What this calculator covers
Buying a car or a big-ticket item in Korea usually means one of two payment plans, and this tool handles both.
- Car loan: the auto financing offered by Korean capital companies and banks. You pay the same amount every month (an amortizing loan). Enter the price, your down payment (in won or as a percentage), the annual rate and the term to get the monthly payment, total interest and total cost. A comparison table lines up 12 to 60 months so you can see the trade-off between a lower monthly payment and more interest.
- Card installments (할부): splitting a card purchase into monthly bills. Choose standard, interest-free (무이자) or partly free (부분 무이자), where you pay the fee only for the first few months.
Worked example: a car loan
A car priced at ₩30,000,000 with a 10% down payment (₩3,000,000) leaves ₩27,000,000 to finance. At 5.5% a year over 36 months, the monthly rate is about 0.4583%, which gives a payment of ₩815,289 and total interest of about ₩2,350,416.
Korean dealers often pitch a balloon plan (유예 할부): part of the price, say 30% (₩9,000,000), is deferred to the end. The monthly payment drops to ₩584,776, but you still owe the ₩9,000,000 at month 36 and pay interest on it the whole time, so total interest climbs to roughly ₩3.05 million. Lower payments, higher total cost.
How Korean card installment fees work
Korean card issuers publish the same basic method:
| Item | How it is calculated |
|---|---|
| Monthly principal | Purchase ÷ number of months (any odd won goes on the first bill) |
| Monthly fee | Remaining balance × annual rate × days ÷ 365 |
| Monthly bill | Principal + fee |
Because the fee is charged only on what you still owe, it shrinks each month. Splitting ₩1,200,000 over 12 months at 15% means ₩100,000 of principal a month. The first fee is ₩1,200,000 × 15% ÷ 12 = ₩15,000, so the first bill is ₩115,000 and the last one is ₩101,250. Total fees come to ₩97,500.
With a partly free offer, ₩1,000,000 over 10 months at 16% where you pay the fee only for months 1–3, you pay ₩13,333 + ₩12,000 + ₩10,667 = ₩36,000, about half of the ₩73,333 a standard plan would cost.
Why your bill may differ slightly
- Issuers count the actual days between your purchase and billing date. This tool treats each month as 1/12 of a year, so the first bill can be off by a few hundred won.
- Your card fee rate depends on the term and your credit profile. Your statement or card app shows the rate that applies to you.
- Car finance contracts can add handling fees, guarantee insurance or stamp duty. Ask whether the quoted rate is the nominal rate or the effective rate including fees.
For mortgages or personal loans with equal-principal or interest-only repayment, use the loan repayment calculator. Once you own the car, the Korea car tax calculator estimates the annual vehicle tax.