Personal Loan Cost Index 2026
What a personal loan actually costs per month, and in total interest, at every amount, term, and credit tier in our published APR grid. Every figure below is derived by standard amortization from the rates in the methodology — nothing is surveyed, modelled, or estimated, so anyone can reproduce the whole table.
Last updated 2026-07-26. Free to republish with attribution and a link to this page (CC BY 4.0).
Cost by amount and credit tier (60-month term)
Monthly payment, then total interest over the full term, for each credit tier.
| Loan amount | Excellent740+ · 7.99% APR | Good680–739 · 11.99% APR | Fair620–679 · 16.99% APR | Building580–619 · 22.99% APR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2,500 | $50.68/mo$541 interest | $55.60/mo$836 interest | $62.12/mo$1,227 interest | $70.46/mo$1,728 interest |
| $5,000 | $101.36/mo$1,081 interest | $111.20/mo$1,672 interest | $124.24/mo$2,454 interest | $140.92/mo$3,455 interest |
| $10,000 | $202.72/mo$2,163 interest | $222.39/mo$3,344 interest | $248.47/mo$4,908 interest | $281.85/mo$6,911 interest |
| $15,000 | $304.07/mo$3,244 interest | $333.59/mo$5,015 interest | $372.71/mo$7,362 interest | $422.77/mo$10,366 interest |
| $20,000 | $405.43/mo$4,326 interest | $444.79/mo$6,687 interest | $496.94/mo$9,817 interest | $563.69/mo$13,822 interest |
| $25,000 | $506.79/mo$5,407 interest | $555.98/mo$8,359 interest | $621.18/mo$12,271 interest | $704.62/mo$17,277 interest |
| $35,000 | $709.51/mo$7,570 interest | $778.38/mo$11,703 interest | $869.65/mo$17,179 interest | $986.47/mo$24,188 interest |
| $50,000 | $1,013.58/mo$10,815 interest | $1,111.97/mo$16,718 interest | $1,242.36/mo$24,542 interest | $1,409.24/mo$34,554 interest |
What term length costs you: $15,000 at each tier
Stretching the term lowers the payment and raises the total bill. This is the single most expensive decision most borrowers make without noticing.
| Term | Excellent · 7.99% | Good · 11.99% | Fair · 16.99% | Building · 22.99% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 months | $678.34/mo$1,280 interest | $706.03/mo$1,945 interest | $741.56/mo$2,797 interest | $785.53/mo$3,853 interest |
| 36 months | $469.98/mo$1,919 interest | $498.14/mo$2,933 interest | $534.72/mo$4,250 interest | $580.57/mo$5,900 interest |
| 48 months | $366.12/mo$2,574 interest | $394.93/mo$3,957 interest | $432.75/mo$5,772 interest | $480.69/mo$8,073 interest |
| 60 months | $304.07/mo$3,244 interest | $333.59/mo$5,015 interest | $372.71/mo$7,362 interest | $422.77/mo$10,366 interest |
| 72 months | $262.93/mo$3,931 interest | $293.17/mo$6,109 interest | $333.61/mo$9,020 interest | $385.76/mo$12,774 interest |
| 84 months | $233.72/mo$4,632 interest | $264.71/mo$7,236 interest | $306.45/mo$10,742 interest | $360.61/mo$15,292 interest |
Read the tier gaps horizontally and the term penalty vertically. On a $15,000 loan, a Fair-tier borrower who stretches from 36 to 84 months roughly triples total interest for a payment reduction of a few hundred dollars a month.
Methodology
- Rate source. Tier APRs are the midpoints of the published fixed-rate grid for The Lending Group’s lending-partner network, which runs 6.99% to 24.99%. They are advertised pricing, not a survey of closed loans.
- Calculation. Standard fixed-rate amortization: payment = P · r / (1 − (1 + r)−n), where r is the monthly rate and n the number of months. Total interest is payment × n − principal.
- Exclusions. Figures exclude any lender origination fee, insurance, or late charges. Offers presented through our marketplace disclose all fees before you accept.
- Reproducibility. Every cell can be recomputed from the amount, term, and tier APR shown in the header. No proprietary or unverifiable input is used.
- Disclosure. The Lending Group is an online loan marketplace, not a lender. Qualification uses a soft credit pull only. Your actual rate depends on credit, income, and debt-to-income ratio, and is set by the lending partner.
Citation
Journalists, educators, and analysts are welcome to reuse these tables. Please cite as:
The Lending Group, “Personal Loan Cost Index 2026,” https://thelending.group/research/personal-loan-cost-index, updated 2026-07-26.
Checking your own rate is a soft credit pull with no impact on your score.
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The Lending Group is an online lending marketplace, not a lender.