Amortisation schedule calculator
Not a lender · illustrative only.Figures are examples, not offers or advice.
See how each monthly payment splits into interest and principal. Preview the first N months and lifetime totals.
Methodology: how this is calculated · Last checked:
Your inputs
EXAMPLE Loan A defaults (£8,500 · 24.9% EXAMPLE rate · 48 months · £0 fee) — illustrative only, not a live quote.
Results
Monthly repayment
£281.36
Total interest
£5,005
Total paid
£13,505
| Month | Payment | Interest | Principal | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | £281.36 | £176.38 | £104.99 | £8,395.01 |
| 2 | £281.36 | £174.20 | £107.17 | £8,287.85 |
| 3 | £281.36 | £171.97 | £109.39 | £8,178.46 |
| 4 | £281.36 | £169.70 | £111.66 | £8,066.80 |
| 5 | £281.36 | £167.39 | £113.98 | £7,952.82 |
| 6 | £281.36 | £165.02 | £116.34 | £7,836.48 |
| 7 | £281.36 | £162.61 | £118.75 | £7,717.73 |
| 8 | £281.36 | £160.14 | £121.22 | £7,596.51 |
| 9 | £281.36 | £157.63 | £123.73 | £7,472.78 |
| 10 | £281.36 | £155.06 | £126.30 | £7,346.48 |
| 11 | £281.36 | £152.44 | £128.92 | £7,217.55 |
| 12 | £281.36 | £149.76 | £131.60 | £7,085.96 |
Table shows the first 12 of 48 months in GBP (£).
Method: Capital-and-interest reducing balance; monthly rate = APR ÷ 12. Representative APR on UK credit ads may include fees — we model fees separately unless stated.
Most people next
Illustrative only — not personalised advice, not a credit offer, and not an FCA-regulated recommendation. LoanCalc Lab is not a lender or broker. Check the lender’s pre-contract information for the APR, fees and early settlement terms. Rates and fees change. Full calculator disclaimer.
How this is calculated
Step by step, exactly as the calculator above works it out. Nothing is sent to a server — the sums run in your browser.
- The monthly rate is r = annual rate ÷ 100 ÷ 12 and the term is rounded to whole months.
- The fixed payment is the same reducing-balance formula used on the EMI page: M = P × r × (1 + r)n ÷ ((1 + r)n − 1), or P ÷ n at 0%.
- For each month, interest = opening balance × r. The rest of the payment (M − interest) is principal and reduces the balance.
- If a payment would be more than the balance plus that month’s interest, it is capped, so the final row ends at exactly £0.00.
- The schedule stops at the end of the term. The “show first N months” setting only trims the table on screen; totals and the CSV download always use every month.
- Total interest and total paid are the sums of the interest and payment columns.
Equations & assumptions
Each month: interest = balance × (annual rate ÷ 12 ÷ 100); principal = payment − interest; new balance = balance − principal.
- Capital-and-interest reducing balance; monthly rate = APR ÷ 12. Representative APR on UK credit ads may include fees — we model fees separately unless stated.
- Fixed payment equal to the standard amortising EMI for the chosen term.
- Schedule preview is capped for readability; totals use the full term.
- Fees are not rolled into the schedule balance (match EMI tool with £0 fee for EXAMPLE Loan A).
Using this calculator well
When to use it
Open the schedule when you want to see where each payment goes: how much is interest and how much reduces the balance, month by month. It answers questions such as 'what will I still owe after two years?' or 'why does my balance fall so slowly at first?'. It is also a good starting point before asking a lender for a settlement figure, because it shows roughly what principal remains at any point in the term.
Common errors to avoid
- Treating the remaining balance shown here as your settlement figure. The lender adds interest to the settlement date and applies the legal rebate rules.
- Expecting each row to match your statement to the penny; lenders count days and round differently.
- Ignoring a payment holiday or missed payment, which pushes the whole schedule out.
- Reading the first year alone and concluding the loan barely moves; principal repayment speeds up later.
- Mixing up a reducing-balance loan with a flat-rate quote. A flat rate charges interest on the original amount for the whole term, so the same number costs more.
UK traps and limits to check
- Early settlement fees. On most regulated UK personal loans you can repay part or all of the loan early (Consumer Credit Act 1974, s94). On a fixed-rate loan the lender may charge compensation, capped at 1% of the amount repaid early (0.5% if 12 months or less remain), and generally only where early repayments exceed £8,000 in a 12-month period. The rebate rules sit in the Consumer Credit (Early Settlement) Regulations 2004; MoneyHelper explains them in plain English in repaying a personal loan early. Ask the lender for a settlement figure rather than relying on any schedule.
- Arrangement fees. A fee taken from the advance means you receive less cash but repay the full amount. Compare offers on APR and on total repayable, not just the interest rate — MoneyHelper makes the same point in its personal loans guide.
- Variable vs fixed. These calculators hold the rate constant for the whole term, which matches a fixed-rate loan. Some loans and most credit cards are variable, so the real figure can move — for example when the Bank of England Bank Rate changes and a lender passes it on. Re-run the numbers with a higher rate to see how much headroom you have.
- Credit score. Eligibility checkers use a soft search that other lenders cannot see; a full application leaves a hard search on your credit file. Several hard searches close together can make the next lender more cautious. See MoneyHelper on hard and soft credit checks. The rate you are finally offered may not be the advertised representative APR, which only 51% of accepted applicants must receive.
General information only, not advice. LoanCalc Lab is not a lender or broker and does not recommend borrowing.
Notes & FAQs
How do I map an illustration to this schedule?
Enter the same principal, schedule rate and term you used on the EMI page. EXAMPLE Loan A (£8,500 · 24.9% · 48 months · £0 fee) should show about £281.36 on every payment row, matching the EMI tool.
Where does a fee appear in the table?
This schedule does not roll an arrangement fee into the balance. A fee taken from the advance cuts cash received but leaves row payments the same unless you change principal. That fee trap is clearer on the EMI and APR / true-cost tools.
What is this schedule not?
Not the lender’s statutory table, not a settlement quote, and not advice. Early-settlement figures, payment-protection and late fees are ignored here.
When should I not use this amortisation tool?
Skip it for interest-only products, mortgages with variable tracker maths you have not modelled, and any loan where extras must be applied mid-cycle under rules this page does not encode. Use the extra-payment calculator for planned overpayments.
Why is early interest so high?
Interest is charged on the outstanding balance. Early on, most of the balance is still outstanding, so more of each payment covers interest.
Why do payment and interest columns differ late in the term?
On EXAMPLE Loan A, month 1 is about £176.38 interest / £104.99 principal; month 48 is about £5.72 / £275.64. The payment stays fixed while interest shrinks with the balance.
Does changing “show first N months” change totals?
No. The preview is for readability only. Lifetime interest and total paid always use the full contractual term.
Can I model extra payments here?
Not on this page. Keep the schedule contractual, then open the extra-payment calculator if your agreement allows overpayments without a punitive early-settlement fee.
Why does the balance fall slowly at first?
Interest is charged on the opening balance, which is largest at the start. On EXAMPLE Loan A, month 1 is £176.38 interest and only £104.99 principal; by month 48 it is £5.72 interest and £275.64 principal.
Can I use the balance shown as my settlement figure?
No. A lender’s settlement figure follows the early settlement rules, runs to a settlement date the lender sets (often up to 28 days after you ask), may include permitted compensation, and uses the lender’s own day count. Treat the schedule balance as a guide only.
Related tools & guides
Who the schedule is for
Use this when a single monthly figure is not enough. It is the companion to the EMI page — same EXAMPLE Loan A inputs so row 1 matches.
How to read each column
- Month — instalment number starting at 1.
- Payment — the fixed reducing-balance EMI.
- Interest — that month’s charge on the opening balance.
- Principal — payment minus interest; the only part that lowers the balance.
- Balance — what is left after that principal slice.
EXAMPLE Loan A first vs last month: payment £281.36 both times; month 1 is £176.38 interest / £104.99 principal; month 48 is £5.72 / £275.64. Stretch to 60 months and the payment falls while lifetime interest rises.
Not the lender’s table. Extra payments belong on the extra payment calculator. See how to read an amortisation schedule and amortisation explained. Disclaimer.
Case study: two years into Loan A
A borrower took EXAMPLE Loan A — £8,500 at 24.9% over 48 months, £281.36 a month — and two years later wonders where the money has gone. Setting the schedule to show 24 months answers it. Month 1 was £176.38 interest and £104.99 principal (£8,500 × 24.9% ÷ 12 = £176.38). By month 24 the split has moved to £112.99 interest and £168.38 principal.
Across those 24 payments (£6,752.64 in all) about £3,529 went on interest and only about £3,223 reduced the debt, leaving a schedule balance of £5,276.72. In the first year alone interest was about £1,962. The second half of the loan is much cheaper: total interest over all 48 months is £5,005.36, so only about £1,476 of it falls in years three and four. That is why paying extra early saves the most, and why settling late in a loan saves less than people expect. Before acting on the balance, ask the lender for a settlement figure.
Edge cases
Term under 1 month or over 420 months, a negative rate or a zero amount shows a message instead of a schedule. At 0% every payment is principal. A very short term front-loads nothing — the split barely changes.
Sources for product-norm wording only: MoneyHelper — credit; FCA consumer credit. Case-study figures are EXAMPLES produced by this calculator’s own code, not a quote or an offer. Last checked 24 October 2026.