Does this calculator model income-driven repayment or forgiveness?

No. It models a fixed payment that pays the entered balance over a selected term. It does not model income-driven payments, subsidies, deferment, forbearance, delinquency, discharge, or forgiveness.

How do extra payments change student loan payoff?

In this estimate, each extra payment is applied after current interest and reduces principal. A lower principal balance reduces future interest and may bring the payoff date forward.

Student Loan Repayment Calculator

Estimate your fixed monthly payment, total interest, and payoff month. Add capitalized interest or a recurring extra payment, compare two interest methods, and download the full repayment schedule.

Loan details

Currency

Current principal balance

Use the principal balance before any interest entered below.

Interest to capitalize

Optional accrued interest expected to be added to principal.

Annual interest rate (%)

Repayment term (years)

First payment month

Interest calculation

Daily simple interest better approximates many student loans. Monthly amortization is useful for a conventional fixed-payment comparison.

Extra payment each month

The estimate applies extra money after current interest, reducing principal. Confirm your servicer's payment-allocation instructions.

Private by design: calculations run in your browser. This page does not upload or store the loan values you enter.

Amortization schedule

Calculate to generate the schedule.

Payment	Month	Starting balance	Interest	Scheduled	Extra	Principal paid	Ending balance
No schedule calculated yet.

Formula, assumptions, and limits

Monthly payment: M = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)⁻ⁿ)
Daily interest estimate: principal × annual rate ÷ 365.25 × days

For monthly amortization, P is principal plus entered capitalized interest, r is the annual rate divided by 12, and n is the selected years multiplied by 12. The daily method uses actual calendar days between first-of-month modeled payment dates and solves for a level payment over the requested term.

The daily option reflects the simple daily interest approach described by official federal loan servicers: interest accrues on outstanding principal, payments cover accrued interest before reducing principal, and capitalized interest increases principal. See the Federal Student Aid servicer explanation of student loan interest.

Important limits: this tool models one fixed-rate balance and regular on-time monthly payments. It does not model multiple loans with different rates, variable rates, income-driven or graduated payments, subsidies, payment floors, fees, grace periods, deferment, forbearance, delinquency, interest capitalization events after repayment begins, forgiveness, discharge, taxes, or changing program rules. Actual daily interest varies with payment dates and servicer rounding. Use your servicer's statement and official calculator for decisions. This is educational information, not financial, tax, or legal advice.

How to read your student loan estimate

Scheduled payment

This is the estimated level payment needed to clear the opening repayment balance over the selected term. Your total monthly outflow is the scheduled payment plus the optional extra amount until the final, usually smaller, payment.

Capitalized interest

Enter accrued interest only when you expect it to be added to principal before repayment. Do not enter the same amount in both principal and capitalized interest. Your current servicer statement is the best source for both figures.

Payoff and savings

The payoff date is the modeled month of the final payment. Savings compare the same loan with and without the entered recurring extra payment; they do not account for alternative uses of that money.

Federal repayment choices

Federal repayment can depend on plan eligibility, loan type, income, family size, disbursement date, and current rules. Use the official Federal Student Aid repayment guidance to review current options.

Student loan repayment FAQs

How is the student loan monthly payment calculated?

Monthly amortization uses M = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)⁻ⁿ). The daily option instead solves for the level payment that reduces the balance to zero over the selected number of monthly due dates while interest accrues for the actual days between them.

Do federal student loans accrue interest daily?

Direct Loans generally accrue simple interest daily on outstanding principal. Select the daily method for an estimate using a 365.25-day year. Your servicer's result can differ because of exact due dates, payment receipt dates, rounding, account status, and applicable program rules.

Does this model income-driven repayment or forgiveness?

No. It is a fixed-payment payoff estimator. It does not predict income-based bills, subsidies, forgiveness, discharge, or eligibility. Use the current official Federal Student Aid tools for those scenarios.

What is capitalized interest?

Capitalized interest is unpaid accrued interest added to principal. Future interest may then accrue on the higher principal balance, increasing repayment cost.

What happens when I add an extra payment?

The calculator applies current interest first and then reduces principal with the scheduled and extra amounts. That typically lowers future interest and shortens payoff. Ask your servicer how to direct overpayments, especially when you have several loans.

Can I combine several student loans?

You can enter the combined balance and a weighted-average interest rate for a rough estimate, but the result will not reproduce separate loan allocation or payoff order. For accuracy, calculate each loan separately or use your servicer's account tools.

Is my loan information stored?

No. The calculator processes inputs locally in your browser and does not send or save the amounts you enter.