Mortgage Guide

Mortgage basics

What Is an Amortization Schedule?

Published by the Mortgage Guide editorial team. Rate assumptions and content updated October 2026. This page is educational. It is not a loan offer, approval, or personalized financial advice.

How to read a row

Each row has a payment number, a date, principal, interest, the total payment, and the balance afterward. The interest column usually starts higher than the principal column on a long loan.

The yearly view adds twelve months so you can see the shift without scrolling through hundreds of rows. The CSV keeps every month.

Extra principal changes later rows

An extra amount applied to principal lowers the balance before the next interest calculation. The required payment stays the same unless the servicer recasts the loan.

The schedule on this site ends at a zero balance, including a final payment that absorbs leftover cents.

Columns on the schedule
ColumnMeaning
PrincipalAmount that reduces the balance
InterestCost for that period
BalanceWhat is still owed

Calculators

Related guides

Sources

Common questions

Why is my first principal amount small?

Because the balance, and therefore the interest due, is at its largest. The payment does not get larger to compensate.

Does a zero interest rate still amortize?

Yes. The payment is the loan divided by the number of months, and the interest column is zero.