EyeOnIllustrative amount scenario
Illustrative scenario only: not financial advice, a lender decision, an offer, a quote, a credit-score forecast, or a guarantee of savings, repayment, approval, eligibility, tax treatment, or any financial outcome.
Compare user-entered loan illustrations
A loan comparison calculator that compares two user-entered illustrations helps you see differences in payment profiles without ranking lenders or products. Enter the principal, the annual interest figure you were shown, the loan term, and any stated fees for each illustration. The most useful outputs are monthly payment, total interest paid over the term, and total repayable amount. These figures are illustrative—based on the numbers you provide—and help you understand relative cost under consistent assumptions.
The comparison reflects the assumptions you type in, so matching the inputs for both illustrations is important for a fair comparison. Include one-off charges and how they are handled (added to the principal or paid up front), and use the same repayment frequency for each scenario. The tool does not account for lender-specific underwriting decisions, eligibility differences, or discretionary charges that can vary by borrower, and actual loan documents can contain details not captured in a simple illustration.
Important factors to include
Key items to enter are the loan amount, the stated annual interest measure, the length of the term, and explicit fees and commissions. Be aware of what the annual figure represents: some offers use a nominal rate while others use an annual percentage figure that bundles certain fees. Repayment frequency and the method of interest calculation (daily, monthly, or other compounding) can change the payment amount. If the loan has an initial promotional rate or a balloon payment at the end, include those features in separate scenarios to see their impact.
Other contract features can change the effective cost even when headline numbers look similar. Variable rates, initial discount periods, optional insurance or bundled products, and early repayment penalties can affect both monthly cash flow and total cost. When comparing illustrations, run multiple scenarios that adjust term length, fees, or the presence of a promotional rate so you can see how sensitive results are to small changes in the inputs.
How to interpret and use the results
Monthly payment, total interest, and total repayable each tell a different story. A lower monthly payment can make a loan more affordable in the short term but can increase total interest if the term is longer. Total interest is the sum of interest charges over the scheduled repayments and gives a sense of cost over the life of the loan. Total repayable combines principal, interest and the included fees, helping you compare overall cost on as-near-to-like-for-like basis as possible.
Use the comparison outputs as a basis for questions to ask lenders or advisers: confirm how fees are charged, whether interest rates can change, and whether there are options for early repayment or changing payment frequency. Consider your cashflow needs alongside the total cost: a cheaper total repayable may require payments that are too large for your budget, while smaller payments can reduce monthly strain but increase long-run cost. If you need tailored guidance for your circumstances, consider speaking with a qualified professional and review official loan documentation before committing.