Student Loan Calculator
Enter what you owe, the interest rate and the repayment period in years. The calculator returns the fixed monthly payment, the total interest and the total you pay back on one fixed-rate loan, federal or private. To see what a shorter or longer term costs, change the years and press Calculate again. Interest that built up while you were in school counts only if you add it to the loan amount. Below that form, the federal plan comparison takes your income and family size and works out the standard, extended and income-driven plans from the legal text, with the source and date for each.
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Compare federal repayment plans
Enter your balance, rate, income and family size to see each plan's monthly payment. Plans that run past June 30, 2028 also show the total paid and the months. Federal student loan rules changed in 2025 and 2026, and this page was built from the legal text as read on November 3, 2026. Your servicer or studentaid.gov has the final answer. The page recommends no plan.
You, your spouse if you file jointly, children who get more than half their support from you, and others who also live with you.
Plans shown without figures
- Graduated. For loans entering repayment on or after July 1, 2006, the rule sets limits and no formula. Direct Subsidized, Unsubsidized and PLUS loans have two or more payment levels over at most 10 years. Direct Consolidation Loans have payments that rise in stages over 10 to 30 years, depending on the total of the consolidation loan and your other student loans. On both, no payment is more than three times another. The schedule is your servicer's, so this page prints no payment for it. It is closed to a borrower who received a Direct Loan, including a consolidation loan, on or after July 1, 2026. Source: 34 CFR 685.208(b)(6), (b)(7) and 20 USC 1087e(d)(1), (g)(3), read November 3, 2026.
- SAVE (also called REPAYE). The Department's final rule of May 1, 2026 says it is enjoined from implementing SAVE, and that a federal court order of March 10, 2026 vacated most of the rule that created it. 34 CFR 685.209 still names the plan. This page leaves it out and shows no figure. Source: 91 FR 23768 (May 1, 2026), citing Missouri v. Trump, No. 4:24-cv-00520-JAR (E.D. Mo.), read November 3, 2026.
Not worked out here: Public Service Loan Forgiveness, FFEL and Perkins loans, alternative plans set case by case, and any tax on a cancelled balance.
Worked example: $60,000 at 6.5% on a $55,000 income
- The inputs are a $60,000 balance at 6.5%, $55,000 of income, a family size of 1, no dependents, the 48 states guideline of $15,960, no income growth and no loan, including a consolidation loan, received on or after July 1, 2026. The rate is an example, not a current federal rate.
- Standard 10-year: $681.29 a month for 120 months, $81,754.45 paid.
- Extended fixed, 25 years: $405.12 a month for 300 months, $121,539.35 paid.
- Income-Based Repayment, 15%: 15% × ($55,000 − 150% × $15,960) ÷ 12 = $388.25 a month for 300 months, $116,475.00 paid, then $12,636.09 cancelled.
- Income-Based Repayment, 10%: 10% × ($55,000 − 150% × $15,960) ÷ 12 = $258.83 a month for 240 months, $62,119.20 paid, then $75,880.80 cancelled. The payment is under the $325.00 monthly interest, so the unpaid interest builds up.
- Repayment Assistance Plan: 5% × $55,000 ÷ 12 = $229.17 a month for 360 months, $82,501.20 paid, then $42,000.00 cancelled. The unpaid interest is not charged, and the matching payment brings the balance down by $50 a month.
- Pay As You Earn today: $258.83 a month. Income-Contingent Repayment today: $601.15 × 90.91% = $546.51 a month.
Sources, all read on November 3, 2026
- 20 USC 1087e(d) and (q). Cornell LII, which shows no date. It shows the changes made by Public Law 119-21.
- 20 USC 1098e. Cornell LII, which shows no date. It shows the changes made by Public Law 119-21.
- 34 CFR 685.208 and 685.209. Read through the eCFR data service, current to October 30, 2026. The Cornell LII copy has the same words.
- Final rule, 91 FR 23768. Published May 1, 2026, effective July 1, 2026.
- ICR formula for 2026. Federal Register notice of June 9, 2026. Its factors apply from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027.
- 2026 poverty guidelines. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
- 26 USC 108(f)(5). Cornell LII. The tax rule for cancelled student loans.
- CRS infographic IG10093. Congressional Research Service, March 12, 2026. A cross-check on who can use which plan.
- CRS report R48727. Congressional Research Service, updated January 8, 2026. A cross-check on borrowers with loans from before and after July 1, 2026.
How to use the Student Loan Calculator
- Enter your numbers in the Student Loan Calculator above.
- Press the Calculate button to see the result.
- To try other numbers, change any value and press the button again.
The student loan payment formula
M = P · r(1 + r)^n / ((1 + r)^n − 1)
P is the amount you owe, r is the annual rate ÷ 12 as a decimal and n is the number of monthly payments. It is the same formula as for any installment loan. The calculator rounds M half up to the cent. If that would leave a last payment more than 1% above M, it raises M a cent at a time until the last payment is within 1%. Then it runs the balance month by month with each month's interest rounded to the cent, so the last payment is usually a little different from the others. The total interest and the total paid add up every payment, the last one included.
Worked example: $45,000 at 6.5% over 10 and 20 years
The rate is an example, not a current federal rate. Enter 45000, 6.5 and 10 and the calculator returns a monthly payment of $510.97, total interest of $16,315.65 and $61,315.65 paid in all. Change the period to 20 years and the payment falls to $335.51, while the total interest rises to $35,521.49, more than twice as much.
Frequently asked questions
Should I refinance federal loans?
Refinancing with a private lender pays off your federal loans with a new private loan. A lower rate cuts the interest, but you give up the federal benefits: repayment plans based on your income, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and federal deferment and forbearance. Run the calculator once with your current rate and term and once with the offer to see what the lower rate saves, then decide if the savings are worth those protections.
Does the calculator handle income-driven repayment?
Yes, in the federal plan comparison below the first form. It works out Income-Based Repayment and the Repayment Assistance Plan month by month, and shows today's payment on Pay As You Earn and Income-Contingent Repayment. It uses one balance and one rate, so your servicer's figure can differ. The Loan Simulator on studentaid.gov works from your own loan data.
Which plans can I use if I borrowed on or after July 1, 2026?
A consolidation loan made on or after that date counts too. The law gives you two plans for your Direct Loans: the tiered standard plan and the Repayment Assistance Plan. Parent PLUS loans and consolidation loans that repaid them cannot use the Repayment Assistance Plan and are repaid separately. The standard term depends on your total principal: 10 years under $25,000, 15 years from $25,000, 20 years from $50,000 and 25 years from $100,000. Your servicer has the final answer on your own loans.
Why are graduated and SAVE left out of the figures?
The graduated rule sets limits and no formula, so the schedule comes from your servicer. For SAVE, the final rule of May 1, 2026 says the Department is enjoined from implementing it. The comparison lists each with its source and shows no payment.
Is a cancelled balance taxed?
The comparison works out no tax. The final rule of May 1, 2026 says the tax exclusion for certain student loan discharges ran through December 31, 2025. For discharges after that date, 26 USC 108(f)(5) covers death or total and permanent disability, and it does not name income-driven cancellation. Ask a tax adviser or the IRS about your own case.
Does paying extra help with student loans?
Yes. Money that goes to principal lowers the balance the interest is charged on, and federal student loans have no prepayment penalty. Tell your servicer to put the extra amount toward principal on your highest-rate loan. Otherwise the servicer can count it as paying next month's bill early. This calculator assumes the same payment every month. To see how much sooner a bigger monthly payment clears the loan, use the repayment calculator.