Home / Mortgage payment / Biweekly vs monthly
Biweekly vs Monthly Mortgage Payments
Some borrowers pay half their mortgage payment every two weeks instead of one full payment each month. Because a year holds 26 two-week periods the borrower ends up making one extra monthly payment a year.
Enter a loan below to compare the two plans. The starting loan is $260,000 at 6.1 percent over 30 years.
How the two plans differ
Interest still builds on the balance at 6.1 percent a year. What changes is the rhythm. Paying $787.79 every 14 days puts 13 monthly payments a year against a $260,000 loan instead of 12.
Worked example
On $260,000 at 6.1 percent the monthly plan costs $1,575.59 a month and pays off in 30 years. The biweekly plan costs $787.79 every two weeks and pays off in 24 years 6 months.
That is 5 years 6 months sooner. Total interest falls from $307,211 to $240,434, a saving of $66,777.
Questions about this calculator
Where does the extra $1,576 a year come from?
Twelve monthly payments of $1,575.59 total $18,907. Twenty-six half payments of $787.79 total $20,483. The difference is one extra monthly payment a year, which all goes to principal.
Do lenders allow biweekly payments?
Some do and some charge a fee for the service. Others only accept monthly payments. Ask your lender before you change how you pay.
Could I get the same result by adding $131.30 to each monthly payment?
Very nearly. Adding one twelfth of the payment each month sends the same extra amount to principal over a year. The biweekly plan is a way of making that habit automatic.
Does this calculator assume interest builds every two weeks?
It does. The balance earns a fraction of the yearly rate each period. Some lenders only apply a biweekly payment once a month, which would reduce the benefit shown here.
Related calculators
This page is for education only and is not financial or tax advice.