Ever wonder why visitors browse your car dealership site but leave without taking action? That’s exactly what was happening to a friend of mine — until he added a simple auto loan calculator.
As soon as his customers could calculate monthly payments right on the site, conversions jumped by 25%. It turns out, removing financial guesswork helps people feel more confident about their decisions.
In this guide, we’ll show you exactly how to add an auto loan calculator to your WordPress site. After testing several plugins and methods, we’ve narrowed it down to the best options that are easy to set up — no coding needed. 🙌
What Is a Car / Auto Loan Payment Calculator? 🧮
A car or auto loan payment calculator is an online tool that lets users estimate their monthly installment, view an amortization schedule, and calculate the total cost of a loan.
It enables visitors to easily perform a comprehensive auto loan calculation, taking into account factors like:
- Sales tax – The extra percentage buyers pay on top of the car’s price, depending on the state or city.
- Dealer fees – Charges from the dealership, like documentation or preparation fees.
- Trade-in value – The amount you get for your old car.
- Interest rate – The percentage the lender charges.
- Loan term – How long the buyers take to pay off the loan.
- Down payment – Money buyers pay upfront (a bigger down payment usually lowers the monthly installment).
- Other costs – Things like insurance or registration can also affect what the buyer pays each month if included in the loan.
An auto loan payment calculator is especially useful for car dealership websites and auto financing businesses.
Adding a loan calculator to your WordPress site benefits both you and your customers. Visitors can enter their information and instantly see various financing plans.
This lets visitors find a plan that fits their budget without leaving your site, which encourages them to explore more pages. You can also use the calculator to collect email addresses, making it a handy tool for generating leads.
With that in mind, let’s walk through how you can add a car or auto loan payment calculator to your WordPress site. We’ll cover two methods, and you can jump straight to any section you prefer:
- Method 1: Create a Car Payment Calculator Using WPForms (Easiest Way)
- Method 2: Create an Auto Loan Calculator Using Formidable Forms
- FAQ: Create an Auto Loan Car Payment Calculator in WordPress
- Bonus Resources to Grow Your Car Dealership Website
Let’s get started.
Method 1: Create a Car Payment Calculator Using WPForms
In the past, creating an auto loan car payment calculator would require you to program complex mathematical calculations or hire a WordPress developer.
Luckily, you can now build an auto loan calculator without writing any code using WPForms. It’s the best WordPress contact form plugin, and it offers an all-in-one form builder with 2,000+ ready-made templates.
Its powerful Calculations addon lets you create a wide range of calculator forms for your website. With pre-built calculator templates and a drag-and-drop builder, you have both flexibility and control over your form’s appearance.
ℹ️ We’ve trusted WPForms for years for our contact form and annual WPBeginner reader survey. Its intuitive drag-and-drop builder and AI features make creating forms quick and hassle-free.
See why we recommend it in our full WPForms review.
Setting Up WPForms on Your WordPress Site
For this tutorial, we will use the WPForms Pro version because it includes the Calculations addon. There is also a WPForms Lite version available for free.
Let’s start by setting up WPForms on your WordPress site.
The first thing to do here is to create a WPForms account. Just go to the WPForms website and click on the ‘Get WPForms Now’ button to choose your plan and sign up.
Once you’ve registered, you’ll find your license key in the WPForms account dashboard. Make sure to copy your license key – you’ll need it shortly.
Now it’s time to install the WPForms plugin on your WordPress site. From your WordPress admin panel, go to Plugins » Add New Plugin.
On the next screen, use the search bar to look up “WPForms.”
When you see WPForms in the results, click ‘Install Now’ and then ‘Activate.’
If you need help, please see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Upon activation, you can go to WPForms » Settings from the WordPress dashboard and enter the license key. You can find the license key in your WPForms account area.
Next, you will need to install and activate the Calculations addon in WPForms.
Simply go to WPForms » Addons from the WordPress admin area and then navigate to the Calculations Addon.
From here, click the ‘Install Addon’ button, and the addon will automatically install and activate.
Next, you can create a new form with an auto loan/car payment calculator.
Creating an Auto Loan / Car Payment Calculator Form
To start, you will need to head to WPForms » Add New from the WordPress admin area.
On the next screen, you will see different form templates offered by WPForms.
To get started, you can use the search feature in WPForms and find the ‘Car Payment Calculator Form’ template.
Then click the ‘Use Template’ button to customize the form.
🧑💻 Pro Tip: With WPForms, you can use AI to generate your form. All you need to do is provide a short description of what kind of form you need, then the AI tool will create the form in just a few seconds.
After that, you will see your form template in the WPForms drag-and-drop form builder.
The default template offers a multipage form with all the necessary fields to calculate car payments:
- A ‘Car Price’ field where you can enter the total value of the car.
- Fields to indicate the initial deposit and the down payment percentage.
- An adjustable payment duration using a slider to change the number of years.
- An option to set the annual interest rate for your payments.
The template also inquires whether you are trading in your car. It includes fields for entering the loan amount, total interest paid, and other relevant details.
Using the WPForms form builder, you can edit the form template, remove existing fields, and add different form fields. Simply drag a new field from the menu on the left and drop it onto the template.
For example, you can add standard fields like checkboxes, dropdown menus, and numbers.
Or use fancy fields like phone number, address, file upload, and more.
Each field in the template can be further customized. Simply select a field you’d like to edit to open its customization options.
For example, if you click on the ‘Car price’ field in the template, then you will see more options in the menu on the left. You can change the name of the form field and add a description.
There are more options if you switch to the ‘Advanced’ tab.
You can change the field size, add placeholder text, enter a CSS class, enable calculations, and more.
WPForms also lets you edit the formula for the calculator fields.
Simply select a field, and you will see a ‘Formula’ option in the menu on the left.
Here, you can make changes to the calculations and click on the ‘Cheatsheet’ if you need more help.
If math isn’t your strongest skill, you can use WPForm’s powerful AI Calculations feature to instantly generate complex formulas.
In the ‘Advanced’ tab, click on the ‘Generate Formula’ button next to the formula box. This will open the AI assistant chat window.
From here, you can simply describe the type of calculation you need in plain English.
For example, you can write something like: “Create a car payment calculator that takes the vehicle price, down payment amount, interest rate, and loan term in years. I want it to show the monthly payment amount.”
After hitting enter, the AI will instantly create the appropriate formula that you can add to your form in one click.
Next, you can go to the ‘Settings’ tab from the menu on the left.
Under ‘General’ settings, you will see options to change the form name, add a form description, edit the submit button text, and more.
After that, you can view the ‘Spam Protection and Security’ settings.
Here, WPForms lets you enable anti-spam protection, store spam entries in the database, enable country and keyword filters, set up CAPTCHA, and more.
For details, you can see our guide on how to create a secure contact form.
Next, you can go to the ‘Notifications’ settings tab.
Here, you’ll be able to edit the settings for email notifications that you and your users will receive when submitting a form.
Lastly, you can go to the ‘Confirmations’ settings for your auto loan calculator form.
WPForms lets you show a message, show a page, or redirect users to a URL when they submit the form.
After making these changes, don’t forget to save your settings.
Add the Auto Loan / Car Payment Calculator to WordPress
Next, you can add the auto loan/car payment calculator form to your WordPress blog or site.
Simply click the ‘Embed’ button at the top of the form builder.
You will now see a popup window where you can embed the form into an existing page or create a new one.
For this tutorial, we will select the ‘Create New Page’ option.
Next, you’ll need to enter a name for the new page.
Once that’s done, simply click the ‘Let’s Go!’ button.
As an alternative, you can also add a WPForms block in the content editor.
From here, simply choose your auto loan calculator form from the dropdown menu.
Next, you should see a preview of your car payment calculator form in the content editor.
Once you are happy with its appearance, simply publish or update your page. After that, you can visit your website to see the auto loan calculator in action.
Method 2: Create an Auto Loan Calculator Using Formidable Forms
Another way of creating auto loan/car payment calculators for your WordPress site is by using Formidable Forms. This is the best solution if you are looking to make a more advanced and complex calculator for your website.
Formidable Forms comes with a powerful car payment calculator template that lets you build an auto loan calculator with just a few clicks.
The car payment template has the loan calculation formula already set up, so you don’t need to program any complex mathematical equations or use additional WordPress plugins.
📝 Note: You’ll need the Formidable Forms Business plan to access the car payment calculator feature. We’ve thoroughly tested this tool ourselves — see what we found in our extensive Formidable Forms review.
Install Formidable Forms on Your WordPress Site
The first step is to create your Formidable Forms account.
To do this, visit the Formidable Forms website, click ‘Get Formidable Forms Now’, and choose the plan that suits your needs.
Once you sign up, you’ll have access to your account dashboard, where you can find your license key and download links for the premium plugin files.
Next, you’ll need to install and activate both the free (Lite) and premium versions of the plugin on your WordPress site.
The Formidable Forms Lite plugin serves as the foundation, while Formidable Forms Pro adds the advanced features you need for more robust forms and calculators.
In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins » Add New Plugin.
After that, you can use the search feature to quickly find the Formidable Forms plugin.
Click ‘Install Now’ in the search result and then hit ‘Activate’ when it appears.
For detailed instructions, see our step-by-step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.
Upon activation, you can go to Formidable » Global Settings in the WordPress dashboard.
Here, you can click on ‘Connect an Account’ and follow the instructions to connect WordPress to your Formidable Forms account.
You can also select ‘Click to enter a license key manually’ and then paste your license key into the field.
You’ll find the license key by logging in to your account on the Formidable Forms website.
After entering the information, click on the ‘Save License’ button.
Build an Auto Loan and Car Payment Calculator in WordPress
Now that you have successfully set up Formidable Forms, you are ready to build a car payment calculator form.
To start, simply go to Formidable » Forms and then click on the ‘Add New’ button.
Next, you’ll need to select a form template.
You’ll find the Car Payment Calculator template by clicking on the ‘Calculator’ section.
This will open the template in the Formidable Forms editor.
The default template offers fields like ‘Price of Car’ and ‘Sales Tax’. There are sliders for adjusting the annual interest rate and the length of the loan (in months).
Besides that, there are fields to select whether you are trading in a car and to enter the trade-in value.
At this point, you may want to customize the form to match your needs.
To change a field’s label, default value, or placeholder text, simply click on that field.
You can then use the ‘Field Options’ settings in the left-hand menu.
If you want to customize the ‘Loan Calculation’ or ‘Monthly Payment’ fields, then be careful not to change the settings under ‘Advanced’ as they include the calculation formula.
If you change these settings, then it might break the entire form.
Once you’ve finished customizing the fields, you can review the form’s settings by clicking on the ‘Settings’ tab.
First, you can change the form’s title and description in the ‘General’ tab.
You can also change what will happen when a visitor submits the form by selecting ‘Actions & Notifications’ in the left-hand menu.
If you click to expand the ‘Confirmation’ section, then you’ll see the message that Formidable Forms shows to visitors by default.
To change this, simply type your own message into the text editor.
If you prefer, you can redirect visitors to a page after submitting the form. For example, you might create a custom ‘thank you’ page using a drag-and-drop WordPress page builder such as SeedProd.
ℹ️ Some of our business partners use SeedProd to build their websites, and we’ve seen firsthand that it works exceptionally well. Learn more about why we recommend it in our in-depth SeedProd review.
To set up a redirect, click on the ‘Redirect to URL’ tab. You can then type or paste a link into the ‘Redirect URL’ field.
Another option is to show content from another WordPress page by selecting the ‘Show Page Content’ tab.
You can then open the ‘Select a Page’ dropdown and choose a page from the list.
After that, click to expand the ‘Email Notification’ section.
Here, you can see the message that Formidable Forms will send to your WordPress admin.
You can add more email addresses, change the body text, add an email subject, and more.
After that, you may want to add more actions that Formidable Forms will perform when a visitor submits the form. To do that, simply scroll to the top of the page and click on any of the actions.
For example, you might automatically add the visitor to your Constant Contact or ActiveCampaign email list.
In this way, Formidable Forms can help grow your email list.
There are more tabs and settings in the left-hand menu that you can look at, but this is enough to create a car payment calculator.
When you are happy with how the form is set up, click on the ‘Update’ button. After a few moments, you’ll see a ‘successfully updated’ message.
Adding the Car Payment Calculator to Your WordPress Site
Now that you’ve created a car payment calculator, it’s time to add it to your online store or WordPress website. Simply create a new page or open an existing page where you want to show the calculator.
You can then click on the ‘+’ icon and type in ‘Formidable Forms.’ When the right block appears, give it a click to add it to the page.
After that, simply open the ‘Select a form’ dropdown and choose the payment calculator you created earlier.
WordPress will now load the form automatically.
To make the calculator live, simply click on the ‘Update’ or ‘Publish’ button. Now, if you visit your site, you will see the car payment calculator.
FAQ: Create an Auto Loan Car Payment Calculator in WordPress
Now that you know how to set up an auto loan calculator, here are a few common questions you might have:
How accurate are online loan calculators?
They give a good estimate, but they’re not 100% exact. The actual numbers can vary depending on fees, taxes, and your lender’s specific terms. Think of them as a quick way to plan your budget before applying for a loan.
How to calculate the auto loan payment formula?
The basic formula isM = P × [r(1 + r)^n] / [(1 + r)^n – 1]
Where:
- M is your monthly payment
- P is the loan amount (principal)
- r is the monthly interest rate (annual rate ÷ 12)
- n is the total number of payments (loan term in months)
If that looks too technical, don’t worry – the calculator plugin will do the math for you.
How much is a $70,000 car payment for 72 months?
It depends on the interest rate. For example:
- At 5%, the monthly payment would be approximately $1,129.
- At 7%, it’s about $1,190.
Your calculator will give you the exact number based on your specific rate.
How much is 5% interest on $70,000?
If you want the simple interest for one year, 5% of $70,000 is $3,500. But, for auto loans, the total interest depends on the loan term and how much principal you’ve repaid over time. Using a calculator helps you see the complete financial picture.
Bonus Resources to Grow Your Car Dealership Website
We hope this article helped you learn how to create an auto loan car payment calculator in WordPress.
To help you get even more out of your WordPress car dealership site, here are some related tutorials and tools you may find useful:
- How to Make a Car Rental Website with WordPress
- How to Sell Car Parts Online with WordPress (Step by Step)
- Best Plugins to Sell Cars with WordPress (Expert Picks)
- Best WordPress Themes for Car Dealerships
- How to Track User Journey on WordPress Lead Forms
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Dennis Muthomi
Quick question on how these calculators work – do the calculations happen in the user’s browser or does it ping the server which then returns the calculated results back to the browser??
just curious about the tech behind it for performance and user experience considerations
WPBeginner Support
If you have the form send an email notification then it will use server resources to send the confirmation.
Admin
Dennis Muthomi
hi, thanks for your reply, WPBeginner Support.
I apologize if my original question was unclear. I’m specifically wondering if the loan/payment calculations happen client-side (in the user’s browser) or server-side. Could you please clarify where these calculations take place when using form plugins like WPForms or Formidable Forms? Thanks for your help!
WPBeginner Support
For the moment the calculations are server side.