π Mortgage Payment Calculator
Monthly payment with taxes, insurance, PMI, and the power of extra payments.
Principal & Interest
Estimates for planning only, not financial advice.
How to Use This Calculator
This calculator shows your full monthly mortgage payment, not just principal and interest. Enter the home price, down payment, rate, and term on the Mortgage Payment tab, then add your tax, insurance, HOA, and PMI numbers to see the real check you write each month. The Amortization Schedule tab shows every payment and lets you download it as CSV.
Enter the Home Price and your Down Payment. Use the $/% toggle to enter the down payment either as dollars or as a percent of the price. Under 20 percent usually triggers PMI.
Enter the APR and pick the Term (30, 20, 15, or 10 years). Add Property Tax ($/yr), Insurance ($/yr), HOA ($/mo), and the PMI Rate (%/yr) to get the true monthly cost.
Try an amount in Extra Principal ($/mo) to see how many years and how much interest it saves you. The payoff date and PMI drop-off month update automatically.
Switch to the Amortization Schedule tab to inspect every month, switch to the yearly view, or download the full table as CSV for your own spreadsheet.
The Mortgage Payment Formula, in Plain English
P&I stands for principal and interest: the part of the payment that actually pays down the loan plus the lender's interest charge. The formula spreads the loan evenly across all months, so early payments are mostly interest and later payments are mostly principal. On a $320,000 loan at 6.5 percent, the first month's $2,022.62 payment is $1,733.33 of interest and only $289.29 of principal. That split flips slowly over 30 years, which is why extra payments early on are so powerful.
Taxes, insurance, HOA, and PMI are the other four letters of the real payment. Lenders bundle tax and insurance into escrow, so your quoted payment already includes them. PMI is the one you can kill: once your balance falls to 78 percent of the original price, it drops automatically, and you can request cancellation at 80 percent.
Worked Example
$400,000 home, 20 percent down ($80,000), 6.5 percent APR, 30-year term. Loan = $320,000. P&I = 320000 x 0.005417 x (1.005417)^360 / ((1.005417)^360 - 1) = $2,022.62 per month. Add property tax of $4,800/yr ($400/mo) and insurance of $1,800/yr ($150/mo): total monthly payment = $2,572.62. Total interest over 30 years = $408,142.36. With 20 percent down there is no PMI.
Now the interesting part: add $200/month of extra principal. The loan pays off about 6 years early (in roughly 282 months instead of 360), and total interest falls to about $297,000, saving over $110,000. The schedule on the Amortization tab shows exactly where that money goes.
The 28/36 Rule: What Lenders Actually Check
Most lenders use two debt-to-income caps: your housing payment (PITI plus HOA) should stay under 28 percent of gross monthly income, and all monthly debts plus housing should stay under 36 percent. On $100,000 of income ($8,333/mo), that means housing under $2,333 and housing plus debts under $3,000. If you carry $500 in other debts, the 28 percent rule is the binding one at $2,333. Use our Home Affordability Calculator to run these numbers for your own income.
Estimates for planning only, not financial advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is a mortgage payment calculated?
The principal and interest part uses the standard amortization formula: M = P x r x (1+r)^n / ((1+r)^n - 1), where P is the loan amount, r the monthly rate, and n the number of payments. On top of that you pay property tax and homeowners insurance (often held in escrow), HOA dues, and PMI if your down payment is under 20 percent. Most borrowers are surprised that taxes and insurance can add several hundred dollars to the P&I number.
What is PMI and when does it drop off?
Private mortgage insurance protects the lender if you put down less than 20 percent, and it typically costs 0.5 to 1 percent of the loan amount per year. You can request cancellation once your balance reaches 80 percent of the original home value, and it drops off automatically at 78 percent. This calculator estimates the automatic drop-off month based on your amortization schedule.
Is a 15-year mortgage better than 30?
A 15-year loan charges a much lower lifetime interest bill and builds equity fast, but the monthly payment is roughly 50 percent higher than a 30-year loan on the same amount. The 30-year loan keeps payments flexible: you can always pay extra like a 15-year loan, but you are not locked into the higher payment if money gets tight. Compare the total interest on the Amortization tab before you decide.
Do extra payments really save interest?
Yes, and more than most people expect. Every extra dollar goes straight to principal, which shrinks the balance that next month's interest is calculated on. Adding $200 a month to a $320,000, 6.5 percent, 30-year loan pays it off about 6 years early and saves over $110,000 in interest. Even small extra payments early in the loan matter most, because early payments are almost all interest.
What is escrow?
Escrow is the account your lender uses to pay your property taxes and homeowners insurance on your behalf. Each month you pay one-twelfth of the annual tax and insurance bills into escrow along with your P&I payment, and the lender pays the bills when they are due. That is why your "monthly payment" is higher than the P&I number alone, and why tax or insurance increases can raise your payment even on a fixed-rate loan.