VA Loan Calculator

A VA loan lets eligible service members, veterans and surviving spouses buy a home with 0% down and no monthly mortgage insurance - two advantages no conventional or FHA loan can match. The trade-off is a one-time VA funding fee, which most buyers roll into the loan. This VA loan calculator turns a home price into a realistic monthly principal-and-interest payment, shows exactly how the funding fee changes your loan balance, and breaks down what you would owe at closing.

For example, buying a $350,000 home with 0% down on a 30-year loan at 6.25% as a first-time VA borrower means a base loan of $350,000, a 2.15% funding fee of about $7,525 financed into the loan, and a total loan of roughly $357,525. The principal-and-interest payment comes to about $2,201 per month - with no PMI line at all, even though you put nothing down.

How the VA loan payment is calculated

The principal-and-interest portion uses the standard amortization formula:

where P is the total loan amount (home price − down payment + any financed funding fee), r is the monthly interest rate (annual rate ÷ 12), and n is the total number of payments (years × 12). Because VA loans have no PMI, that monthly figure is your full loan cost - you only need to add property tax, homeowners insurance and any HOA dues on top to budget your true monthly housing payment.

The VA funding fee (2025 rates)

The funding fee is a one-time charge that keeps the VA loan program running so the government does not need taxpayer money to back it. For a purchase loan in 2025, the rate depends on your down payment and whether this is your first time using the benefit:

• First use: 2.15% with less than 5% down, 1.50% with 5%-9.99% down, 1.25% with 10% or more down.
• Subsequent use: 3.30% with less than 5% down, 1.50% with 5%-9.99% down, 1.25% with 10% or more down.

Notice that putting 5% or 10% down lowers the fee to the same level for first and subsequent use - the higher 3.30% rate only applies to repeat borrowers who put down less than 5%. You can finance the fee into the loan (the default) or pay it in cash at closing.

Who is exempt from the funding fee

Some borrowers pay no funding fee at all. You are generally exempt if you receive VA disability compensation for a service-connected disability, if you are entitled to that compensation but receive active-duty or retirement pay instead, or if you are the surviving spouse of a veteran who died in service or from a service-connected condition. Check the disability-exempt toggle in the calculator to set the fee to $0. Your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) confirms whether you qualify.

No PMI - the standout VA benefit

On a conventional loan, putting down less than 20% means paying private mortgage insurance (PMI) every month until you build 20% equity. FHA loans charge both an upfront and an annual mortgage insurance premium. VA loans charge neither - there is no monthly mortgage insurance regardless of your down payment. That is why a 0%-down VA payment often beats a conventional payment even when the conventional borrower puts money down. Run the same price through the conventional mortgage calculator to see the PMI line a VA loan removes.

How to use this VA loan calculator

You only need a few numbers to get a realistic estimate. Work through the fields in order:

1. Home price: enter the purchase price or your target budget for the property.
2. Down payment: enter a percentage. VA loans allow 0%, but a small down payment lowers your funding fee and payment - use the 0/5/10% shortcuts to compare.
3. Loan term: pick 30, 20, 15 or 10 years. A shorter term raises the monthly payment but slashes total interest.
4. Interest rate: use a current quoted VA rate. If you are not pre-approved yet, a recent VA average for your credit tier is a good placeholder.
5. Benefit use: choose first use or subsequent use - this sets the funding-fee rate when you put less than 5% down.
6. Exemptions & financing: tick the disability-exempt box to zero out the fee, and choose whether to finance the fee into the loan or pay it in cash.

The result shows your monthly principal and interest at the top, then the funding fee, total loan, total interest and estimated cash due at closing, followed by a year-by-year amortization schedule.

Who this calculator is for

This tool is built for anyone using or considering the VA home loan benefit:

• Active-duty service members checking whether a price range fits their budget with 0% down.
• Veterans comparing a VA loan against a conventional or FHA option.
• Repeat VA borrowers who need to see how the higher subsequent-use funding fee affects the loan.
• Surviving spouses with VA eligibility who want a realistic monthly number.
• House hunters who want to know the true cost of a VA purchase, funding fee included.

A second worked example: 5% down, fee financed

Suppose you buy a $400,000 home with 5% down ($20,000) as a first-time VA borrower on a 30-year loan at 6.25%. The base loan is $380,000. Because you put down 5%, the funding fee drops to 1.50%, about $5,700, which you finance into the loan for a total of roughly $385,700. The principal-and-interest payment is about $2,375 per month, again with no PMI. Compared with 0% down, your monthly payment is lower and your funding fee is smaller - but you need $20,000 in cash up front. The calculator lets you flip between these choices instantly.

Scenario comparison: same home, different choices

Using a $350,000 home and a 30-year loan at 6.25% as the baseline, here is how three choices change the loan and payment (first-time use, fee financed):

• 0% down: 2.15% fee (about $7,525), total loan about $357,525, payment about $2,201/month - nothing due at closing for the loan itself.
• 5% down ($17,500): 1.50% fee (about $4,988), total loan about $337,488, payment about $2,078/month, plus $17,500 cash up front.
• 10% down ($35,000): 1.25% fee (about $3,938), total loan about $318,938, payment about $1,964/month, plus $35,000 cash up front.

The takeaway: a down payment is optional on a VA loan, but even 5% meaningfully lowers both the funding fee and the monthly payment. Weigh that against keeping cash in reserve.

Key VA loan terms explained

• Entitlement: the amount the VA guarantees on your behalf. Full entitlement means no VA loan limit; reduced entitlement can trigger county limits on the zero-down amount.
• Certificate of Eligibility (COE): the document that proves to your lender you qualify for a VA loan and shows your entitlement and any funding-fee exemption.
• Funding fee: the one-time charge (1.25%-3.30% of the loan) that replaces mortgage insurance on a VA loan.
• Amortization: the schedule that splits each payment into interest and principal. Early payments are mostly interest; later ones are mostly principal.
• VA appraisal: a required appraisal that also checks the home meets the VA's Minimum Property Requirements (MPRs).
• IRRRL: the Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan, a streamlined VA refinance with a reduced 0.50% funding fee (not modeled by this purchase calculator).

What changes the result the most

If you adjust the inputs and watch the payment move, a few factors dominate:

• Home price: the single biggest driver of both the loan and the funding fee.
• Interest rate: on a 30-year loan, each 1% of rate changes the payment by roughly 10-12%.
• Term length: moving from 30 to 15 years raises the monthly payment sharply but slashes total interest.
• Down payment tier: crossing 5% or 10% down lowers the funding-fee percentage, not just the loan size.
• First vs. subsequent use: matters only when you put less than 5% down (2.15% vs. 3.30%).

How the result is used in real life

The principal-and-interest figure from this calculator is the core of your monthly housing budget; add property tax, insurance and HOA dues to get the full number a lender uses to qualify you. Because VA loans have no PMI, your payment is often lower than a comparable conventional loan, which can let you qualify for a higher price. The cash-to-close figure also helps you plan: with the fee financed and 0% down, your out-of-pocket cost at closing is mainly third-party fees rather than the loan itself.

Limitations and assumptions

This calculator is a planning estimate, not a loan quote. Keep these assumptions in mind:

• It assumes a fixed interest rate for the entire term and does not model ARM adjustments.
• It does not add property tax, homeowners insurance, HOA dues, closing costs or discount points, which vary by location and lender.
• It does not enforce entitlement or county loan limits; borrowers with reduced entitlement may face limits on the zero-down amount.
• It uses 2025 purchase-loan funding-fee rates; refinance (cash-out and IRRRL) fees differ and are not modeled here.
• Your actual rate, eligibility and fee depend on your COE, credit, lender and the VA - confirm details before relying on the numbers.

How it compares to related calculators

This page answers "what is my monthly payment and funding fee on a VA purchase loan?" If you have a different question, a sister tool fits better:

• For a conventional payment with taxes, insurance and PMI, use the Mortgage Calculator.
• To compare your current loan against a new one, use the Refinance Calculator.
• For a detailed payment-by-payment breakdown, use the Amortization Calculator.
• To find your maximum price from your income, use the Home Affordability Calculator.
• To plan a savings target for an optional down payment, use the Down Payment Calculator.
• To tap existing equity, use the HELOC Calculator.

Sources

• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - VA funding fee and closing costs.
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - VA home loan benefits.
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - VA loan limits and entitlement.
• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - Eligibility and Certificate of Eligibility (COE).