20-Year Mortgage Calculator: Calculate Your Monthly Mortgage Payments

Andrea Riquier is a New York-based writer covering mortgages and the housing market for Forbes Advisor. She was previously at Dow Jones MarketWatch, on the housing market and financial markets beats. Before that, she covered macro and central banks for Investor's Business Daily, and municipal bonds for Debtwire.

Andrea Riquier

Andrea RiquierForbes Advisor Staff

Forbes Advisor Staff

Chris JenningsDeputy Editor, Loans & Mortgages

Chris Jennings is a writer and editor with more than seven years of experience in the personal finance and mortgage space. He enjoys simplifying complex mortgage topics for first-time homebuyers and homeowners alike. His work has been featured in a number of outlets, including Yahoo Finance, MSN, Fox Business, and GOBankingRates.

Reviewed

Chris Jennings

Chris JenningsDeputy Editor, Loans & Mortgages

Deputy Editor, Loans & Mortgages

Reviewed

Updated: Jul 27, 2022, 11:16am

Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Forbes Advisor. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations.

Mortgages lasting 20 years aren’t as common as 30-year mortgages, but they can be a very smart choice. Use our calculator below to help you decide if a 20-year mortgage is the right option for you. You can play with different assumptions, such as how much of a down payment to make, what kind of impact homeowners’ insurance will have, and so on.

How to Use the 20-year Mortgage Calculator

Our calculator shows the impact of each factor that makes up a mortgage payment, such as:

Down payment amount
Interest rate
Loan term

First, you’ll need to populate each of the fields in the main calculator section: Home price, down payment, interest rate and loan term (years). In the down payment field, you can enter either the amount or the percentage, and the calculator will automatically fill in the other field.

It can also factor in mortgage insurance and homeowners’ association fees via the “additional options” menu. These types of fees can add up, and while some may not be built into your mortgage payment, they have a big impact on your housing costs every month.

The “calculate” button gives you a breakdown of your monthly payment, as well as an amortization schedule that shows a visual breakdown of your interest and principal every month for the life of the loan.

20-year Mortgage Costs

The current average interest rate for a 20-year, fixed-rate mortgage is 7.05%. Don’t forget the closing costs associated with getting a mortgage, as well. These are typically between 2% and 5% of the loan balance.

20-year Mortgage Requirements

Some lenders will offer mortgages to borrowers with a low credit score. But to get a mortgage at the best interest rate possible, you need to have a strong credit score. You’ll also need to provide other paperwork to your lender, including:

Tax returns for the last two years
Recent pay stubs or W-2 forms
1099 form or profit-and-loss statements from the past couple years (if self-employed)
Bank statements for checking and savings, retirement and other brokerage accounts from the past 60 days

Lenders might also require a list of your liabilities, such as credit card balances or other loans or need to see any old rent checks or a letter from your landlord as proof that you pay housing expenses on time.

If you plan to use a gift for your down payment, you’ll need to provide a detailed paper trail showing where the money came from.

Comparing 20-year Mortgages to Other Loan Terms

The 20-year mortgage is a solid middle ground between the popular 30-year and 15-year mortgages.

A 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage is by far the most popular for a simple reason: It’s the longest stretch of time most lenders make readily available. That means the lowest, most affordable monthly payment, which is what many people prioritize. But in exchange for that affordable monthly payment, you’ll pay far more in interest costs over the life of that loan than you would with a shorter mortgage term.

In contrast, a 15-year mortgage means you’ll pay a lot less over the life of the mortgage, but you’ll have a much larger monthly payment. And with a 20-year mortgage, you split the difference.

How to Find the Best 20-year Mortgage

It’s always a good idea to start with a lender you already have a relationship with—say for a checking account or another loan. But don’t stop at just one lender: You should always compare rates and terms with several lenders to find the best loan for you.

Before you apply, try to get your credit score in the best shape possible and make sure you have all your paperwork ready. Our calculator can help give you a rough estimate of what you can afford and help you think through multiple scenarios—like the length of the loan, whether you prefer to make a bigger or smaller down payment and so on.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the current 20-year mortgage rate?

The average 20-year mortgage rate is currently 7.05%. A week before, it was 7.11%.

What is a 20-year, fixed-rate mortgage?

A 20-year, fixed-rate mortgage is a home loan that allows the borrower to keep the same interest rate over a span of 20 years. Overall, 20-year mortgages aren’t as common as loans lasting 30 or 15 years, but can be a good middle ground.

Fixed-rate mortgages are far more common than adjustable-rate ones because they provide the borrower the security of the same interest rate, but the flexibility to refinance into a different rate or term, if necessary.