Mortgage Comparison: 15 years vs 30 years Determining which mortgage term is right for you can be a challenge. With a 15 year mortgage you will pay significantly less interest, but only if you can afford the higher monthly payment. Use this calculator to compare these two mortgage terms, and let us help you decide which term is better for you.

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Which is better: a 15 or 30 year mortgage term?

15 year term saves you INTEREST_DIFFERENCE, but costs an additional PAYMENT_DIFFERENCE per month.

A 15 year mortgage term will save you INTEREST_DIFFERENCE in interest, but only if you can afford an additional PAYMENT_DIFFERENCE per month. Total payments for a LOAN_AMOUNT, 15 year mortgage at TERM15_INTEREST_RATE is TERM15_TOTAL_OF_PAYMENTS. Total payments for the same loan with a 30 year mortgage at TERM30_INTEREST_RATE is TERM30_TOTAL_OF_PAYMENTS.

Mortgage Comparison
&NBSP;	15 year mortgage	30 year mortgage
Loan amount	LOAN_AMOUNT	LOAN_AMOUNT
Interest rate	TERM15_INTEREST_RATE	TERM30_INTEREST_RATE
Monthly payment	TERM15_MONTHLY_PI	TERM30_MONTHLY_PI
Total interest	TERM15_INTEREST_PAID	TERM30_INTEREST_PAID
Total payments	TERM15_TOTAL_OF_PAYMENTS	TERM30_TOTAL_OF_PAYMENTS

Interest and Income Taxes

Changing your mortgage term can make a difference in not only the interest you pay, but your income taxes. A longer mortgage term can increase your income tax deduction. Take a look at the results below, to see how the different terms stack up.

Interest and Income Tax Comparison
&NBSP;	15 year mortgage	30 year mortgage
First months interest	TERM15_FIRST_MONTH_INTEREST	TERM30_FIRST_MONTH_INTEREST
First months principal	TERM15_FIRST_MONTH_PRINCIPAL	TERM30_FIRST_MONTH_PRINCIPAL
First years interest	TERM15_FIRST_YEAR_INTEREST	TERM30_FIRST_YEAR_INTEREST
First years tax savings	TERM15_FIRST_YEAR_TAX_SAVINGS	TERM30_FIRST_YEAR_TAX_SAVINGS
Avg. years tax savings	TERM15_AVG_TAX_SAVINGS	TERM30_AVG_TAX_SAVINGS

15 Year Payment schedule

TERM15_SCHEDULE

30 Year Payment schedule

TERM30_SCHEDULE

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Please enter your information above and then press Calculate to see your "Year Number" graph, in the light yellow area above.

For more detailed information, select the View Report button.

Mortgage amount Original or expected balance for your mortgage.

Interest rate Annual interest rate for your mortgage. Interest rates are generally lower for shorter term mortgages.

Marginal tax rate This is your combined state and federal tax rate. This is used to calculate your potential income tax savings by deducting your mortgage interest.

Monthly payment Monthly principal and interest payment (PI). Both 30 year and 15 year mortgages are shown.

Total payments Total of all monthly payments over the full term of the mortgage. Both 30 year and 15 year mortgages are shown.

Total interest Total of all interest paid over the full term of the mortgage. Both 30 year and 15 year mortgages are shown.