Payday Loan Calculator: Fee, Total Due and True APR

Enter the amount, your state's fee, and the term. See the charge, the payoff, and the APR it translates to.

This calculator prices a payday advance the way state law does: a flat fee per $100 borrowed, due in full on your next payday. Set the amount, the fee your state’s cap produces, and the term in days. The output shows the finance charge, the total due, and the annualized APR that charge represents.

Worked example: Alabama allows 17.5% of the loan amount. A $500 advance for 14 days carries an $87.50 fee, leaves $587.50 due on payday, and annualizes to about 456% APR. California prices differently: a $300 check carries a 15% fee, so the net advance is $255 and the charge is $45 for up to 31 days.

The APR line is a translation, not a scare number: a fee built for two weeks would compound enormously across a year of renewals, and annualizing makes offers of different sizes and terms comparable. The fee line is the one your budget must clear, so run the slack check underneath and borrow nothing larger than it.

Loan amount ($100-$1,000) Fee per $100 ($10-$30) Term in days (7-31)

Finance charge

Balance on payday

Annualized APR

Your state page lists the exact fee regime; the full comparison sits in the rates and fees table.

If the number fits your budget, the request form will price a real offer at no cost. Still comparing? The rates and fees table sets every state's ceiling side by side.

Common questions

What is the math behind a payday loan APR?

Fee divided by amount, times 365, divided by the term in days. A $75 fee on a $500 advance over 14 days lands at 391% APR. Annualizing is what makes offers of different sizes and terms comparable.

The fee looks small. Why is the APR enormous?

Because a charge built for two weeks would repeat about 26 times across a year if the loan rolled. The APR converts that short-term charge into a yearly rate; the flat fee remains the number that actually leaves your account.

Which fee does my state allow?

Per-$100 fees run from roughly $10 to $30 depending on the state, and thirteen states do not license the product at all. Your state page shows the exact ceiling, the statute behind it, and the regulator enforcing it.

Does this calculator price rollovers?

No, and that is the honest way to use it: it prices one cycle. If the total due cannot clear in one paycheck, the size is the problem, not the fee, because every rollover adds a fresh finance charge.

Gerald Pratt, Reviewer, former credit counselor, checked every fee, cap, and formula on this page against the published state rules.

Review date: 2026-10-05