A Moneybren tool
FIXED or FLOATING CALCULATOR
Nobody knows where rates are going — but you have a hunch. This calculator prices your hunch: fix now, or float and ride the rate path you expect.
The loan
$
yrs
How long the loan has left to run in total.
Option 1 · Fix now
% pa
yrs
Check today’s fixed specials at your bank — these are examples.
Option 2 · Stay floating
% pa
pp/yr
Your guess: how much floating moves each year. Negative = you expect cuts.
Over the fixed period
$0
Fixed
Floating
The rate paths you’re comparing
Year-by-year detail
| Year | Floating rate (avg) | Fixed — interest | Floating — interest | Fixed — balance | Floating — balance |
|---|
The honest bit. The floating path here is your guess — this calculator can’t predict rates and neither can your bank’s economist. What it does is make your guess pay rent: if you believe cuts are coming, this shows exactly how big and fast they’d need to be. The simple rule of thumb it confirms: floating wins only if the floating rate averages below the fixed rate over the period. Not modelled: break fees if you exit a fixed term early, the flexibility of floating (unlimited extra repayments), rate-lock offers, or splitting the loan — fixing part and floating part, which is what many borrowers actually do.
How to use this calculator
Enter your loan, then the fixed offer on the table, then today’s floating rate and how you expect it to move each year. The calculator runs both paths over the fixed period, adjusting the floating payment as its rate drifts, and totals the interest each way.
Try your optimistic guess and your pessimistic one. If fixing only loses when rates fall faster than any forecast you’ve seen, that tells you something. If floating wins even with modest cuts, that tells you something too.
This is a tool only, and none of the information it produces is financial advice. Its accuracy is not guaranteed. Always check your own figures and get advice from your own financial professionals before making decisions.