Current chart
$320,000 · 6.50% · 30 years
$2,023 / month- Total interest
- $408,142
- Principal + interest
- $728,142
A LITTLE HISTORY. A LOT OF PERSPECTIVE.
Is your mortgage rate
really that high?
Meet the bigger picture. Explore decades of mortgage rates,
put your own rate in context, and see what the difference means.
Official source data Your inputs stay in your browser
30-YEAR FIXED7.24%↘ 0.08 ppLatest weekly average · October 29, 2026
15-YEAR FIXED6.60%Latest weekly average · October 29, 2026
30-YEAR SERIES AVERAGE7.68%2,901 weekly observations since 1971
INFLATION CONTEXT3.7%YoYCPI-U, not seasonally adjusted · Sep 2026
THE BIG PICTURE
Weekly data · October 29, 2026Every rate tells a story.
October 29, 20267.24%national average
30-year fixed Your rate Hover or tap to explore
Source: Freddie Mac PMMS. Weekly observations; national averages, not lender offers. Read methodology ↗
SAME LOAN. DIFFERENT CHAPTER.What if you borrowed
What if you borrowed
in 2026?
Move through the chart to compare the same $320,000 over 30 years at a historical rate.
October 29, 2026Your rate · 6.50%$2,023/mo
vsHistorical · 7.24%$2,181/mo
$158/month less at your rate. Illustrative principal & interest only.
This holds the loan amount and term constant. It does not compare home prices, wages, buying power, or actual affordability across eras. Survey averages are not personalized quotes.
MAKE THE NUMBERS WORK FOR YOU
A little more perspective.
Explore the possibilities. Keep the useful ones.
A FEW POSSIBILITIES, SIDE BY SIDE
Keep your options in perspective.
Save up to three scenarios on this browser. Compare them with the current chart.
A little room to explore.
Try a shorter term, a smaller loan, or a different rate. Your saved options will appear here.
SMALL CHANGES. LONG-TERM DIFFERENCE.
What can an extra payment do?
Using your $320,000 loan at 6.50% over 30 years, starting from the first payment.
Interest saved$61,698
Time saved3y 10m
Paid off in26y 2m
Monthly P&I + extra$2,123Final payment may be smaller
Scheduled payments With extra principal
Month 60: scheduled balance $299,555 · with extra payments $292,488.
Fixed rate, monthly interest and payments, no fees or recasting. Extra money is applied to principal with each payment. Taxes, insurance and PMI are excluded; lender rounding may differ. Check how your servicer applies extra payments and whether your loan has a prepayment penalty.
LOOK PAST THE MONTHLY PAYMENT
Would refinancing change the picture?
Compare keeping a fixed-rate loan with replacing it. Enter your actual remaining balance and term.
Initial monthly payment reduction$242
Simple payment break-even21 monthsFees ÷ initial monthly savings*
Net cost saved after 5 years$1,551Includes remaining debt
Full-term interest + fees added$47,483
| From today | Keep current loan | Refinance |
|---|---|---|
| Starting principal | $320,000 | $320,000 |
| Monthly P&I | $2,161 | $1,919 |
| Payments by year 5 | $129,640 | $115,114 |
| Costs paid up front | $0 | $5,000 |
| Debt remaining at year 5 | $289,799 | $297,774 |
| All remaining interest + fees | $328,199 | $375,682 |
| Payments remaining | 25 years | 30 years |
*Simple break-even uses initial payment savings and total entered fees; it is not an equity or total-cost break-even. “Not reached” means there are no initial payment savings or fees are not recovered before either loan ends. The holding-period comparison adds payments made, cash closing costs, and debt remaining. Financing fees raises principal and interest. A lower payment can still cost more over time.
Illustrative fixed-rate, fully amortizing loans; no cash-out, extra payments, taxes, insurance, PMI, tax deductions, investment returns, or discounting. Include points and any applicable payoff fees in costs. Compare actual loan disclosures: CFPB loan comparison guidance. Nothing here predicts rates or recommends refinancing.
A FEW CHAPTERS WORTH EXPLORING
Take the long view.
April 2, 1971 · 7.33% · 30-year fixed
Where the archive begins
The first observation in this archive: a 30-year fixed average of 7.33%. This is the beginning of the series, not the beginning of mortgage lending.
Replay advances every 5 seconds and stops at the end. You can pause at any time. Chapters use the 30-year fixed chart. Dates and rates: Freddie Mac PMMS. 2022 methodology change.
A LITTLE RATE PERSPECTIVE
Guess before you look.
At the 1981 peak, what was the 30-year average?
Optional, just for perspective. No sign-up, score tracking, or prize.A rate is a number.
Context is the useful part.
A mortgage rate can feel very different depending on the decade you compare it with. The chart helps you explore those reference points—with the original dates attached.
01
Look beyond one exceptional period.
The 30-year series spans a high of 18.63% on October 9, 1981 and a low of 2.65% on January 7, 2021. Both are real observations, and neither is a forecast or a promise of what comes next.
02
Make the comparison about your numbers.
Use the same loan amount and term to isolate the effect of a rate change. A one-percentage-point change has a different dollar impact on a $150,000 loan than on a $600,000 loan. That is why the comparison starts with your inputs.
03
See exactly how the numbers work Keep affordability in the conversation.
A lower historical interest rate does not automatically mean housing was more affordable. Home prices, household income, down payments, taxes, and insurance all matter. Our time comparison deliberately holds the loan size constant.
THE RECENT CHAPTER
Mortgage rates, year by year.
Simple averages of published 30-year weekly observations. The latest year may be incomplete.
| Year | Average | Low | High | Weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 YTD | 6.52% | 5.98% | 7.40% | 43 |
| 2025 | 6.60% | 6.15% | 7.04% | 53 |
| 2024 | 6.72% | 6.08% | 7.22% | 52 |
| 2023 | 6.81% | 6.09% | 7.79% | 52 |
| 2022 | 5.34% | 3.22% | 7.08% | 52 |
| 2021 | 2.96% | 2.65% | 3.18% | 52 |
| 2020 | 3.11% | 2.66% | 3.72% | 53 |
| 2019 | 3.94% | 3.49% | 4.51% | 52 |
BEYOND THE CHART
All five guides Understand the mortgage behind the rate.
GOOD QUESTIONSLess noise.
Less noise.
More understanding.
Know what you’re comparing
before you make a decision.
Are mortgage rates high right now?+
The latest observation in this snapshot is 7.24% for a 30-year fixed mortgage, dated October 29, 2026. That is below the series high of 18.63% and above its low of 2.65%. Whether a loan is affordable depends on its size, your income, and other costs—not the rate alone.
How far back does the chart go?+
The official consolidated archive starts on April 2, 1971 for 30-year fixed rates. The 15-year fixed series begins on August 30, 1991. The optional 5/1 ARM series covers January 6, 2005 through November 10, 2022 and is discontinued. No observations are invented to extend a series.
Does inflation set mortgage rates?+
Inflation is part of the economic context, but the chart does not establish that one series causes the other. Mortgage pricing also reflects bond-market conditions, risk, costs, and loan characteristics. The optional inflation line is the 12-month change in the BLS all-items CPI-U index, a different measure with a different frequency.
Why is my lender’s rate different from the chart?+
PMMS is a national benchmark for a particular set of conventional conforming purchase loans. Your offer may differ because of credit profile, loan-to-value ratio, points, property type, loan size, timing, and other terms. Compare the interest rate to the chart; APR includes certain financing costs and is not the same measure.
What does “below X% of weekly averages” mean?+
We count observations for the selected loan series with a rate strictly higher than your entered rate, then divide by the total number of available weeks in that series. Equal-rate weeks are not counted as higher. The percentage uses the full series even when you zoom the chart. It is not a ranking of borrowers or loan offers.
Does the payment comparison include all housing costs?+
No. It is an illustration of fixed monthly principal and interest for the same entered loan amount and term at two rates. Taxes, insurance, PMI, closing costs, fees, points, home-price changes, wages, and inflation adjustments are excluded. The ARM overlay is shown only in rate mode and is not used to project an adjustable-rate payment schedule.
Snapshot retrieved October 30, 2026. Mortgage data through October 29, 2026; CPI through Sep 2026. Not a live feed or personalized quote. Source data are provided as is. View sources, coverage, and limitations.