What is the difference between APR and interest rate UK?
Andrew Campbell
Updated on February 10, 2026
What’s the interest rate vs APR? The difference between the interest rate vs APR is that the interest rate is the cost of borrowing the principal amount, and the APR is the cost of borrowing the principal amount plus any additional compulsory fees.
What is APR in UK?
APR – or Annual Percentage Rate – refers to the total cost of your borrowing for a year. Importantly, it includes the standard fees and interest you’ll have to pay. Let’s say you borrow £10,000 over 3 years to buy a car. This includes the £10,000 you borrowed and £848.60 in interest and fees.
How is APR calculated UK?
APR is typically added to a debt owed on a monthly basis. If you’d like to calculate the monthly interest rate simply divide the APR by 12. So if the APR is 12% the monthly rate is 1% and if you owe £1000 you will be charged £10 interest each month.
Does everyone get the same APR?
Variable APRs also fluctuate based on an applicant’s credit score. If you have a fixed APR, which is harder to find, everyone receives the same interest rate, regardless of credit score.
Is APR fixed?
Annual Percentage Rate, or APR, is the annual rate charged by a financial institution to loan its funds to borrowers. Loans are typically offered with either a fixed rate or variable rate. A fixed APR means that the interest rate will not change during the life of the loan.
What is a good APR for a car UK?
If you are going for more conventional finance such as a PCP deal, and your credit score is excellent to amazing then you are likely to pay in the vicinity of 6% to 11% APR depending on how you bargain and if you are near-prime (basically meaning you have good credit score but not perfect) then expect to pay from 12% …
How do I calculate APR?
To calculate APR, you can follow these 5 simple steps:
- Add total interest paid over the duration of the loan to any additional fees.
- Divide by the amount of the loan.
- Divide by the total number of days in the loan term.
- Multiply by 365 to find annual rate.
- Multiply by 100 to convert annual rate into a percentage.
What’s the difference between an AER and an APR?
AER (annual equivalent rate, although sometimes known as the annual effective rate) is usually used in savings accounts. It explains what rate of interest you will earn depending on how often interest is added to your account. For example, an account that accumulates interest monthly will have…
What’s the difference between an interest rate and an APR?
The interest rate is the cost of borrowing the money. When evaluating the cost of a loan or line of credit, it is important to understand the difference between the advertised interest rate and the annual percentage rate (APR), which includes any additional costs or fees. The official rate used to help you understand the cost of borrowing.
What does Apr stand for on short term loan UK?
If your unsecured short term loan UK lender agreed any additional fees with you, these will be included in the APR. The APR represents the total cost of the loan to you, explained on a per year basis. Naturally, you won’t be taking short term credit for a year, so you have to learn what the figure will mean for you. What Does APR Stand For?
Is the representative APR the same as the personal Apr?
The representative APR is a useful comparison tool, but not necessarily the rate you’ll receive. Indeed, it’s likely that customers will get a personal APR even if they are in the 51% who receive a rate that is the same as, or lower than, the representative APR.