Free Student Loan Calculator: Compare Repayment Plans
Calculate monthly payments under Standard, Extended, Income-Based Repayment (IBR), PAYE, SAVE, and other federal student loan repayment plans. Compare total interest costs and payoff timelines to choose the plan that best fits your financial situation.
Federal vs. Private Student Loans: Key Differences
Federal student loans are made directly by the US Department of Education and come with a suite of borrower protections not available with private loans: income-driven repayment options, Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), deferment and forbearance options, discharge in cases of total and permanent disability, and closed school discharge. Federal loan interest rates are fixed and set by Congress annually. Private student loans are made by banks, credit unions, and other private lenders. They typically have variable interest rates, fewer repayment flexibility options, and limited forgiveness pathways. Refinancing federal loans into private loans permanently converts them to private loans and eliminates access to all federal repayment programs and forgiveness options - a step that is rarely advisable unless you are certain you will not need those protections and can secure a meaningfully lower rate.
Federal Repayment Plan Comparison
The Standard Repayment Plan spreads payments equally over 10 years. It produces the highest monthly payment and the lowest total interest cost. The Extended Repayment Plan extends the term to 25 years, dramatically lowering monthly payments but significantly increasing total interest paid. Income-Based Repayment (IBR) caps monthly payments at 10 to 15 percent of discretionary income (depending on when loans were disbursed) and forgives remaining balances after 20 to 25 years of qualifying payments - forgiven amounts may be taxable as income. Pay As You Earn (PAYE) caps payments at 10 percent of discretionary income for eligible borrowers with forgiveness after 20 years. The SAVE plan (Saving on a Valuable Education), introduced in 2023 as the successor to REPAYE, is the most generous income-driven option for many borrowers, with reduced discretionary income calculation and interest subsidies. Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) provides tax-free forgiveness after 120 qualifying monthly payments while working full-time for a qualifying government or nonprofit employer.
How Student Loans Appear on Your Credit Report
Student loans appear as installment accounts on your credit report - both federal and private loans. Each loan is typically reported separately, so a borrower with four federal loans from different semesters may have four separate tradelines. Federal Direct Loans are reported by the loan servicer (currently MOHELA, Nelnet, Aidvantage, ECSI, or others depending on when loans were taken). Private loans are reported by the private lender. Student loans in good standing add positive payment history and installment loan diversity to your credit profile. Student loans in default are significantly damaging - federal student loan default (after 270 days of non-payment) triggers reporting of the default status to all three bureaus, which can drop a score 100 or more points.
How Student Loan Defaults Affect Credit and What to Do
A student loan default is one of the most serious negative marks on a credit report. Unlike credit card delinquencies that fall off after 7 years under FCRA § 1681c, the consequences of federal student loan default can persist through wage garnishment, tax refund seizure, and Social Security offset until resolved. For credit reporting purposes, the original delinquency status follows the 7-year reporting rule. Federal borrowers in default can rehabilitate their loans through the Student Loan Rehabilitation program (9 consecutive payments under a rehabilitation agreement) or consolidate into a new Direct Consolidation Loan. Rehabilitation removes the default notation from credit reports (though the underlying delinquencies may still show). Credlocity's FCRA-certified consultants, led by Joeziel Vazquez (FCRA Certified, BCCC, CCSC, CCRS), have worked with clients addressing student loan tradeline issues for 17 years. Founded in 2008, Credlocity serves 79,000+ clients from 1500 Chestnut Street, Suite 2, Philadelphia, PA 19102.