Biweekly mortgage payoff calculator

Paying half your monthly mortgage payment every two weeks means 26 half-payments a year — the equivalent of one extra full monthly payment annually. See how many years and how much interest that one extra payment actually saves.

Standard monthly payment

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Biweekly payoff time

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Time saved

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Interest saved

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Last updated: September 2026 · Verified by Hugo Cardozo.

How a biweekly schedule creates an extra payment

A year has 52 weeks, so paying every two weeks means 26 payments a year. If each biweekly payment is half your normal monthly payment, 26 half-payments equal 13 full monthly payments — one more than the 12 you'd make on a standard monthly schedule. That extra payment goes straight to principal, which is what shortens the loan.

Worked example

On a $300,000 loan at 6% for 30 years, the standard monthly payment is about $1,799 and the loan takes the full 360 months, with roughly $347,500 in total interest. Switching to the biweekly-equivalent schedule (one extra payment spread across the year) pays the loan off in about 295 months — nearly 5 years and 5 months sooner — and cuts total interest to roughly $273,800, a savings of about $73,700.

Check with your lender first

Some mortgage servicers charge a setup fee for a true biweekly auto-draft program, or hold your half-payments in a non-interest-bearing account until they have a full payment to apply — which erases the benefit. A free way to get the same result: keep your normal monthly payment, but manually add 1/12 of your monthly payment as extra principal every month, or make one full extra payment once a year. The math shown here assumes the extra payment reaches principal immediately, with no fees.

Frequently asked questions

Does this account for property tax and insurance in escrow?

No — this calculates principal and interest only. Extra payments should be directed at principal specifically, not the escrow portion of your payment, or they won't have this effect.

Is biweekly always better than just paying extra once a year?

They produce nearly identical results, since both add up to one extra monthly-equivalent payment per year. Biweekly just automates it — pick whichever you'll actually stick with.

What if my lender doesn't offer biweekly payments?

You get the same payoff speed by manually paying an extra 1/12 of your payment as additional principal each month, or by making one lump extra payment annually — no special program required.

📘 Related guide

Read the full guide: "Biweekly Mortgage Payments Explained: The Real Math".

Biweekly Mortgage Payoff Explained