Remortgage Calculator UK
Is switching your mortgage deal worth the fees — and how fast does it pay back?
Compare your current mortgage — or the SVR you are about to roll onto — with a new deal. See the monthly saving, the break-even point after arrangement, legal, valuation and broker fees, weigh up any early repayment charge, and check the total position over five years.
Examples use a £200,000 balance over 20 years with illustrative rates — 7.5% SVR vs 4.5% fix. No lender's actual rate is claimed. Checked July 2026.
From two rates to a break-even month
The same formula lenders use
Both payments come from the standard repayment-mortgage formula: monthly payment = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)−n), where P is the balance, r the monthly rate and n the months remaining. Both deals are compared over your remaining term, so the saving is a genuine like-for-like rate effect — not an artefact of stretching the debt over more years. On £200,000 with 20 years left, 7.5% costs £1,611 a month and 4.5% costs £1,265 — a £346 monthly saving.
Then the break-even test
Break-even months = total switching costs ÷ monthly saving. A £999 arrangement fee against £346 a month is repaid inside 3 months; every month after that is pure saving, and the five-year position is the monthly saving × 60 minus everything you paid to switch. If you add the fee to the loan instead, the calculator finances it inside the new payment rather than counting it upfront.
Typical remortgage fees in 2026
| Cost | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Arrangement / product fee | £0–£1,999 | £999 is common; lowest-rate deals often carry the biggest fees |
| Valuation fee | Free–£300 | Most remortgage deals include a free basic valuation |
| Legal / conveyancing | Free–£300 | "Free legals" are standard on remortgages; cashback deals let you pick your own solicitor |
| Broker fee | £0–£500 | Many brokers are paid by the lender and charge you nothing |
| Early repayment charge | 1–5% of balance | Only while your current deal is running — often steps down each year |
The fee-vs-rate trade-off matters: a low rate with a £1,499 fee beats a fee-free deal at 4.6% on a £200,000 balance (by about £440 over five years), but on a £75,000 balance the fee-free deal usually wins. Run your own pair at the Advanced level. Adding a £999 fee to a 20-year loan costs about £518 more than paying it upfront.
Pay the ERC now, or wait it out?
While a fixed or discounted deal is running, leaving it usually triggers an early repayment charge of 1–5% of the balance, often stepping down each year of the deal. The test is simple: multiply the monthly saving by the months left on your deal, and compare it with the ERC (plus any extra fees). Saving £346 a month with six months left is £2,075 of early savings — against a £4,000 ERC (2% of £200,000), waiting wins by about £1,925. Shrink the ERC to 1% (£2,000) and switching now edges ahead by roughly £75.
There is a third option that usually beats both: lock a new deal up to six months ahead. Most lenders' offers stay valid for around six months, so you can secure today's rate and complete on the day the ERC expires — no charge, no SVR gap. Enter your ERC and months left at the Detailed level and the calculator runs the switch-now-vs-wait comparison automatically.
The six-month window — and the same-lender shortcut
Start about six months before your deal expires. That is when new-deal offers become lockable, and it leaves time for the application, valuation and legal work to complete before you roll onto the SVR. If rates fall after you lock, most lenders let you swap to the cheaper deal before completion — ask, it is rarely automatic.
A product transfer — switching deals with your existing lender — skips most of the process: usually no legal work, no valuation and no full affordability re-check, often completing in days. That makes it valuable if your circumstances have changed since you first borrowed (new self-employment, lower income, a small balance where fees dominate). A full remortgage to a new lender re-checks affordability but opens the whole market, and the whole market is frequently cheaper than your own lender's retention range. Price both before signing anything.
Rolling onto the SVR is a decision too
When a deal ends and you do nothing, you revert to your lender's standard variable rate — in 2026 SVRs typically sit well above fixed deals. On the example above the SVR costs £346 a month more, £4,151 a year, and the SVR can rise at the lender's discretion at any time, with no cap. Once the deal has ended there is no ERC, so nothing but the paperwork stands between you and a cheaper rate.
Two reassurances for switchers: a standard remortgage carries no Stamp Duty Land Tax — stamp duty applies to purchases and ownership transfers, not to changing lender on a home you already own. And you can usually borrow more when you switch to release equity for home improvements, subject to affordability and loan-to-value limits — the sharpest rates typically need 60% LTV or below, so check your LTV before you apply.
❓ Frequently asked Frequently asked questions
How much could remortgaging save me?
On a £200,000 balance with 20 years left, moving from a 7.5% standard variable rate to a 4.5% fixed deal (both illustrative) cuts the monthly payment from £1,611 to £1,265 — £346 a month. With a £999 arrangement fee you break even in month 3 and are about £19,754 ahead over five years. The saving scales with your balance and the gap between the two rates.
When should I start remortgaging?
About six months before your current deal ends. Most lenders' remortgage offers are valid for around six months, so you can lock a new rate early and complete on the day your ERC-free window opens. Leaving it until the deal has expired usually means at least a month or two on the SVR while the application completes.
What is the difference between a remortgage and a product transfer?
A remortgage moves you to a new lender: full affordability check, legal work and a valuation (both often free), and access to the whole market. A product transfer switches deals with your existing lender — usually no legal work, no valuation and no full affordability re-check, often completing in days. Transfers are simpler but limit you to one lender's range, so price both routes.
What fees will I pay to remortgage?
Typical costs: an arrangement or product fee of £0–£1,999 (£999 is common), a valuation that is often free or up to about £300, legal work that is often free on a remortgage or around £300, and a broker fee of £0–£500 (many brokers are fee-free). If your current deal is still running, an early repayment charge of typically 1–5% of the balance can dwarf all of them.
Should I pay the early repayment charge and switch now, or wait?
Compare the ERC with what switching early saves before your deal ends. Example: switching saves £346 a month and your deal has six months left — £2,075 of savings against a £4,000 ERC (2% of £200,000), so waiting wins by about £1,925. At a 1% ERC (£2,000) switching now would edge ahead by about £75. Enter your ERC at the Detailed level and the calculator weighs it for you.
Does remortgaging affect my credit score?
A remortgage to a new lender involves a hard credit search, which can dip your score slightly for a few months — small and temporary if the application succeeds. Several applications in quick succession do more damage, so research first and apply once. A product transfer with your existing lender usually involves no hard search.
Can I remortgage to release equity?
Yes — borrowing more when you switch is common, subject to the new lender's affordability checks and loan-to-value limits; the best rates typically need 60% LTV or below. The extra borrowing is charged at mortgage rates over a mortgage term, so it suits long-lived spending like home improvements better than short-lived costs. Check your loan-to-value first.
What happens if I do nothing when my deal ends?
You revert to your lender's standard variable rate, which in 2026 typically sits well above fixed deals. On the example above the SVR costs £346 a month more — £4,151 a year — and it can rise at the lender's discretion at any time. There is no ERC once the deal has ended, so nothing stops you switching.
Should I add the arrangement fee to the loan?
Adding the fee preserves cash now but costs interest for the rest of the term: £999 added to a £200,000 loan at 4.5% over 20 years adds about £6 a month — roughly £1,517 in total, £518 more than paying £999 upfront. A fair trade if cash is tight; pay upfront if you comfortably can. The calculator's toggle shows both ways.
Is there stamp duty on a remortgage?
No. Stamp Duty Land Tax applies to purchases and transfers of ownership, not to switching lender on a home you already own — a standard remortgage with no change of owners has none. Transferring a share of the property between people as part of the deal can be treated differently, so take advice in that case.
Where these figures come from
This calculator is arithmetic — standard amortisation maths — so the guidance below is what we rely on, not published rate tables.
- Remortgaging guidance (timing, fees, product transfers) — MoneyHelper — Remortgaging to cut costs.
- Mortgage regulation and switching rights — FCA — Mortgages.
- Bank Rate, which drives SVRs and deal pricing — Bank of England — Bank Rate.
- Stamp Duty Land Tax (not charged on a standard remortgage) — GOV.UK — Stamp Duty Land Tax.
Last checked: July 2026. The example rates (7.5% SVR, 4.5% fix) are illustrative only and are not any lender's actual product — always compare live deals before committing.
Select the question that matches where you are right now.
Your result is the monthly gap between your current payment and the new deal's, plus the month the switching costs pay for themselves — the two numbers a remortgage decision actually turns on.
Set the break-even month against how long you will stay in the property and on the deal. Break even in month 3 of a 5-year fix and almost the entire saving is real.
Not a quote or an offer. The default rates are illustrative, and lenders price by loan-to-value, credit history and product — your real options will differ.
Standard repayment-mortgage amortisation over your remaining term, checked July 2026. All calculations run in your browser — nothing is sent anywhere.
Four things move a remortgage result more than people expect.
The saving is driven almost entirely by the gap between your current rate and the new one — which is why rolling onto an SVR is the single biggest trigger for switching.
Lenders price in LTV bands — roughly 60%, 75%, 85% and above. Dropping below a band boundary since you last fixed can unlock a visibly cheaper rate.
On large balances a low rate justifies a big fee; on small balances fee-free wins. The Advanced level compares two deals properly, fee and all.
Both deals here run over your remaining term, so the saving is honest. Re-extending the term cuts the payment too — but by adding years of interest, not by saving money.
The advertised rate is only the starting point — most of these cost nothing to try.
A recent valuation or overpayment may have pushed you into a cheaper band. Work it out before applying, and query the lender's valuation if it looks low.
Get your own lender's product-transfer offer and a whole-of-market quote. The transfer is the fallback that costs nothing; the open market often beats it.
Secure a deal up to six months ahead. Many lenders let you move to a cheaper product before completion — ask, because it is rarely automatic.
A remortgage decision connects to your full repayment picture, your equity and what you do with the saving.
See the complete payment schedule and total interest for any rate and term.
Mortgage calculator →Overpaying with the monthly saving can shave years off the term.
Overpayment calculator →