Mortgage Calculator
Estimate your monthly mortgage payment (PITI) and total cost.
- Author
- CentCompass
- Last Updated
- Reading Time
- 5 min read
Monthly payment (PITI)
$2,514.28
Principal & interest
$2,022.62
Property tax
$366.67
Home insurance
$125.00
PMI
$0.00
Total interest
$408,142.36
| Year | Principal | Interest | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $3,576.72 | $20,694.69 | $316,423.28 |
| 2 | $3,816.26 | $20,455.15 | $312,607.02 |
| 3 | $4,071.84 | $20,199.57 | $308,535.17 |
| 4 | $4,344.54 | $19,926.87 | $304,190.63 |
| 5 | $4,635.50 | $19,635.91 | $299,555.13 |
| 6 | $4,945.95 | $19,325.46 | $294,609.18 |
| 7 | $5,277.19 | $18,994.22 | $289,331.98 |
| 8 | $5,630.62 | $18,640.80 | $283,701.37 |
| 9 | $6,007.71 | $18,263.70 | $277,693.66 |
| 10 | $6,410.06 | $17,861.36 | $271,283.60 |
| 11 | $6,839.35 | $17,432.06 | $264,444.26 |
| 12 | $7,297.39 | $16,974.02 | $257,146.86 |
| 13 | $7,786.11 | $16,485.30 | $249,360.75 |
| 14 | $8,307.56 | $15,963.85 | $241,053.19 |
| 15 | $8,863.94 | $15,407.48 | $232,189.25 |
| 16 | $9,457.57 | $14,813.84 | $222,731.68 |
| 17 | $10,090.96 | $14,180.45 | $212,640.72 |
| 18 | $10,766.77 | $13,504.64 | $201,873.95 |
| 19 | $11,487.84 | $12,783.57 | $190,386.11 |
| 20 | $12,257.20 | $12,014.21 | $178,128.90 |
| 21 | $13,078.09 | $11,193.32 | $165,050.81 |
| 22 | $13,953.96 | $10,317.46 | $151,096.86 |
| 23 | $14,888.48 | $9,382.93 | $136,208.38 |
| 24 | $15,885.59 | $8,385.83 | $120,322.79 |
| 25 | $16,949.47 | $7,321.94 | $103,373.32 |
| 26 | $18,084.61 | $6,186.80 | $85,288.71 |
| 27 | $19,295.77 | $4,975.64 | $65,992.94 |
| 28 | $20,588.05 | $3,683.37 | $45,404.89 |
| 29 | $21,966.86 | $2,304.55 | $23,438.03 |
| 30 | $23,438.03 | $833.39 | $0.00 |
What is the Mortgage Calculator?
A mortgage calculator estimates the monthly cost of a home loan, including principal, interest, property taxes, homeowners insurance, and private mortgage insurance — together known as PITI. Principal and interest are what you pay the lender for the loan itself; taxes and insurance are collected by the lender and held in an escrow account, then paid on your behalf when they come due. Seeing all four together is the difference between knowing your loan payment and knowing what actually leaves your bank account each month.
How the calculation works
The calculator first subtracts your down payment from the home price to get the loan amount. That amount is amortized over the term at your interest rate, producing a fixed monthly principal-and-interest payment that never changes on a fixed-rate loan. Annual property tax and homeowners insurance are divided by twelve and added on top. If your down payment is below 20% of the price, private mortgage insurance (PMI) is added as well, since lenders require it to offset the higher risk of a small down payment. The result is your full monthly housing payment.
The formula
Principal and interest use the standard amortization formula: M = P · [r(1+r)^n] / [(1+r)^n − 1]. P is the loan amount (price minus down payment), r is the monthly interest rate (your annual rate divided by 12), and n is the total number of monthly payments (years × 12). The bracketed term converts a lump sum into a level stream of payments. Taxes, insurance, and PMI are not part of this formula — they are simple annual amounts divided by twelve and added to M to reach the PITI figure.
Worked example
On a $400,000 home with 20% down, the loan is $320,000. At 6.5% over 30 years, the monthly rate is 0.5417% and there are 360 payments, giving principal and interest of about $2,023. Adding roughly $367 of monthly property tax and $125 of homeowners insurance brings PITI to about $2,515. Because the down payment reached 20%, no PMI applies. Over the full 30 years that loan costs about $408,000 in interest alone — more than the original loan amount, which is why the rate and term matter far more than most buyers expect.
Tips
- A 20% down payment removes PMI entirely and lowers the loan, cutting the payment twice over.
- A 15-year term raises the monthly payment but can cut total interest by more than half.
- Even small extra principal payments early in the loan save disproportionate interest.
- Property tax and insurance vary enormously by county — use a local quote, not a national average.
- Compare the APR rather than the headline rate; APR folds in points and lender fees.
Common mistakes
- Budgeting for principal and interest alone and being surprised by the escrow portion.
- Assuming PMI disappears automatically — you may need to request removal at 20% equity.
- Shopping only on the monthly payment, which hides a longer term and much higher total interest.
- Forgetting HOA dues, which are not part of PITI and can add hundreds per month.
- Overlooking closing costs, typically 2–5% of the price and due in cash at signing.
Limitations
This is an estimate. It does not include HOA dues, closing costs, maintenance, or utilities, and it assumes a fixed rate for the whole term — an adjustable-rate mortgage would change after its initial period. Property tax and insurance are your inputs, not live local data, and PMI rates vary by credit score and loan program. Only a lender working from your full financial picture can produce binding numbers.
Frequently asked questions
What is PITI?
PITI stands for Principal, Interest, Taxes, and Insurance — the four components of a typical monthly mortgage payment. Principal and interest repay the loan; taxes and insurance are usually collected into escrow by your servicer and paid out when due.
What is PMI and when do I pay it?
Private mortgage insurance protects the lender, not you, and is generally required when your down payment is under 20%. It typically ends once you reach 20% equity, though on many loans you must request cancellation rather than wait for it to drop off automatically.
How much down payment should I make?
Twenty percent avoids PMI and lowers both the loan and the payment, but many conventional loans allow far less, and FHA and VA programs allow less still. More money down means less interest overall, weighed against keeping cash reserves for emergencies and closing costs.
Should I choose a 15- or 30-year mortgage?
A 15-year term carries a noticeably higher monthly payment but dramatically less total interest, because you are borrowing for half as long and usually at a slightly lower rate. A 30-year term keeps the payment low and preserves cash flow, at a much higher lifetime cost.
Does this calculator include state and local taxes?
It includes the property tax you enter, which is a local tax. It does not model income, transfer, or recording taxes, and it does not look up your county's rate — check your local assessor or a lender estimate for an accurate figure.
What is the difference between interest rate and APR?
The interest rate determines your principal-and-interest payment. The APR expresses the rate plus lender fees and points as a single annual percentage, so it is the better number for comparing offers from different lenders.
How do extra payments change the loan?
Money paid above the scheduled amount goes straight to principal, which reduces the balance that future interest is charged on. Because early payments are mostly interest, extra principal in the first years shortens the loan and saves far more than the same amount paid later.
What are prepaid items and escrow at closing?
Lenders usually collect several months of property tax and insurance upfront to fund the escrow account, plus interest from closing to the end of that month. These prepaid items sit alongside closing costs and are due in cash, separate from the down payment.
Does the payment ever change on a fixed-rate loan?
The principal and interest portion stays fixed for the whole term. The total payment can still move, because property tax assessments and insurance premiums change over time, and your servicer adjusts the escrow portion to match.
How do points work?
A point costs 1% of the loan amount and buys a lower interest rate. It pays off only if you keep the loan long enough for the monthly savings to exceed the upfront cost, so points suit buyers who plan to stay put for many years.
Related calculators
Related guides
Sources
- CFPB — Loan Estimate Explainer
- Freddie Mac — Primary Mortgage Market Survey
- Fannie Mae — Mortgage Products
How this page is produced
Editorial process. CentCompass is maintained independently, and this page is written and checked against the official publications listed above before it goes live. There is no separate editorial reviewer. This page was last checked on . See our editorial policy.
How the calculations work. Every result comes from a small, unit-tested calculation engine rather than a spreadsheet or a hardcoded table. Loans use the standard amortization formula, growth uses compound-interest math, income tax applies the federal progressive brackets, and payroll applies Social Security and Medicare rules. Our methodology sets out each one.
Where the figures come from. Tax brackets, standard deductions, FICA parameters, and contribution limits are stored once in a dated registry and read directly by the calculators — the same values appear in the text above, so the two can never drift apart. Each figure records its source, effective tax year, and review status on our data sources page.
Update policy. Regulatory figures are checked against their primary source when the IRS, SSA, or another authority publishes new values — typically each autumn for the following tax year — and again at the scheduled review date recorded for each dataset. Figures that have not been checked yet are marked as draft on the data sources page until that check is complete.
Educational purposes only — not financial, tax, or investment advice (disclaimer).