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What they said · Payday and short-term loans

“It's only $15 per $100.”

A $300 loan until payday: $45. Many borrowers are back every two weeks, borrowing the same $300 again.

Do that for a year. How much do you pay in fees?

$200
$0$2,000
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The real number

$1,170

It comes to $1,170.

Your guess—
The real figure$1,170

$1,170 in fees to have $300 for a year. As a yearly rate that is 391.07%.

Why so much?

Why

“Per $100” hides the clock. The fee is charged again every two weeks.

$45 each payday, 26 paydays.

For scale

A $300 balance on a credit card at 22.15% for a year costs about $66.

Show me one move

One move

Borrow once, not every payday.

Every payday for a year

$1,170fees
391.07%yearly rate

Once

$45fee
$345repaid in two weeks

The first loan is the small cost. The repeat is the large one.

If the gap comes back every payday, a nonprofit credit counsellor (nfcc.org) can go through the budget with you, usually free.

Try it with my numbers

Now yours

Your loan, as a yearly cost.

The fee is $45.00; you repay $345.00 in 14 days. As a yearly rate that is 391.07%. Renewed 25 times: $1,170 in fees, $1,470 in all, over 364 days.

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The whole story, as text

“It's only $15 per $100.” What that costs over a year.

“It's only $15 per $100.” A $300 loan until payday: $45. Many borrowers are back every two weeks, borrowing the same $300 again. Do that for a year. How much do you pay in fees?

The answer

$1,170. $1,170 in fees to have $300 for a year. As a yearly rate that is 391.07%.

Why

“Per $100” hides the clock. The fee is charged again every two weeks. $45 each payday, 26 paydays. For scale: A $300 balance on a credit card at 22.15% for a year costs about $66.

One move

Borrow once, not every payday. Every payday for a year: $1,170 fees, 391.07% yearly rate. Once: $45 fee, $345 repaid in two weeks. The first loan is the small cost. The repeat is the large one. If the gap comes back every payday, a nonprofit credit counsellor (nfcc.org) can go through the budget with you, usually free.

Yours

What does this payday loan really cost? runs these numbers for any loan. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.

Written and reviewed by Riverbend Crossroads Digital LLC, Saturday, October 3, 2026. Figures from the Show Real Cost engine, computed exactly and shown to the cent. Educational, not advice; your lender's disclosures are the authoritative figures. How we calculate · Corrections.