Before you start
Illustrative US student-loan comparison in USD. It assumes simple daily interest and no intervening payments, new borrowing, fees, rate changes or capitalization. Unknown subsidies or special terms require an official estimate.
1. Confirm the pause and the alternative
Ask whether relief is approved, which loans it covers, when it begins and ends, and what remains due. Ask about interest, later payments, credit reporting and any applicable program credit separately. A request alone is not approval, and a pause does not automatically mean interest-free treatment.
The CFPB’s guidance explains that private pause terms vary and recommends questions about cost and payments afterward. Use your actual federal or private terms. This page does not choose a plan, guarantee an extension or determine whether a month qualifies toward forgiveness.
2. Use one consistent set of documented inputs
Enter principal and opening accrued interest separately. Enter the confirmed nominal annual interest rate, the documented day basis of 360, 365 or 366, and the number of days. Do not use an APR that includes fees as a substitute for the interest rate or pick a day basis merely because of the calendar year.
Enter the confirmed payment made at the end of that interval. The illustration assumes the same principal and rate throughout the interval before that payment. If you will pay earlier, make several payments, face a rate change or have fees or interest capitalization, request a schedule that models those actual events.
3. Read cash paid, principal and interest separately
New interest is principal × annual rate ÷ day basis × days, rounded to cents at the end. With no payment, opening and new interest remain separate from principal. With the end payment, the model pays accrued interest first and then principal. Any amount above the total is shown separately, not as negative debt or a promised refund.
Because payment occurs at the end, both scenarios generate the same new interest during this interval. The payment reduces what remains owed at the cutoff. A lower ending obligation is not the same as interest saved during the interval, and this tool does not calculate later interest savings.
4. Take unresolved terms back to the servicer
Compare immediate cash retained with the obligation remaining, then consider essential expenses outside this calculator. Ask for the repayment amount after the pause, the remaining term and any separate capitalization event. This model cannot determine whether capitalization is allowed or when it occurs.
If an interest subsidy, waiver, special rate or payment allocation may apply and its treatment is unknown, do not treat this output as your bill. Get an official estimate. Retain approval and later statements so you can check what actually happened. A calculation does not stop a due date or send a payment.
Fictional example: $300 paid at the end of 30 days
Confirmed fictional inputs are $10,000 principal, $40 opening interest, a 6% nominal annual rate, 365-day basis, 30 days and a $300 end payment. There are no other events or special terms. New interest is $10,000 × 0.06 ÷ 365 × 30 = $49.31506849, rounded once to $49.32.
With no payment: principal $10,000, unpaid interest $89.32, total obligation $10,089.32. With $300 paid at the end: $89.32 pays interest and $210.68 pays principal, leaving principal $9,789.32 and unpaid interest $0. Both scenarios accrued $49.32 new interest; the $300 difference at cutoff is the payment, not $300 of interest saved.
Before you finish
- Keep written approval and the actual alternative payment terms.
- Separate confirmed principal from opening accrued interest.
- Confirm nominal rate, day basis and interval length.
- Use the model only if its timing and assumptions match.
- Request official treatment of subsidies, capitalization and later payments.
My confirmed comparison terms
Use Loan A and Quote B. These optional notes describe documents; do not include account numbers or private financial records.
Entries are optional and stay in this page's memory. This worksheet does not send or save them. Use generic account labels and document labels. Do not enter account numbers, Social Security numbers, PINs, access codes, passwords, names or addresses, and do not upload documents. Downloading or printing creates a copy you control.
Use the figures as an illustration only after confirming the assumptions; keep the official estimate and approval.
Explore interest during a short payment pause
An illustrative simple-interest calculation, not your servicer’s balance or eligibility decision.
Assumes a constant principal and rate, no fees, subsidies, payments or capitalization during the interval, then one payment at the end. Interest is rounded once to cents at the end; actual daily rounding or earlier payments may differ. Confirm the day-count basis. Unpaid interest stays separate from principal here; this does not decide whether your loan capitalizes it.
Enter actual dates as YYYY-MM-DD. If a date is unknown, leave it blank; do not invent one. Dates are calendar dates, with no time zone or time-of-day comparison. This record does not calculate a legal deadline or schedule reminders.
Amounts are US dollars: use a point and at most two decimal places, without commas or currency symbols. Enter 0 only when confirmed; blank is unknown where allowed. Each amount may be at most $1 billion. Only a calendar’s opening cash may be negative. Rates and dates follow the labels of the particular model.
Questions you may have
Does the pause scenario assume I qualify for a pause?
No. It is an illustration with no payment during the interval. Confirm approval and what you owe through the official loan process.
Why is new interest the same when I enter a payment?
The model places that payment at the interval’s end, so principal is unchanged while interest accrues. Earlier or repeated payments need a different schedule.