PMI calculator: what PMI costs and when it ends

How PMI is calculated

PMI is figured as an annual percentage of the loan amount, paid monthly as one twelfth of that. Private mortgage insurance is usually required on a conventional loan when you put down less than 20%, and it protects the lender, not you.^[1] The rate depends on the insurer's pricing for your loan, so this calculator takes it as an input: copy it from your Loan Estimate or the lender's quote.

Monthly PMI = loan amount × annual PMI rate ÷ 12$360,000 × 0.5% ÷ 12 = $150.00

The calculator holds the premium at $150.00 a month ($1,800 a year), as for a premium figured on the original loan amount. Some premiums are recalculated on the declining balance and fall slowly; the projected payments on your Loan Estimate show which you have.

When does PMI go away?

PMI goes away in one of three ways, set by the Homeowners Protection Act for loans on a single-family principal residence closed on or after July 29, 1999:^[3][2]

"Original value" means the lower of the sales price and the appraised value when you bought.^[4] The calculator's dates follow your scheduled balance; prepaying moves the 80% date earlier, and the lender still applies the payment-history and lien conditions.

PMI timeline by down payment

The smaller the down payment, the longer PMI lasts and the more it costs in total. Same $400,000 home, 7.11%, 30 years, PMI at an assumed 0.5% of the loan a year:

With 15% down, PMI runs 6 yr 9 mo and costs about $11,475; with 3% down it runs 12 yr 8 mo and costs about $24,573, before any extra payments.

How to get rid of PMI sooner

You can get rid of PMI sooner by paying extra principal, by asking for cancellation based on your home's current value, or by refinancing.

• Extra principal. With $200 a month extra on the example loan, the 80% date moves from 8 yr 6 mo to 5 yr 7 mo, and automatic termination from 9 yr 9 mo to 6 yr 6 mo, saving about $5,850 of PMI. The extra payment calculator shows the interest saved as well.
• A higher current value. Fannie Mae lets the borrower ask to end PMI based on the home's current value: the loan must be 75% or less of the current value if it is between two and five years old, or 80% or less after five years, confirmed by a valuation the servicer orders, with no payment 30 days late in the past 12 months and none 60 days late in the past 24.^[5] Substantial improvements such as a kitchen or bath renovation can shorten the two-year wait, at the 80% threshold.^[5] Since September 2026, Fannie Mae also allows servicers to contact borrowers who may qualify on current value.^[6] Other investors have their own rules, so ask your servicer.
• Refinancing into a loan at 80% or less of today's value removes PMI, but brings new closing costs; check the refi calculator first, or the cash-out refinance calculator if you also want cash.

To use the table, compare the value column with a realistic estimate of your home today. The LTV calculator gives your current loan-to-value.

PMI vs. FHA mortgage insurance vs. VA

PMI is the cheapest of the three to get out of: it can end at 78% to 80% of the original value, while FHA's annual premium lasts 11 years with 10% or more down and the whole term with less.^[7] FHA also charges 1.75% of the base loan up front.^[7] A VA-backed purchase loan has no PMI or mortgage insurance premium at all.^[8]

Compare full payments for each loan type in the mortgage payment calculator.

Is PMI tax deductible in 2026?

Yes, again, for some homeowners. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act restored the deduction for qualified mortgage insurance premiums starting in tax year 2026, treating them as mortgage interest.^[10] The IRS's 2026 draft of Publication 936 says the deduction shrinks once adjusted gross income passes $100,000 ($50,000 if married filing separately) and is gone above $109,000 ($54,500), and that it applies to insurance on home acquisition debt from the VA, FHA, Rural Housing Service or a private insurer under a contract issued after 2006.^[9] You only benefit if you itemize; see is HELOC interest tax deductible for how itemizing compares with the 2026 standard deduction.

Worked example

1. Loan: $400,000 × 90% = $360,000, so the loan-to-value is 90% and PMI applies.
2. PMI: $360,000 × 0.5% ÷ 12 = $150.00 a month.
3. 80% of the original value is $320,000; at 7.11% the balance gets there after 8 yr 6 mo, when you can ask to cancel.
4. 78% is $312,000; the balance is scheduled to get there after 9 yr 9 mo, when PMI must end. Total PMI paid: about $17,550.
5. Paying $200 extra a month brings the dates to 5 yr 7 mo and 6 yr 6 mo and saves about $5,850 of premiums.