How much of my loan have I actually repaid?

Considerably less than the share of instalments you have paid, on a long loan. On a ₹50,00,000 20-year loan at 8.5%, five years in you have paid a quarter of the instalments but cleared only 11.87% of the principal — ₹5,93,641 of it. Enter your own figures above to see your position.

Why is my outstanding balance still so high?

Because interest is charged on the outstanding amount each month, so when the balance is large the interest is large and only a small part of the instalment reduces the principal. That reverses over the tenure: the final instalments are almost entirely principal.

Is this the amount I would pay to close the loan?

Not quite. It is the outstanding principal, which is where a payoff quote starts, but a lender may add foreclosure or prepayment charges and will accrue interest to the settlement date. Ask for a written quote before acting on it.

Does this account for prepayments I have already made?

No — it assumes only the scheduled instalments were paid. If you have paid extra at any point, your real balance is lower. The prepayment calculator models that case and shows what such payments saved.

Why does a shorter tenure clear principal so much faster?

Because the instalment is larger relative to the interest charge, so more of each payment goes to principal from the very first month. The tenure scenarios show how differently the same loan behaves over 10 years against 30.

My lender's figure differs from this. Which is right?

Your lender's. This calculator assumes a single rate, every instalment paid on time, and no prepayments — if any of those differs, so will the balance. Floating-rate resets are the usual reason for a gap. Treat this as a check on the shape rather than as the authoritative amount.

Loan · FINANCIAL TOOLS

Loan Balance Calculator

Find out how much of a loan is still outstanding part-way through its term, and how much of it you have actually repaid.

Understand the calculation

Calculation logic, formula, example and guardrails behind the estimate.

How it works

The calculator first derives the instalment from the original terms, then computes what the balance must be after the instalments you have paid. It uses a closed form — the principal grown forward at the monthly rate, less the instalments grown forward — which gives the same answer as walking the schedule month by month, and the two are checked against each other.

It then splits everything you have paid into two parts. Whatever reduced the principal is the principal cleared; the rest was interest. That split is the useful part, because the two are wildly unequal early in a loan.

More detail

The percentages are the point worth studying. On a 20-year loan, paying a quarter of the instalments clears nowhere near a quarter of the principal — interest is charged on the outstanding amount, so it takes the largest share of the earliest payments.

Any prepayment you have already made is not modelled, so a real balance will be lower than the figure here if you have paid extra at any stage.

Because so much interest is still ahead of you early in a loan, the prepayment calculator.

For the full month-by-month schedule behind these figures, use the EMI calculator.

Formula

B = P(1 + r)ᵏ − E × ((1 + r)ᵏ − 1) ÷ r

The original principal compounded forward for k months, less the future value of the k instalments already paid. Equivalent to the month-by-month schedule, and exact rather than iterative.

B: Balance still outstanding.
P: Amount originally borrowed.
E: The monthly instalment.
r: Monthly interest rate — annual rate ÷ 12.
k: Instalments paid so far.

Worked example

A ₹50,00,000 loan at 8.5% over 20 years, five years in — that is 60 of 240 instalments paid.

01Instalment₹43,391.16
02Paid to the lender so far60 × ₹43,391 = ₹26,03,470
03Tenure elapsed60 ÷ 240 = 25%
04Principal actually cleared₹5,93,641, or 11.87%
05Interest paid so far₹20,09,829

A quarter of the instalments have gone but only about an eighth of the principal. Just over ₹20 lakh of the ₹26 lakh paid was interest, which is what a reducing-balance loan looks like early on — and why a prepayment made now removes far more interest than the same amount paid later.

Important considerations

01
Principal and tenure do not move together
This is the single most surprising thing about a long loan. Interest is charged on the outstanding balance, so early instalments are mostly interest and the principal barely moves; late instalments are almost entirely principal. The progress scenarios show the curve, which is much flatter at the start than most borrowers expect.
02
It is why early prepayment saves so much more
Because the balance is still high early on, interest is accruing on a large amount. A prepayment then removes interest that would have been charged for the remaining years. The same amount paid near the end removes very little, since there is barely any balance left to charge interest on.
03
A payoff quote is not the same as this balance
Lenders may add foreclosure or prepayment charges, and interest accrues up to the settlement date. The outstanding principal here is the starting point for such a quote, not the amount you would actually hand over.
04
Floating rates make this an approximation
If the rate has moved since sanction, the real schedule diverged from this one — usually with the tenure extended rather than the instalment changed. Use this as a check on the shape of the position rather than as an exact figure.

Limitations

Any prepayment already made is not included, so a real balance will be lower than this figure if extra has been paid.
A floating-rate loan will have seen rate resets, each changing either the instalment or the tenure. The figure here assumes one rate throughout.
Missed or partial instalments, and any penalties, are not modelled. A lender's own statement is the binding figure for a payoff.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about the loan balance calculator and the assumptions behind it.

Next useful checks

Move from this result to the next decision without hunting through the full calculator list.

Home Loan Affordability CalculatorCheck whether the EMI fits your monthly budget.Loan Prepayment CalculatorSee how much extra payment can reduce interest.Loan Balance Transfer CalculatorCompare whether switching lenders saves money.

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Disclaimer

This calculator is provided for general information and planning only. It is not investment, tax or legal advice, and it does not take your personal circumstances into account. Outputs are estimates based on the assumptions stated on this page, exclude taxes and charges unless said otherwise, and market-linked returns are not guaranteed — the value of investments can fall as well as rise. Lending terms, rates and eligibility are decided by the lender. For advice on your own situation, speak to a qualified professional, several of whom you can consult on Finvestalk.