Personal Loan Interest Rates
Advertised personal loan rates from 9.99% are real but narrow — they are reserved for salaried applicants at large employers with high credit scores borrowing meaningful amounts.
Floor rate. Median approved pricing is materially higher.
The typical approved rate sits several percentage points higher, and the gap between the advertised floor and the median offer is wider on personal loans than on any other retail credit product.
Floor rate. Median approved pricing is materially higher.
Data as of 15 Aug 2026Source: Lender rate cards and published comparisons, August 2026Pending issuer verification
Beyond the table
Reducing balance versus flat rate is the trap in this category, mostly outside the banking system. A "12% flat" loan is roughly equivalent to 21% on a reducing balance over three years — the flat rate charges interest on the original principal for the whole tenure, ignoring everything you have repaid. Any lender quoting a flat rate should be compared only after converting it.
Insist on the annualised percentage rate including fees, in writing, before you sign. Under RBI digital lending rules, regulated lenders must disclose an all-inclusive APR and a key fact statement. If a lender will not put the all-in number on paper, that is itself the answer.
Your numbers
- Principal48%
- Interest52%
- Principal
- ₹50,00,000
- Total interest
- ₹54,13,879
- Total payable
- ₹1,04,13,879
- Interest as % of principal
- 108.28%
What this means.Over 20 years you repay more in interest than you borrowed. Cutting the tenure or prepaying early changes this sharply.
View the full breakdown (20 rows) →
At ₹50,00,000 over 20 years, Bank of Baroda holds the lowest advertised floor on our board.
Only these figures travel with you.
Questions
Why is my personal loan rate higher than advertised?
Advertised rates are floors for the strongest profiles — high credit score, salaried at a category-A employer, large ticket size, low existing obligations. Pricing is risk-based, so a lower score, a smaller loan or a less-favoured employer category each add to the rate.
What is the difference between flat and reducing interest rates?
A flat rate charges interest on the full original principal for the entire tenure, regardless of repayment. A reducing-balance rate charges only on the outstanding amount. A flat rate is roughly 1.8 times its reducing-balance equivalent over three years, so the two are not comparable as stated.
Can I negotiate a personal loan rate?
Sometimes, and more often than people try. A competing sanction letter from another lender is the only leverage that reliably works. An existing relationship, a salary account and a strong repayment record help.
Related reading
HDFC Bank Vehicle Loan Interest Rates 2026: New & Used Car EMI Comparison
Drive your dream car! HDFC Bank offers new car loans from 8.15% p.a. & used car loans from 13.75% p.…
17 Jun 2026SBI Savings Account Interest Rate 2026: Types, Benefits & How to Open
Secure your future with an SBI Savings Account! Learn about the 2.50% p.a. interest rate, daily calc…
17 Jun 2026NSC Interest Rate 2026: Current 7.7% Returns, Tax Benefits & Calculator
Secure your future with NSC! Earn 7.7% fixed returns, enjoy tax benefits under 80C, and guarantee yo…
17 Jun 2026HDFC Bank Interest Rates 2026: FD, RD, Savings & Loan Rates in India
Secure your future! HDFC Bank FDs offer up to 7.10% for seniors in March 2026. Discover all FD, RD, …
17 Jun 2026
Sources
Every figure on this page is traced to the document it came from. Where a claim rests on a regulator or an institution’s own rate card, that is the link below — not a summary of it.
- [3]Home, personal, vehicle and education loan rate cards — August 2026— Lender published rate cardsas of 15 August 2026