BYTETOOLS

APR Calculator

Find the true annual percentage rate on a loan once points, origination fees and closing costs are included, and compare it with the quoted nominal rate.

6.000%
Nominal rate
6.287%
Effective APR
+0.287%
APR above note rate
$1,199.10
Monthly payment

Where the APR comes from

Loan balance amortised
$200,000.00
Points and fees
$6,000.00
Net amount you receive
$194,000.00
Total of payments
$431,676.38
Total interest over the full term
$231,676.38

The APR is the periodic rate that discounts the same payment stream back to the net amount you actually receive, annualised by multiplying by 12 — the nominal-annual convention used on US disclosures.

Which charges count as prepaid finance charges varies by lender and jurisdiction, so your official disclosure may differ slightly. Assumes the loan runs to full term. Estimates only, not financial advice.

What is the APR Calculator?

The ByteTools APR Calculator shows what a loan really costs once fees are taken into account. A lender quotes a nominal interest rate, but you also pay points, origination fees and closing costs.

  • Solves the true APR from the present-value equation by Newton-Raphson
  • Handles points as a percentage plus flat dollar fees
  • Models fees paid at closing or financed into the balance
  • Shows nominal rate, APR and the difference in one view
  • Displays the payment, amount financed and total finance charge
  • Entirely local; no loan details are transmitted

How to use the APR Calculator

  1. 1

    Enter the loan amount, the quoted nominal interest rate and the term in years.

  2. 2

    Add discount or origination points as a percentage of the loan.

  3. 3

    Add any flat fees such as underwriting, application or closing costs.

  4. 4

    Choose whether the fees are paid up front or financed into the loan balance.

  5. 5

    Read the calculated APR next to the nominal rate and the gap between them.

About the APR Calculator

The ByteTools APR Calculator shows what a loan really costs once fees are taken into account. A lender quotes a nominal interest rate, but you also pay points, origination fees and closing costs. The annual percentage rate folds those into a single comparable number by asking: what rate would produce this payment if the only money you actually received was the loan minus the fees?

The tool solves that equation numerically with Newton-Raphson iteration, the same present-value approach lenders use, and shows the nominal rate and the APR side by side along with the difference between them. On a $100,000 30-year loan at 6% with $2,000 in fees, the APR comes out near 6.19%.

Everything is computed in your browser with nothing uploaded. This is an estimate for comparing offers, not financial advice — a lender's official APR disclosure may include or exclude fees differently depending on local regulations.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between interest rate and APR?

The interest rate is what accrues on the balance. The APR also spreads the up-front costs — points, origination and closing fees — across the life of the loan, so it is always equal to or higher than the nominal rate and is the fairer number for comparing offers.

How is APR calculated?

You keep the payment fixed at the amount the nominal rate produces, but reduce the amount received by the fees, then solve for the rate that makes those two sides equal. There is no closed-form solution, so it is found by iteration — this tool uses Newton-Raphson.

What are mortgage points?

One point is 1% of the loan amount paid up front, usually in exchange for a lower interest rate. Because you pay it at closing, points raise the APR even though they lower the nominal rate — which is exactly what an APR comparison is designed to reveal.

Is a lower APR always the better loan?

Usually, but not always. APR assumes you keep the loan for the full term. If you expect to sell or refinance in a few years, a loan with lower fees and a slightly higher rate can cost less overall, because you never recover the up-front points.

Why is my lender's APR slightly different?

Different jurisdictions require different fees to be included in the disclosed APR, and some lenders round the payment before solving. Small differences of a hundredth of a percent are normal; large gaps usually mean a fee you have not entered.

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