Loan comparison calculator
Two specific loans side by side, fees included.
Comparison Rate Calculator
The advertised rate is not what the loan costs. A comparison rate folds the fees back in, which is why a loan with a lower headline rate can be the more expensive one.
Is that number right for your situation?
A calculator applies one formula. Lenders apply their own, and they disagree with each other. Send us what you worked out and we will tell you how it looks against real lender policy.
- More than 60 lenders compared
- No fee to you
- A real answer, not a sales call
What a comparison rate is
Australian lenders are required to publish a comparison rate alongside any advertised rate. It expresses the rate plus most fees as a single percentage, so two loans can be compared on something closer to their true cost.
It is genuinely useful. A loan advertised at a very low rate with a substantial annual package fee can easily cost more than one advertised slightly higher with no fees, and the comparison rate is what exposes that.
Where it still misleads
Published comparison rates are calculated on a standardised loan, historically $150,000 over 25 years. Almost nobody borrows that. On a $600,000 loan the fixed fees are spread across a much larger balance, so the published comparison rate overstates their impact. That is why this calculator uses your loan size instead.
It also excludes fees that cannot be predicted, such as break costs on a fixed loan, redraw fees and late payment fees. And it says nothing about features. A loan with a full offset account may be worth more to you than a marginally lower comparison rate, because the offset saves interest the comparison rate never sees. Our offset account calculator shows that side.
Comparing two loans directly
If you have two specific loans in front of you, comparing them side by side is more informative than comparing two comparison rates. The loan comparison calculator takes both rates and both fee structures and tells you which costs less over the term, and by how much.
Common questions
Because it includes fees. If a loan has no fees at all, the two are the same. The larger the gap, the more of the loan cost sits in fees rather than interest.
No. It is a good first filter, but it ignores features like offset and redraw, and it ignores whether the lender will actually approve you. The cheapest loan you cannot get is not useful.
Because theirs is calculated on a standardised amount and term rather than yours. On a larger loan the fixed fees matter proportionally less, so your real comparison rate is usually lower than the published figure.
Not in a way that changes our recommendation. Commission is broadly similar across lenders and is disclosed to you in writing in our Credit Guide before you apply.
Compare the whole cost, not the headline
More than 60 lenders, and we will show you why the cheapest advertised rate often is not the cheapest loan.
Related
Offset account calculator
A feature no comparison rate captures.
Refinance savings calculator
What switching would save on your current loan.