VA Loan Calculator
Calculate monthly payments for a VA loan — the zero-down mortgage benefit available to eligible veterans, active-duty service members, and surviving spouses.
What this calculator does
This VA loan calculator estimates the monthly cost of a mortgage guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, available to eligible service members, veterans, and certain surviving spouses. Enter the home price, any down payment, the interest rate, and the term, and it returns the monthly principal and interest along with the one-time funding fee.
Two things make this loan type different from everything else on the market: no down payment requirement and no monthly mortgage insurance. In exchange there is a single upfront funding fee, usually financed into the balance. Understanding that trade is the point of running the numbers.
When to use it
If you are eligible, this should be the first calculation you run, because the VA loan is usually the cheapest financing available to anyone who qualifies. The comparison worth doing is against an FHA or low-down-payment conventional loan, where the absence of monthly mortgage insurance is typically decisive.
It is also useful for sizing the funding fee against a down payment. Putting 5 percent down reduces the fee, and 10 percent reduces it further, so if you have savings available there is a genuine question about whether to deploy them here or keep them liquid. Run both and compare.
Understanding the inputs
Home price with a zero down payment reflects the standard VA structure, and that is the case most eligible buyers should model first. Entering 5 or 10 percent shows the reduced funding fee, which is the only reason a down payment changes anything beyond the loan size.
The funding fee percentage depends on your service category, whether this is a first or subsequent use, and your down payment. If you receive VA disability compensation you are exempt and should set it to zero. Enter the interest rate as quoted — VA rates commonly run below conventional for the same profile. Term is usually 30 years.
How is this calculated?
M = P[r(1+r)^n]/[(1+r)^n-1] where P is the principal loan amount, r is the monthly interest rate, and n is the number of payments.
A worked example
Take a $400,000 home with no down payment and a first-time funding fee of 2.15 percent, adding $8,600 to give a financed loan of $408,600. At 6.25 percent over 30 years the monthly principal and interest is roughly $2,516, with no mortgage insurance on top.
A comparable FHA loan on the same house at 3.5 percent down would carry both an upfront premium and an annual premium of around $180 a month, lasting the full term. That gap of roughly $180 monthly, over 30 years, is worth about $65,000 — and it is why an eligible borrower should almost always run VA first.
Limitations and assumptions
This calculator covers principal, interest, and the VA funding fee. It excludes property taxes, homeowners insurance, HOA dues, and closing costs. It does not test eligibility, entitlement, or the VA's residual income requirement, all of which determine whether you can actually obtain the loan.
It assumes a purchase loan with full entitlement. Borrowers with reduced entitlement face county limits and may need a down payment. IRRRL and cash-out VA refinances follow different fee schedules. Your Certificate of Eligibility and a lender's assessment are the authoritative sources.
Common Questions
- Do VA loans really require no down payment?
- Yes, for eligible borrowers with full entitlement, VA loans finance 100 percent of the purchase price with no down payment and no monthly mortgage insurance. This is the single largest advantage of the program and typically saves a borrower hundreds of dollars a month against a comparable low-down-payment conventional loan.
- What is the VA funding fee?
- A one-time charge that replaces mortgage insurance and keeps the program self-funding. For a first-time use with no down payment it is 2.15 percent of the loan, rising to 3.3 percent on subsequent uses. Putting down 5 or 10 percent reduces it. The fee is normally financed into the loan rather than paid at closing.
- Can the funding fee be waived?
- Yes. Veterans receiving VA disability compensation, those rated eligible to receive it, and surviving spouses of veterans who died in service or from a service-connected disability are exempt entirely. If you qualify, set the fee to zero above — the difference over a 30-year term is substantial.
- Is there a VA loan limit?
- Not for borrowers with full entitlement, who can borrow whatever a lender will approve with no down payment. Limits still apply if you have reduced entitlement, typically because you have another active VA loan or previously defaulted on one, in which case county conforming limits govern how much you can borrow without a down payment.
- Can I use a VA loan more than once?
- Yes. Entitlement is restored once a previous VA loan is paid off and the property sold, and there is no limit on the number of times you can use it. It is also possible to hold two VA loans simultaneously using remaining entitlement, though the second usually requires a down payment.
- What is residual income and why does it matter?
- The VA requires a minimum amount of money left over each month after all major expenses, varying by family size and region. It is unusual among loan programs in testing this rather than relying only on debt-to-income ratios, and it is a major reason VA loans have historically shown low default rates despite zero down payment.
- Can I buy an investment property with a VA loan?
- No. VA financing requires occupancy as your primary residence, generally within 60 days of closing. You may buy a property of up to four units and rent the others while living in one, and rental income from those units can sometimes help you qualify.
- What is a VA IRRRL?
- The Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan, a streamlined refinance for existing VA borrowers that usually requires no appraisal and no new income verification. The funding fee drops to 0.5 percent. It only refinances an existing VA loan into another, and this calculator models a purchase rather than an IRRRL.
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