Mortgage Calculator
How much will my monthly mortgage payment be?
See your true monthly mortgage payment: principal and interest plus property tax, homeowner's insurance, PMI, and HOA, with a year-by-year amortization schedule. Your monthly mortgage payment has up to six parts, often remembered as PITI plus extras: Principal (paying down the loan), Interest (the lender's charge), Taxes (property tax, usually escrowed), and Insurance (homeowner's insurance, also escrowed). If your down payment is below 20%, most conventional loans add PMI (private mortgage insurance), and many condos and planned communities add HOA dues.
See your true monthly mortgage payment: principal and interest plus property tax, homeowner's insurance, PMI, and HOA, with a year-by-year amortization schedule.
Last updated: October 2026
Your loan details
Taxes, insurance & extras
Amortization schedule (yearly)
| Year | Interest paid | Principal paid | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enter your details and click Calculate. | |||
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How mortgage payments work
Your monthly mortgage payment has up to six parts, often remembered as PITI plus extras: Principal (paying down the loan), Interest (the lender's charge), Taxes (property tax, usually escrowed), and Insurance (homeowner's insurance, also escrowed). If your down payment is below 20%, most conventional loans add PMI (private mortgage insurance), and many condos and planned communities add HOA dues. Online estimates that show only principal and interest can understate your real payment by 25% or more, this calculator includes everything.
Taxes and insurance are usually collected through an escrow account: your lender adds one-twelfth of the annual bills to each payment, holds the money, and pays the bills when due. That means your "mortgage payment" can change even with a fixed rate, if property taxes or insurance premiums rise, the escrow portion rises with them. Lenders re-analyze escrow once a year and adjust your payment, which is why a fixed-rate mortgage payment is not always perfectly fixed.
The mortgage payment formula
The principal-and-interest portion is computed with the standard amortization formula:
where P is the loan amount, r is the monthly interest rate (annual rate ÷ 12), and n is the total number of monthly payments. Early in the loan, most of each payment goes to interest; over time the balance shifts toward principal. That is why the amortization schedule above shows heavy interest in the early years.
Two inputs move the payment more than anything else: the interest rate and the term. On a $320,000 loan, dropping the rate from 7% to 6.5% saves about $106 a month, roughly $38,000 over 30 years. Shortening the term has an even bigger effect on total cost, as the example below shows.
Fixed-rate vs. adjustable-rate mortgages
A fixed-rate mortgage locks your interest rate, and therefore your principal-and-interest payment, for the life of the loan. It is the default choice for most buyers because the payment is predictable. An adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM), typically written as 5/1 or 7/1, offers a lower rate that is fixed for the first 5 or 7 years, then adjusts annually based on a benchmark index plus a margin.
ARMs make sense if you are confident you will sell or refinance before the adjustment period, the lower initial rate can save thousands. The risk is the reset: if rates have risen, your payment can jump substantially. Most ARMs have caps (for example, 2% per adjustment, 5% lifetime), but a payment shock is still possible. This calculator models fixed-rate loans; if you are considering an ARM, run the numbers at both the initial rate and the worst-case capped rate.
About PMI
Private mortgage insurance protects the lender, not you, and typically costs 0.3% to 1.5% of the loan amount per year. This calculator applies your PMI rate while the loan balance is above 80% of the home's price and drops it automatically once you cross that threshold, matching how most conventional loans work. Putting 20% down avoids PMI entirely, which is one reason a larger down payment can beat a slightly lower purchase price.
Note that FHA loans work differently: they charge a mortgage insurance premium (MIP) that usually cannot be cancelled and lasts for the life of the loan when the down payment is below 10%. If you are comparing loan types, factor that in, a conventional loan with PMI that drops off can be cheaper than an FHA loan within a few years.
Tips for a better mortgage deal
Shop multiple lenders. Rates and fees vary more than most buyers expect, getting three to five Loan Estimates and comparing them side by side routinely saves thousands. Research from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau shows borrowers who compare more offers pay meaningfully less.
Watch the APR, not just the rate. The interest rate sets your payment; the APR folds in lender fees, so it is the better number for comparing the true cost of two offers.
Improve your credit before you apply. Mortgage pricing has sharp tiers, moving your score across a threshold (for example, from 699 to 700) can shave a noticeable amount off your rate. Avoid opening new credit or making large purchases in the months before applying.
Consider discount points carefully. Paying points (prepaid interest, where one point equals 1% of the loan) lowers your rate. It pays off only if you keep the loan past the break-even point: divide the points cost by the monthly savings to find it.
Worked example: a $400,000 home with 10% down
Buy a $400,000 home with 10% down ($40,000) and borrow $360,000 at 6.5% APR for 30 years. The principal-and-interest payment is $2,275.44 a month. But that is not the check you write. Add property tax at 1.1% of the home value ($366.67 a month), homeowner's insurance at $1,800 a year ($150 a month), and PMI at 0.5% of the loan per year ($150 a month, since the down payment is under 20%). The real monthly payment is $2,942.11.
Notice how the "extras" add $666.67, almost 30% on top of principal and interest. Listings that advertise only the P&I figure understate the cost by hundreds of dollars a month, which is why this calculator includes every component before you fall in love with a listing.
How much house can you afford? A rule-of-thumb walkthrough
Lenders use the 28% rule: spend no more than 28% of gross income on housing. On a $100,000 salary that is $2,333.33 a month. Roughly three-quarters of that can go to principal and interest once taxes, insurance, and PMI take their share, leaving about $1,750 a month for P&I.
At 6.5% over 30 years, $1,750 a month supports a loan of about $276,869. With 10% down, that means a home priced around $307,632. This is a ceiling, not a target: buying below it leaves room for maintenance, which averages 1 to 2% of the home's value per year. Run your own numbers in our home affordability calculator, and read the full walkthrough in our guide How Much House Can I Afford?.
Mortgage FAQs
How is a monthly mortgage payment calculated?
The principal-and-interest portion uses the standard amortization formula M = P × r(1+r)^n / ((1+r)^n − 1), where P is the loan amount, r the monthly rate, and n the number of payments. Property tax, insurance, PMI and HOA are added on top for the total monthly payment.
When can I stop paying PMI?
Lenders typically require PMI below 20% down. You can usually request cancellation at 80% loan-to-value, and it must drop automatically at 78% for most conventional loans. This calculator removes PMI once your balance hits 80% of the home price. FHA loans work differently, their mortgage insurance usually lasts the life of the loan.
How much house can I afford?
A common guideline is the 28/36 rule: no more than 28% of gross monthly income on housing, and no more than 36% on all debts. Try our home affordability calculator for a personalized estimate.
Does a 15-year or 30-year mortgage cost less overall?
A 15-year loan almost always costs far less in total interest and usually carries a lower rate, but the monthly payment is much higher. On a $320,000 loan at 6.5%, the 15-year saves over $225,000 in interest versus the 30-year. Use the term selector above to compare both for your numbers.
What is the difference between interest rate and APR?
The interest rate determines your monthly payment; the APR (annual percentage rate) folds in lender fees and spreads them across the loan, showing the true yearly cost. When comparing two offers, the APR is the better number, a wide gap between rate and APR signals heavy fees.
Should I choose a fixed-rate or adjustable-rate mortgage?
Fixed-rate loans give a predictable payment for the life of the loan and suit most buyers. ARMs (like a 5/1) offer a lower initial rate that adjusts after the fixed period, a good deal only if you will sell or refinance before it resets. Always run the numbers at the worst-case capped rate before choosing an ARM.
What is escrow and why is it part of my payment?
Escrow is the account your lender uses to pay your property tax and homeowner's insurance on your behalf. Each month you pay one-twelfth of the yearly tax and insurance bills into escrow along with principal and interest, and the lender pays the bills when they come due. It protects the lender's collateral and spreads big annual bills into the monthly payment.
How do property taxes change my monthly payment?
Directly and dollar for dollar: a 1.1% tax rate on a $400,000 home is $4,400 a year, or $366.67 a month added to the payment. Tax rates vary widely by state and county, from under 0.5% to over 2%, so two identical houses in different counties can differ by hundreds of dollars a month. Always check the local effective rate before budgeting.
Is a 20% down payment required?
No. Conventional loans allow as little as 3 to 5% down, and FHA loans go to 3.5%. The trade-off for less than 20% is PMI, which in our $400,000 example added $150 a month until the loan balance drops to 80% of the home's value. A smaller down payment gets you in sooner but raises both the monthly payment and the total interest.
What income do I need for a $400,000 house?
With 20% down at 6.5% over 30 years, the loan is $320,000 and principal and interest run $2,022.62 a month. If total housing costs land near $2,889 a month after taxes and insurance, the 28% rule implies about $123,834 in gross annual income, roughly $124,000. Higher taxes or a smaller down payment push that number up.
How much interest will I pay over the life of my mortgage?
Multiply your monthly principal-and-interest payment by the number of payments, then subtract the original loan amount. The result is often startling: on a 30-year loan, total interest can rival the amount borrowed. This calculator shows the total interest figure directly, and the amortization schedule shows how early payments go mostly to interest while later payments go mostly to principal.
What is an amortization schedule?
An amortization schedule is a table showing, for each payment period, how much goes to interest, how much to principal, and the remaining balance. Early in the loan, most of each payment covers interest; over time the split flips toward principal. This calculator generates a yearly schedule so you can see the loan balance fall and total interest accumulate year by year.