VA Loan Calculator
Calculate a VA loan payment with the actual VA math — 0% down option, first-time vs subsequent funding fee, disability waiver, and full PITI. No PMI, no MIP, ever.
Loan Details
$0 down (VA allows 0%)
Total Monthly Payment (PITI)
$3,008
Funding fee: $8,600 (2.15%)
Monthly Payment Breakdown
Base Loan
$400,000
Funding Fee
$8,600
Total Interest
$521,147
Total Cost (Life of Loan)
$929,747
VA Loan vs Conventional Loan Cost Comparison
The same $400,000 house at 6.5% over 30 years, financed both ways. Conventional lenders won't go below 5% down on this kind of loan, so the conventional column assumes 5% down — that gap in cash is the VA benefit. Property tax and insurance are the same either way, so they're left out.
| VA Loan | Conventional | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash due at closing | $0 | $20,000 |
| Loan amount | $408,600 | $380,000 |
| Upfront fee | $8,600 funding fee | None |
| Monthly principal & interest | $2,583 | $2,402 |
| Monthly mortgage insurance | $0 — never | $190 for ~124 months |
| Total mortgage insurance paid | $0 | $23,560 |
| Starting monthly payment | $2,583 | $2,592, then $2,402 |
| Total cost over 30 years | $929,747 | $908,229 |
Over the full term the VA loan costs $21,518 more— not because of the funding fee, but because you're borrowing the $20,000 you didn't put down and paying 6.5% interest on it for 30years. That's the real price of a low down payment, and it's often worth paying to keep the cash. It also asks for $20,000 less cash at closing. Assumes PMI at 0.6% of the loan per year, dropping off when the balance amortizes to 80% of the purchase price. Price your own PMI with the PMI calculator.
VA Funding Fee Table by Service Type and Down Payment
The funding fee is a percent of your base loan amount — the price minus your down payment, before the fee itself is rolled in. Two rules decide the rate: whether this is your first use of the entitlement, and how much you put down.
| Down Payment | First Use | Subsequent Use |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 5% | 2.15% | 3.30% |
| 5% to less than 10% | 1.50% | 1.50% |
| 10% or more | 1.25% | 1.25% |
Service type no longer changes the fee.Regular Military and Reserves/National Guard once paid different rates, but the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019 merged them into a single schedule on January 1, 2020. If you find a table with a separate Guard/Reserve column, it's out of date.
Notice that the subsequent-use penalty only bites below 5% down. Put 5% or more down and first-time and repeat users pay exactly the same rate — which is why a repeat borrower going from 0% to 5% down cuts the fee from 3.30% to 1.50%, more than halving it.
| Other Loan Types | First Use | Subsequent Use |
|---|---|---|
| Cash-out refinance | 2.15% | 3.30% |
| IRRRL (streamline refinance) | 0.50% | 0.50% |
Who pays no funding fee
- You receive VA compensation for a service-connected disability.
- You're eligible for VA compensation but receive retirement or active-duty pay instead.
- You have a proposed or memorandum rating, before closing, from a pre-discharge claim.
- You're an active-duty service member who received a Purple Heart before your closing date.
- You're a surviving spouse receiving Dependency and Indemnity Compensation.
Rates per the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, effective April 7, 2023.
VA Loan Eligibility Overview
The VA home loan benefit is one of the most valuable benefits the federal government offers service members and veterans. Eligibility extends to active-duty members (after 90 continuous days), veterans who meet the standard length-of-service tests (generally 24 months active duty or the full period called to active duty), and members of the National Guard and Reserves (6 years of service, or 90+ days of qualifying active service). Surviving spouses of service members who died in service or from a service-connected disability are also eligible.
Eligibility alone doesn't close a loan — you still need the lender to approve you on debt-to-income ratio, residual income, and credit. But VA underwriting is generally more flexible than conventional underwriting, especially on debt-to-income.
The Certificate of Eligibility (COE)
The Certificate of Eligibility is the VA-issued document that proves to a lender you're eligible to use the VA loan benefit. You can request it through the VA's eBenefits portal, ask your lender to pull it for you (most can, in minutes), or mail a paper application. The COE also shows how much of your entitlement is currently in use, which matters if you're buying a second home with VA financing.
Start the COE process before you start house-hunting. Lenders won't close without it, and chasing documentation under a closing deadline is a needless stressor.
The 0% Down Math
VA's 0% down option is its most-quoted benefit, and it's genuinely unique — no other major loan program lets a first-time buyer purchase with literally nothing down and no monthly mortgage insurance. The trade-offs are (1) a higher loan balance (you're financing 100% of the price plus the funding fee), and (2) starting with zero equity, which means a market downturn in the first few years can leave you underwater.
For service members on PCS orders who can't time the market, 0% down is usually still the right call — you save the down payment cash for moving, furnishing, and the next move. For veterans with stable jobs and savings, putting 5% or 10% down lowers the funding fee and the long-term interest cost.
VA Loan Entitlement & “Second-Tier” Use
VA entitlement is the dollar amount the VA guarantees on your loan — usually 25% of the loan, up to the conforming loan limit in your county. You can use it more than once. There are two ways:
- Full restoration — sell the home and pay off the prior VA loan. Your full entitlement is restored and you start fresh on the next purchase.
- Second-tier (bonus) entitlement — keep the prior VA-financed home (often as a rental after a PCS move) and use your remaining entitlement to buy a new primary residence. This is how dual-VA-loan households happen.
Subsequent-use loans carry the higher funding fee (3.3% at 0% down vs 2.15% for first use), but the disability waiver still applies. Note that VA loans must always be for a primary residence at the time of purchase — investment property financing isn't allowed even with remaining entitlement.
VA vs FHA vs Conventional
For eligible borrowers, VA is almost always cheaper than FHA — no monthly MIP, no PMI, and the funding fee is typically smaller than the lifetime cost of FHA's UFMIP plus annual MIP. Compare against the FHA loan calculator using the same loan size to see the gap.
Against conventional, VA wins on monthly cost (no PMI ever, even at 0% down) but loses on flexibility — conventional allows investment properties and second homes; VA does not. For a primary residence with low down payment, VA almost always wins.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who qualifies for a VA loan?
VA loan eligibility extends to active-duty service members (after 90 continuous days), veterans who meet length-of-service requirements (generally 24 months active duty, or the full period called to active duty), members of the National Guard and Reserves (with 6 years of service or 90+ days of active service), and certain surviving spouses of veterans who died in service or from a service-connected disability. You must obtain a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) from the VA to use the benefit.
What is the VA funding fee?
The VA funding fee is a one-time charge that replaces the monthly mortgage insurance you'd pay on FHA or conventional loans. It funds the VA loan program itself. For 2026, first-time-use rates start at 2.15% of the loan amount with 0% down, dropping to 1.5% with 5% down and 1.25% with 10%+ down. Subsequent use jumps to 3.3% at 0% down (the same 1.5% / 1.25% tiers apply at 5% and 10% down). The fee is almost always rolled into the loan.
Is the funding fee waived for disabled veterans?
Yes — veterans with a service-connected disability rating from the VA, surviving spouses of veterans who died in service or from a service-connected disability, and Purple Heart recipients on active duty are exempt from the funding fee entirely. This is one of the biggest reasons VA loans can be dramatically cheaper than FHA or conventional for eligible borrowers. Check the 'service-connected disability' toggle in the calculator above to see the impact.
Do I need a down payment for a VA loan?
No — VA loans are one of the only U.S. mortgage programs that allow 0% down for a primary residence, with no monthly mortgage insurance. That said, putting down 5% or 10% lowers the funding fee meaningfully, and putting any amount down lowers your monthly payment. The right choice depends on whether you have better uses for the cash (emergency fund, investments) versus the funding-fee savings.
Can I use a VA loan more than once?
Yes. VA loan entitlement is reusable, and you can even have two active VA loans at the same time using what's called 'second-tier' entitlement (typical scenario: a PCS move where you keep the old home as a rental and buy a new primary). Subsequent uses come with a higher funding fee (3.3% vs 2.15% at 0% down), but the disability waiver still applies if eligible. You can also fully restore your entitlement by selling the home and paying off the prior VA loan.
When does putting 5–10% down on a VA loan make sense?
Mostly when the funding-fee savings beat the opportunity cost of the cash. Going from 0% to 5% down drops the first-use funding fee from 2.15% to 1.5% — a 0.65% savings on the loan amount. On a $400,000 loan that's roughly $2,600 saved in funding fee, plus $20,000 less principal accruing interest over 30 years. If you have the cash and no higher-priority use for it, putting 5% down usually pays for itself; going to 10% does the same again at a smaller margin.