What does a payday loan actually cost?
Fees get quoted as a flat dollar amount because that hides how expensive the loan really is. Put in real numbers and see the APR — and what a rollover does to it.
What that fee actually is
389% APR
($56 ÷ $375) × (365 ÷ 14 days) — the same math your credit card statement uses, applied to this loan.
The CFPB found over 80% of payday loans are rolled over or reborrowed within 14 days — this isn’t a worst case, it’s the typical case.
After 1 cycle, you’ve paid $56 in fees alone on a $375 loan — and you still owe the full $375 back.
What else could get you this money
| Option | Cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| This payday loan | 389.3% APR | Your inputs above |
| Credit union PAL / PAL II | 28% APRplus a max $20 application fee | NCUA PAL/PAL II rule |
| Bank of America Balance Assist | —flat $5 fee regardless of amount drawn — effective APR ranges roughly 6-30% depending on the amount | Bank of America Balance Assist terms |
| US Bank Simple Loan | 70.7% APRexample: a $400 loan with autopay | US Bank Simple Loan terms |
| Employer-partnered earned wage access (free tier) | 109.5% APRCFPB's own illustrative figure for a typical paid advance — the free/standard-speed tier is lower | CFPB Data Spotlight, July 2024 |
Built on the same rate table as ScamWatch’s harm-reduction ladder. This models the math a payday lender uses — it doesn’t know your specific lender’s actual contract terms, which may differ.
Need cash in the next few days? See the cheapest-first alternatives on the main ScamWatch page before you borrow.