Student Loan Payment Calculator

A loan balance means very little on its own. What decides whether it is manageable is the monthly payment set against the salary the degree actually produces.

A common rule of thumb: total borrowing should stay under the first year's expected salary. The calculation below shows why — it converts a balance into a payment, then into the share of a paycheck it consumes.

Why total interest moves so much

Stretching the term lowers the monthly payment and raises the total paid — often by thousands. Run it at 10 years and again at 20 to see the trade before choosing a plan.

Federal versus private

The payment math is the same, but the protections are not. Federal loans carry income-driven repayment, deferment, and forgiveness paths; private loans generally carry none of that. Two loans with identical rates are not equivalent products.