Financial Calculator
Type a number and press a blue key to store it. Press CPT, then the key you want, and the calculator solves it from the other four. It opens with a loan already loaded: $25,000 over 60 months at 7.5% a year, which works out to a payment of $500.95 a month.
Enter your figures below. Results update as you type.
How the Financial Calculator calculation works
PV x (1 + i)^N + PMT x [(1 + i)^N - 1] / i + FV = 0, where i = I/Y / 100 / P/Y
N is the number of payments, I/Y is the yearly interest rate in percent, PV is the amount today, PMT is the payment each period and FV is the amount left at the end. P/Y sets how many payments there are a year (12 for monthly).
Money you receive is positive and money you pay is negative, as on a hand-held financial calculator. A $25,000 loan is entered as PV 25,000, so the payment comes back as −500.95. To find what savings grow to, enter the deposit and the monthly savings as negatives: PV −10,000 and PMT −200 for 120 months at 6% gives FV 50,969.84.
The END and BGN switch says whether payments fall at the end or the start of each period. Rent and leases are usually paid at the start: the same $25,000 at 7.5% over 60 months with BGN on needs −497.84 a month.
Frequently asked questions
What do N, I/Y, PV, PMT and FV mean?
N is the number of periods, I/Y the yearly interest rate, PV the present value, PMT the payment each period and FV the future value. Any four of them fix the fifth.
Why is my answer negative?
Financial calculators use signs to show which way money moves. Money coming to you is positive and money going out is negative, so a loan you receive (PV positive) is repaid with negative payments.
How do I calculate a loan payment on a financial calculator?
Enter the number of months and press N, the yearly rate and press I/Y, the loan amount and press PV, and 0 for FV. Then press CPT and PMT. $25,000 over 60 months at 7.5% gives −500.95.
How do I solve for the interest rate?
Store N, PV, PMT and FV with the right signs, then press CPT and I/Y. The rate is found by trying values until the five numbers agree, so it works for any loan or investment.
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