Borrowing
Debt-to-Income Ratio Calculator
Work out your debt-to-income ratio and see it against the rules lenders actually use where you live, from the US 28/36 to Ireland's loan-to-income cap.
Back-end debt-to-income ratio
35%
$2,800.00 of debt payments on $8,000.00 gross income per month
Housing ratio
25%
$2,000.00 housing per month
Max housing at 28%
$2,240.00
per month, this country's housing guideline
Room under 36%
$80.00
per month · max total debt $2,880.00
What the ratio is made of, per month
| Line | Per month |
|---|---|
| Monthly income | $8,000.00 |
| Mortgage or rent | $2,000.00 |
| Tax, insurance & building charge | $0.00 |
| Car payments | $400.00 |
| Student loans | $250.00 |
| Credit card minimums | $150.00 |
| Other debt payments | $0.00 |
| Housing in all | $2,000.00 |
| All debt payments | $2,800.00 |
Lenders measure the ratios on a month's figures. Switch the income to annual to see a year of each line.
Where you sit
Dark marker: back-end 35% · light marker: front-end 25%
What counts as a good ratio in United States
American lenders assess the share of gross income that goes to debt, splitting it into a housing (front-end) ratio and a total (back-end) ratio.
The verdict is read against this country's own thresholds, not an imported one: at or below 36% is comfortable, up to 43% is stretching, and above that most lenders here decline.
- Conventional (28/36) (market convention): The traditional guideline. Many lenders now allow 45% to 50% total with strong credit or reserves.
- FHA (set by a regulator): Standard FHA limits. Higher ratios are possible with documented compensating factors.
- Qualified Mortgage (set by a regulator): The 43% total-debt benchmark in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's qualified-mortgage rule.
Published limits: FHA 31% housing and 43% total; the CFPB qualified-mortgage benchmark is 43% total.
Why this asks for gross income
United States's lenders apply their limits to income before tax, so every ratio above is measured against $8,000.00 of gross monthly income.
The two bases are not interchangeable: entering the other one moves every ratio by a third or more, which is the difference between passing and failing.
Ratios are applied to gross monthly income before tax.
United States lending rules. An estimate, not financial advice, providers may calculate differently.
How lenders here decide
| Rule | Limit | You |
|---|---|---|
| Conventional (28/36)market convention | 28% / 36% | Within |
| FHA | 31% / 43% | Within |
| Qualified Mortgage | 43% | Within |
A result link includes the numbers you entered. Share it only with people you want to see them.
How this is calculated
Your debt-to-income ratio is the share of your income that is already promised to someone else, and in much of the world it decides whether you can borrow, how much, and at what price; elsewhere the country caps the loan at a multiple of income instead, and this calculator does both and tells you which one you are in. The housing ratio counts only your mortgage or rent plus its tax, insurance and building charge, while the total ratio adds every other loan and card minimum and is the one lenders lean on. Which limits apply, and whether income means before or after tax, comes from the country you choose.
Housing ratiohousing costs ÷ income
Total ratiodebt payments ÷ income
Maximum borrowingannual income × multiple
- housing costs
- mortgage or rent plus the tax, insurance and building charge a lender counts with it
- income
- gross or net monthly income, whichever basis the country assesses; the form says which
- debt payments
- housing costs plus car payments, student loans, card minimums and other debts
- multiple
- the loan-to-income cap, in countries that use one instead of a ratio
What this does not include
- The lender's own affordability test, stress rate and credit scoring.
- Conversion between gross and net income: enter whichever basis the form asks for.
- Living costs such as groceries, childcare and utilities, which are not debts.
- Lender overlays, government-backed schemes and investor rules.
How this calculator works
Debt-to-income guide: ratio rules, income multiples and what is good. How housing and total ratios are measured, which countries cap a ratio and which an income multiple, and why gross or net income moves the answer by a third.
This calculator in other countries
Each country has its own rates, thresholds and rules, and its own page that runs the calculator on them and cites the official sources they came from.
Data sources
| Dataset | Authority | Effective | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States mortgage qualifying ratios | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau | Within its effective period | |
| United Kingdom mortgage lending limits | Bank of England | Within its effective period | |
| German mortgage affordability conventions | BaFin | Within its effective period | |
| Canadian debt service ratios | CMHC | Within its effective period | |
| Australian mortgage serviceability rules | APRA | Within its effective period | |
| Irish Central Bank mortgage lending limits | Central Bank of Ireland | Within its effective period | |
| Dutch mortgage financing burden norms | NIBUD | Within its effective period | |
| New Zealand debt-to-income restrictions | Reserve Bank of New Zealand | Within its effective period | |
| Swedish mortgage affordability rules | Finansinspektionen | Within its effective period | |
| Indian FOIR lending conventions | Reserve Bank of India | Within its effective period | |
| Sri Lankan debt service conventions | Central Bank of Sri Lanka | Within its effective period | |
| Finnish debt-servicing recommendation | Finanssivalvonta | Within its effective period | |
| Japanese repayment burden conventions | Japan Housing Finance Agency | Within its effective period | |
| French HCSF lending conditions | Haut Conseil de stabilite financiere | Within its effective period | |
| Spanish mortgage affordability conventions | Banco de Espana | Within its effective period |
Every document each dataset was read from, its notes and how the figures were checked are listed in the guide's data sources.
This calculator is for general information only and is not financial advice. Results are estimates based on the figures you enter and the stated formula; lenders and providers may round or calculate differently. Check any decision with the institution involved or a qualified adviser.