Debt-to-Income Ratio Calculator
Enter income and monthly debt payments to get both ratios lenders check — plus, if you're over the line, the exact dollars of debt or income that would put you back under it.
Monthly gross income (before tax)
Monthly debt payments
Leave out utilities, groceries, phone, car insurance and subscriptions — lenders don't count them.
| Loan type | Limits (front/back) | You |
|---|---|---|
| Conventional | 28% / 36% | ✗ over |
| FHA | 31% / 43% | ✓ within limits |
| VA | 41% / 41% | ✓ within limits |
Educational estimate — a lender verifies income and pulls credit, and their number may differ · nothing you enter leaves this browser.
Spotted a mistake or have an idea? — errors get fixed and credited publicly.
Last reviewed: September 5, 2026 · Formulas verified by automated tests that block every release.
How do I calculate my debt-to-income ratio?
Divide total monthly debt payments by gross monthly income. Paying $2,400 in housing, car, student and card minimums on $6,000 of pre-tax income gives a back-end DTI of 40%. Housing alone against income is the front-end ratio. Under 36% is comfortable for most lenders; FHA stretches to about 43%. Utilities, groceries and insurance are excluded — only payments to creditors count.
The answer everyone else leaves out
Every DTI calculator ends the same way: "to improve your ratio, reduce your debt or increase your income." True, and useless — the question was by how much. This page computes it. If your back-end ratio sits above the line, you get the precise monthly debt payment that has to disappear, and the precise extra gross income that would do the same job, for the 36% and 43% thresholds separately.
That number changes how you act. Because DTI counts payments rather than balances, clearing one small loan outright usually helps more than putting the same money against a large mortgage: the entire monthly payment leaves the calculation. Our debt payoff calculator shows which debts vanish first under each strategy — run the plan there, then come back and watch the ratio move.
Why lenders trust this number
A credit score describes how you have treated debt in the past. DTI describes whether the next payment fits in the present. That makes it the closest thing underwriting has to a stress test — which is why a strong score with a 48% ratio loses to an average score at 30%. It is also why the ratio is often re-checked shortly before closing: financing a car during the mortgage process has ended more purchases than most buyers imagine.
One honest limit: this is your ratio with the housing payment you enter. If you are shopping for a home, estimate the future payment first — themortgage calculator builds it including taxes and insurance, PMI adds the insurance you'll carry under 20% equity, and amortization shows how long that payment sticks around.
Sources, assumptions and limitations
- Formula: back-end DTI = total monthly debt payments ÷ gross monthly income; front-end DTI = housing payment ÷ gross monthly income
- Assumptions: Gross (pre-tax) income, including a co-borrower when you add one.Only payments to creditors count; utilities, groceries, insurance and subscriptions are excluded by lender convention.Programme limits shown are the common published gates (conventional 28/36, FHA 31/43, VA 41) — automated underwriting may allow more with compensating factors.Educational estimate: a lender verifies income, pulls credit and may reach a different figure.Nothing you enter is stored or transmitted.
- Sources: CFPB — What is a debt-to-income ratio?
- Last reviewed: September 5, 2026 by the CalcNotebook team
Frequently asked questions
What is a good debt-to-income ratio?
Under 36% is treated as comfortable by most lenders, 36–43% as workable but tighter, and above 43% as difficult for conventional financing. The number that matters is your back-end ratio — all monthly debt payments divided by gross monthly income. Below 36% you also tend to see better pricing, not just approval.
What's the difference between front-end and back-end DTI?
Front-end counts housing only — rent, or mortgage principal, interest, taxes, insurance and HOA dues. Back-end adds every other monthly obligation: car loans, student loans, credit-card minimums, alimony and child support. Lenders quote the back-end figure most often, but both are checked, and either one can be the reason a file stalls.
Which debts count, and which are ignored?
Counted: anything you repay to a creditor — mortgage or rent, car and student loans, credit-card minimum payments, personal loans, plus court-ordered alimony or child support. Not counted: utilities, groceries, phone bills, car insurance, health insurance, subscriptions and daycare. It surprises people that a large grocery bill is irrelevant while a small card minimum is not.
What DTI do FHA and VA loans allow?
Conventional financing is classically 28% front-end and 36% back-end. FHA is more forgiving at roughly 31/43, and VA works to a single combined limit near 41% while also weighing residual income — what is left over after obligations. Automated underwriting can stretch these when the rest of the file is strong, so treat them as gates, not guarantees.
How much debt do I need to pay off to qualify?
This calculator answers it directly instead of telling you to "reduce debt": enter your figures and it computes how many dollars of monthly payments must disappear — or how much additional gross income is needed — to land on 36% and on 43%. Clearing a small loan entirely often moves the ratio more than paying extra toward a large one, because the whole monthly payment leaves the calculation.
Does my credit-card balance or my minimum payment count?
The minimum payment, not the balance. A $9,000 balance with a $180 minimum adds $180 to the debt side. That is also why paying a card down without closing it barely moves your DTI until the minimum drops — and why lenders may re-check ratios right before closing.
Do you store my income and debts?
No. Everything is calculated in this browser and disappears when you close the tab. No account, no credit pull, no lead form — we are not a lender and have nothing to sell you.