Mortgage Payoff Calculator

How the calculator works

Enter five things: the original loan amount, the loan term in years (or months), the annual interest rate, the date the loan started, and the date you want to estimate a payoff for. When you click Calculate, the tool builds the full amortization schedule starting from the loan date. Each row shows that month's beginning balance, payment, interest portion, principal portion, and ending balance. When you click Estimated Payoff, the page scrolls to the row that matches your chosen payoff date and highlights it in yellow — that highlighted row's ending balance is your estimated payoff figure for that month.

Why the yellow row matters

The yellow-highlighted row represents the month in which your selected payoff date falls. The ending balance shown there is the principal still owed entering the following month. For most borrowers, this number is close to the true payoff quote a loan servicer would issue — but it is an educational estimate, not a binding figure. Actual payoffs from your servicer include per-diem interest calculated daily through the day funds are received, plus any closing or recording fees specific to your jurisdiction.

Per-diem interest and why it's the wildcard

Per-diem is a daily interest charge that accrues between your last monthly payment and the day your payoff funds are received and applied. If your interest rate is 6% on a $300,000 balance, your per-diem is roughly $49 per day. A payoff quoted for the 1st of the month versus the 28th of the same month can differ by more than $1,300 in interest alone. Always request a payoff quote from your servicer with a specific good-through date when you're ready to close, refinance, or sell.

When to use this calculator vs. calling your servicer

Use this calculator for planning — when you're deciding whether to refinance, when you're estimating how much cash you'll need at closing on a sale, or when you're modeling how much principal you'll have remaining at a future point in time. Always request the official payoff from your servicer in writing before you actually wire funds. Servicer payoffs typically expire 10 to 30 days after issue and must be honored only through the good-through date stated.

Refinancing and your payoff figure

When you refinance, the new loan is used in part to pay off the existing loan in full on a specific day. The title or settlement company orders a payoff statement from your current servicer and that exact figure — including per-diem through the funding date — is what the new lender wires. If you're considering whether to refinance, this calculator helps you understand where in your amortization you currently sit. Loans early in their term are paying mostly interest; loans in their last few years are paying mostly principal.

Selling your home and your payoff figure

At the sale of your home, the buyer's funds first satisfy your existing mortgage payoff before any net proceeds are paid to you. Knowing your approximate payoff helps you estimate net proceeds from the sale before you list. Subtract the estimated payoff from your expected sale price, then subtract seller's commission, transfer taxes, and any closing costs you'll cover to get an approximate net figure.