These home loans offer low costs, coupled with a host of features, giving the best overall value.
7+
Great
These home loans may have slightly higher interest rates or fewer features but overall, a competitive offering.
5+
Standard
Usually the home loans would offer above average rates. They may still include some competitive features.
0+
Basic
Higher costs and/or fewer features.
What is a home loan?
A home loan, also known as a mortgage, is a type of loan that is designed to help individuals finance the purchase of a residential property. This can be their own home or an investment property.
It is a long-term loan provided by a financial institution, such as a bank or lender. The property is the security for the loan, and lenders require borrowers to save a deposit.
Rate stability. Your interest rate remains the same for a set period, usually between 1 to 5 years.
Lack of flexibility. Often comes with fewer flexible features like offset accounts or redraw facilities. You usually cannot refinance during the fixed period.
Limited additional repayments. Often have restrictions on the amount of additional repayments you can make during the fixed period.
Variable rate
Rate flexibility. Your interest rate fluctuates based on market conditions. If rates decrease, you can benefit from lower repayments.
Increased flexibility. More options for additional repayments via offset and extra repayment/redraw facilities.
Rate uncertainty. If rates rise, your mortgage repayments will increase, potentially causing financial strain.
How to compare home loans
Here's a breakdown of features and charges you should know about.
Feature
What is it?
What you should know
Interest Rate
The percentage charged by the lender on the amount borrowed.
The higher the interest rate, the higher your repayments will be.
Comparison Rate
Designed to help borrowers understand the true cost of the home loan by considering both the interest rate and loan fees.
The comparison rate is based on an example calculation and is not an exact indication of a loan's costs to you.
p.a.
This abbreviation of "per annum" is used for home loan interest rates, because the annual (or yearly) value is shown.
While interest is expressed as an annual percentage, most borrowers make monthly or fortnightly repayments.
Offset Account
A transaction account linked to a home loan. The balance on the offset account is deducted from the amount owed when calculating interest.
The more money you put in an offset, the less interest your lender charges you. Your monthly repayments stay the same but you can repay the loan faster.
Redraw facility
Allows borrowers to access extra funds that they have voluntarily paid towards their mortgage (on top of usual repayments).
Any additional repayments you make will reduce the amount owing on your loan, so when you redraw from those funds the amount you owe will increase again.
How much can you save by refinancing in 2025?
We estimate that the average person could save up to $8,148 a year by switching to a lower rate:
The average Australian home loan is now $665,978 (according to the ABS) - a record high!
Assuming a 30-year loan term, if you switched to that lower rate your monthly repayments would drop from $4,436 to $3,757. That's a saving of $679 every month, or $8,148 a year.
Data is correct as of 1 April 2025. This savings example is a hypothetical estimate only. The lowest rate is for an owner-occupier loan with 80% LVR.
Market update by Rebecca Pike – Finder's senior home loans writer
Disclaimer
*The products compared on this page are chosen from a range of offers available to us and are not representative of all the products available in the market. There is no perfect order or perfect ranking system for the products we list on our Site, so we provide you with the functionality to self-select, re-order and compare products. The initial display order is influenced by a range of factors including conversion rates, product costs and commercial arrangements, so please don't interpret the listing order as an endorsement or recommendation from us. We're happy to provide you with the tools you need to make better decisions, but we'd like you to make your own decisions and compare and assess products based on your own preferences, circumstances and needs.
These home loans offer low costs, coupled with a host of features, giving the best overall value.
7+
Great
These home loans may have slightly higher interest rates or fewer features but overall, a competitive offering.
5+
Standard
Usually the home loans would offer above average rates. They may still include some competitive features.
0+
Basic
Higher costs and/or fewer features.
What is Finder Score?
Finder Score is an easy, data-driven way to judge home loans at a glance. Our insights team compares more than 7,000 home loans across 120+ lenders to give each product a score out of 10 comparative to other products of its type.
This means we compare products against others of its type. For example, variable rate home loans against variable rate home loans, and investor home loans against investor home loans. In total, there are 12 different product groupings.
Variable Rate Owner Occupier, Principal and Interest
Variable Rate Owner Occupier, Interest Only
Variable Rate Investor, Principal and Interest
Variable Rate Investor, Interest Only
Fixed Rate Owner Occupier, Principal and Interest, Short Term
Fixed Rate Owner Occupier,Principal and Interest, Long Term
Fixed Rate Investor, Principal and Interest, Short Term
Fixed Rate Investor, Principal and Interest, Long Term
Fixed Rate Owner Occupier, Interest Only, Short Term
Fixed Rate Owner Occupier, Interest Only, Long Term
Fixed Rate Investor, Interest Only, Short Term
Fixed Rate Investor, Interest Only, Long Term
We filter the loans in our database for each category so that we're only looking at loans that work for the borrower type. So, if we're picking the best loan for first home buyers, we'll only look at lenders that lend to first home buyers and have a maximum LVR of 90%.
The final Finder Score takes into account the product's interest rate and its fees. The higher the score, the lower the cost compared to other products of its type.
What the Finder Score mean for home loans
9+ Excellent - These are the home loans which offer the lowest costs coupled with plenty of features, giving the best overall value.
7+ Great - These home loans may have slightly higher interest rates, maybe a fee or two, or fewer features, but overall, a competitive offering.
5+ Satisfactory - Usually these home loans would offer above average rates and may still include some competitive features, but they're not the best value for the overall cost.
Less than 5 - Basic - These home loans have higher costs and/or fewer features than other home loans on the market.
Richard Whitten is Finder’s Money Editor, with over seven years of experience in home loans, property and personal finance. His insights appear in top media outlets like Yahoo Finance, Money Magazine, and the Herald Sun, and he frequently offers expert commentary on television and radio, helping Australians navigate mortgages and property ownership. Richard holds multiple industry certifications, including a Certificate IV in Mortgage Broking (RG 206) and Tier 1 and Tier 2 certifications (RG 146), as well as a Graduate Certificate in Communications from Deakin University. See full bio
Richard's expertise
Richard has written 598 Finder guides across topics including:
With over 20 years of experience in property, finance and investment journalism, Sarah is a trusted expert whose insights regularly appear across television, radio, and print media, including Sunrise, ABC News, and Yahoo! Finance. She has previously served as managing editor for Your Investment Property and Australian Broker, and her expert advice has been shared over 2,500 times in 2023-2024 alone. Sarah holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, which complies with ASIC standards. See full bio
Sarah's expertise
Sarah has written 197 Finder guides across topics including:
Home loan cashback deals can help you refinance to a cheaper interest rate and get a lump sum cash payment. Compare the latest deals and check your eligibility today.
Learn how to compare rates to find the best home loan and start saving money on your mortgage today.
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