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Savings, loans & pensions · UK 2026/27

Loan calculator

Enter how much you want to borrow, the APR and how long you want to repay it over to see your monthly repayment and the total the loan will cost.

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Use the APR you've been offered. The advertised representative APR only has to be given to 51% of successful applicants.
Monthly repayment
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Total interest–
Total to repay–
Cost per £1 borrowed–
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Quick answer

How much is a £10,000 loan per month? At 6.9% APR, a £10,000 loan costs £196.56 a month over 5 years, with £1,793.43 of interest in total. Over 3 years it's about £307 a month.

How the loan calculator works

Most UK personal loans are repaid in equal monthly instalments. Each payment covers that month's interest plus a slice of the amount you borrowed, so the balance falls steadily to zero by the end of the term. The calculator turns the APR into a monthly rate and then uses the standard loan formula:

Monthly rate i = (1 + APR)1/12 − 1
Monthly payment = P × i ÷ (1 − (1 + i)−n)
P = amount borrowed, n = number of months

Converting the APR this way is how the APR is defined in UK consumer credit rules: it's the yearly rate that includes the effect of monthly compounding. An APR of 6.9% works out at about 0.558% a month, not 6.9% ÷ 12 = 0.575%.

Worked example: £10,000 over 5 years at 6.9% APR

  • Monthly rate: 1.0691/12 − 1 = 0.5576%
  • Monthly repayment: £196.56 for 60 months
  • Total repaid: £11,793.43
  • Total interest: £1,793.43, about 18p for every £1 borrowed

Some other examples:

LoanAPRTermMonthlyTotal interest
£5,0009.9%3 years£160.11£764.02
£10,0006.9%5 years£196.56£1,793.43
£20,0005.5%7 years£286.13£4,034.99

What is APR?

APR stands for annual percentage rate. It's the total yearly cost of borrowing, including the interest and any compulsory fees such as an arrangement fee, expressed as a single percentage. Because every lender has to work it out the same way, it's the fairest way to compare loans.

  • Representative APR: the rate in adverts. At least 51% of people accepted through that advert must get it or better. The rest can be offered a higher rate, so always check your personal APR before you sign.
  • Personal APR: the rate actually offered to you after the lender checks your credit file. Enter this in the calculator.
  • Fixed rate: most personal loans have a fixed rate, so your payment won't change for the whole term.

Shorter or longer term?

A longer term lowers the monthly payment but you pay interest for longer. Borrowing £10,000 at 6.9% over 3 years costs about £307 a month and £1,065 in interest. Spread over 7 years, the payment drops to about £149 but the interest rises to around £2,551. Choose the shortest term you can comfortably afford.

Loan rates also tend to be lowest for borrowing between about £7,500 and £25,000. Very small loans often carry much higher APRs, so a 0% purchase credit card can be cheaper for a few hundred pounds, provided you clear it before the offer ends.

Tips before you borrow

  • Use eligibility checkers that do a soft search. They don't affect your credit score and show which lenders are likely to accept you.
  • Check for early repayment fees. By law you can repay a loan early. For loans taken out since February 2011 there's no fee if you repay £8,000 or less in a year; above that the fee is capped at 1% of the amount repaid early, or 0.5% if less than a year is left.
  • Compare against other borrowing. For a car, see the car finance calculator. For card debt, the credit card repayment calculator shows whether a consolidation loan would save you money.
  • Only borrow what you need. An extra £2,000 at 6.9% over 5 years adds about £39 a month and £359 of interest.

Frequently asked questions

How much is a £10,000 loan per month?

At 6.9% APR, a £10,000 loan costs £196.56 a month over 5 years, with £1,793.43 of interest in total. Over 3 years it's about £307 a month.

What does representative APR mean?

It's the advertised rate that at least 51% of successful applicants must receive. The other 49% can be offered a higher rate depending on their credit history.

Is APR the same as the interest rate?

Not quite. APR includes compulsory fees as well as interest and allows for compounding, so it's the better figure for comparing loans. For a loan with no fees, the APR is the yearly interest rate including compounding.

Can I pay off a loan early?

Yes. Under the Consumer Credit Act you can repay all or part of a personal loan early at any time. Any fee is capped at 1% of the amount repaid early (0.5% if under a year is left), and none applies if you repay £8,000 or less in 12 months.

How much would a £5,000 loan cost?

Over 3 years at 9.9% APR, a £5,000 loan costs £160.11 a month, so you repay £5,764.02 including £764.02 of interest.

Last reviewed October 2026 using 2026/27 figures. This calculator gives an estimate for guidance only.