders quote tier-1 (typically 720+ FICO) rates in their ads. If your score is in the 660–700 range expect 1–3 percentage points higher. Below 660 you should pre-approve with a credit union before walking into a dealer — local credit unions often beat captive rates by 50 to 150 basis points for the same tier.
Should I take a longer loan to lower my payment?
Almost never. A 72- or 84-month loan keeps you upside-down for years and the extra interest dwarfs the payment savings. If a 60-month payment is uncomfortable, you are buying too much car.
Does the APR include all loan fees?
APR is annualized and includes mandatory loan fees (origination, application). It excludes optional add-ons like GAP or extended warranties — those show up as a separate line on the contract. The contract has a 'Total of Payments' line that is the true total cost; verify the calculator's number matches.
What is the difference between APR and monthly rate?
APR is the yearly rate. Monthly rate is APR divided by 12. The amortization formula uses the monthly rate, so a 7.5% APR loan compounds at 0.625% per month.
Should I make extra principal payments?
Yes if the rate is above your other returns. At 7% APR, every extra class="relative z-10"00 toward principal saves you $7 per year forever the loan is outstanding. Front-loaded loans benefit most from early extra payments — the first year of a 60-month loan is more interest than the last.