Mortgage ToolkitWhy the 30-year fixed is the most common mortgage
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage spreads your principal over the longest common term, which keeps the monthly payment lower than a 15-year loan for the same amount — at the cost of more total interest over the life of the loan. It remains the default choice for most US homebuyers because it maximizes monthly affordability and cash flow flexibility, leaving more room in the monthly budget for savings, investing, or simply weathering unexpected expenses.
How the rate above is calculated
The figure at the top of this page is a weekly national average sourced from Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED), which in turn tracks the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey. It represents what lenders were quoting borrowers with strong credit and a conventional loan profile that week — not a personalized quote. Your own rate depends on your credit score, down payment, loan type, and the specific lender you work with.
30-year vs. 15-year: the tradeoff
A 15-year fixed loan typically carries a lower rate than a 30-year, and builds equity roughly twice as fast — but the monthly payment is meaningfully higher for the same loan amount. If cash flow flexibility matters more than minimizing total interest, the 30-year term is usually the better fit; if you can afford the higher payment and want to be debt-free sooner, compare both terms directly using the calculator below, or see today's 15-year average rate for a direct comparison.
Making a 30-year loan cost less without changing the term
You don't have to choose between a lower payment and less lifetime interest. Making voluntary extra payments on a 30-year loan can shorten your effective payoff time substantially while keeping the lower required payment as a safety net in leaner months. Model this with the mortgage overpayment calculator, or see the full year-by-year breakdown with the amortization calculator.
If you're deciding whether to pay upfront to lower your rate, our guide on mortgage points walks through the break-even math for a 30-year term specifically.