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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11The right Excel formula depends on what is accruing interest. Use a simple daily-interest formula for a loan, invoice, deposit, or private note; ACCRINT for a bond with periodic coupons; ACCRINTM for a security that pays interest at maturity; YEARFRAC for a compact basis-aware calculation; and COUPDAYBS with COUPDAYS for a transparent regular coupon-period calculation.
Accrued interest is interest earned or owed since the last relevant accrual or coupon date but not yet paid. Excel applies the dates, rate, balance, and convention you provide; it does not determine which terms are legally or contractually correct.
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Choose the method first
| Situation | Best starting method |
|---|---|
| Simple loan, invoice, deposit, or private note | Manual daily-interest formula |
| Bond or security paying periodic coupons | ACCRINT |
| Security paying interest only at maturity | ACCRINTM |
| Custom date-based accrual with a selected basis | YEARFRAC |
| Regular coupon bond where you want visible mechanics | COUPDAYBS and COUPDAYS |
The governing loan agreement, bond documentation, market convention, or accounting policy determines the day-count basis, date-inclusion rule, compounding, and treatment of payments.
Worked example: simple Actual/365 interest
Suppose the principal is $10,000, the annual rate is 8%, and the accrual period runs from January 1, 2026, through February 15, 2026. The elapsed interval is 45 days. Under Actual/365 simple interest:
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=10000*8%*45/365The result is $98.63, before any contract-specific rounding or payment-date adjustment.
With the inputs in a worksheet:
| Cell | Input |
|---|---|
| B2 | Principal: 10000 |
| B3 | Annual rate: 8% |
| B4 | Start date: 1/1/2026 |
| B5 | End date: 2/15/2026 |
| B6 | Day-count denominator: 365 |
=B2*B3*(B5-B4)/B6Or count the days explicitly:
=B2*B3*DAYS(B5,B4)/B6Excel’s DAYS(end_date,start_date) function returns the number of days between two dates. The formula above treats the date difference as the elapsed-day count; it does not automatically include both endpoints.
Method 1: Use ACCRINT for periodic-coupon bonds
Use ACCRINT when a security pays interest periodically, usually annually, semiannually, or quarterly. It needs bond-specific information that a normal loan calculator may not have.
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Syntax
=ACCRINT(issue, first_interest, settlement, rate, par, frequency, [basis], [calc_method])Microsoft documents ACCRINT for current Microsoft 365 and several perpetual Excel editions, including Excel 2024, 2021, 2019, and 2016. See the Microsoft ACCRINT reference and the financial-functions reference.
The arguments are:
- Issue: the security’s issue date.
- First interest: the first coupon or interest date.
- Settlement: the date ownership transfers or the transaction settles.
- Rate: annual coupon rate.
- Par: face value.
- Frequency: payments per year:
1annual,2semiannual, or4quarterly. - Basis: day-count convention, from
0through4. - Calc_method: optional handling of settlement after the first interest date.
Example inputs:
| Input | Value |
|---|---|
| Issue date | March 1, 2008 |
| First interest date | September 1, 2008 |
| Settlement date | April 30, 2008 |
| Annual coupon rate | 10% |
| Par value | $1,000 |
| Frequency | 2 |
| Basis | 0, US NASD 30/360 |
=ACCRINT(DATE(2008,3,1),DATE(2008,9,1),DATE(2008,4,30),10%,1000,2,0)If the settlement date is later than the first interest date, the optional final argument matters:
TRUEcalculates total accrued interest from issue to settlement, while:
FALSEcalculates accrued interest from the first interest date to settlement. If omitted, Microsoft says the default is TRUE.
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Method 2: Use ACCRINTM when interest is paid at maturity
Use ACCRINTM for a security that accrues interest and pays it at maturity rather than making periodic coupon payments. It is not the normal choice for a loan with monthly installments.
Syntax
=ACCRINTM(issue, maturity, rate, par, [basis])For a $10,000 maturity-interest security issued January 1, 2026, maturing July 1, 2026, at 8% under Actual/365:
=ACCRINTM(DATE(2026,1,1),DATE(2026,7,1),8%,10000,3)The underlying concept is:
par value × annual rate × accrued-year fractionThe fraction depends on the selected basis. Microsoft documents that the issue date must precede maturity, and invalid dates, nonpositive rates or par values, or a basis outside 0 through 4 can produce errors. See the ACCRINTM documentation.
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Method 3: Build a simple daily-interest calculator
For a simple-interest loan, invoice, deposit, or private note, the most auditable formula is:
Accrued interest = principal × annual rate × days accrued ÷ days per yearUsing the example worksheet:
=B2*B3*DAYS(B5,B4)/B6Common fixed-denominator versions are:
Actual/365: =B2*B3*DAYS(B5,B4)/365Actual/360: =B2*B3*DAYS(B5,B4)/360Actual/360 produces more interest than Actual/365 for the same principal, rate, and elapsed days because the denominator is smaller. Do not choose 360 or 365 because it produces a preferred answer; use the agreement’s stated convention.
This formula is simple interest. If the agreement capitalizes interest daily, a possible daily-compounding structure is:
=B2*(1+B3/365)^DAYS(B5,B4)-B2Use that only when daily compounding and a 365-day denominator are actually required. Monthly compounding, capitalization after missed payments, and changing balances need a more detailed schedule.
Method 4: Use YEARFRAC for a basis-aware formula
YEARFRAC converts two dates into a fraction of a year. Multiply that fraction by principal and the annual rate:
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=B2*B3*YEARFRAC(B4,B5,B6)Examples:
Actual/Actual: =B2*B3*YEARFRAC(B4,B5,1)Actual/360: =B2*B3*YEARFRAC(B4,B5,2)Actual/365: =B2*B3*YEARFRAC(B4,B5,3)The supported basis codes are:
| Code | Convention |
|---|---|
| 0 | US NASD 30/360 |
| 1 | Actual/Actual |
| 2 | Actual/360 |
| 3 | Actual/365 |
| 4 | European 30/360 |
Actual/365 uses actual elapsed days divided by 365. Actual/360 uses actual days divided by 360. Actual/Actual uses actual days and the applicable year length, so leap years can affect the outcome. 30/360 conventions treat months and years according to 30-day-month and 360-day-year rules, including specific end-of-month adjustments.
Important limitation: Microsoft warns that YEARFRAC may return an incorrect result under US NASD 30/360 when the start date is the last day of February. See the Microsoft YEARFRAC reference.
YEARFRAC is useful for a two-date accrual, but it is not automatically a substitute for ACCRINT. A bond calculation may depend on coupon dates, frequency, settlement rules, or an odd first or last coupon period.
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Method 5: Show bond accrual with coupon-period functions
For a regular coupon period, you can expose the mechanics with COUPDAYBS and COUPDAYS:
=B6*B5/B7*COUPDAYBS(B4,B3,B7,B8)/COUPDAYS(B4,B3,B7,B8)Suggested cells:
| Cell | Meaning |
|---|---|
| B3 | Maturity date |
| B4 | Settlement date |
| B5 | Annual coupon rate |
| B6 | Par value |
| B7 | Frequency |
| B8 | Basis |
COUPDAYBS returns the number of days from the beginning of the coupon period to settlement. COUPDAYS returns the number of days in the coupon period containing settlement. The calculation is:
Periodic coupon = par × annual rate ÷ frequencyAccrued interest = periodic coupon × accrued coupon-period days ÷ total coupon-period daysFor a $1,000 bond with a 10% coupon, semiannual payments, 30 accrued days, and a 180-day coupon period:
Periodic coupon = $1,000 × 10% ÷ 2 = $50Accrued interest = $50 × 30 ÷ 180 = $8.33This approach is transparent and useful for regular coupon periods. It may not reproduce every odd-period, settlement, or security-specific rule. For an odd first or last coupon period, use a supported ACCRINT calculation and reconcile it with the offering document, broker, or issuer methodology. The relevant functions are listed in Microsoft’s financial-functions reference.
Day-count conventions: why valid formulas disagree
Two formulas can both be mathematically correct and still return different amounts because they use different conventions. For example, 45 actual days on $10,000 at 8% produces:
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| Basis | Formula | Approximate interest |
|---|---|---|
| Actual/365 | 10000*8%*45/365 |
$98.63 |
| Actual/360 | 10000*8%*45/360 |
$100.00 |
| US 30/360 | Uses convention-specific 30-day months | Depends on the dates and rules |
Actual/Actual may also differ when the period crosses a leap day. Do not automatically change 365 to 366 merely because February 29 occurs. Some agreements use Actual/365 consistently; others use Actual/Actual or split the accrual by calendar year.
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Input block
| Cell | Label | Example |
|---|---|---|
| B2 | Principal/par value | 10000 |
| B3 | Annual interest rate | 8% |
| B4 | Accrual start date | 1/1/2026 |
| B5 | Accrual end or settlement date | 2/15/2026 |
| B6 | Basis code | 3 |
| B7 | Frequency | 2 |
| B8 | Issue date | 1/1/2026 |
| B9 | First interest date | 7/1/2026 |
| B10 | Maturity date | 1/1/2031 |
Output and audit columns
Show the elapsed days, year fraction, selected basis, selected method, and final amount. Keeping the inputs visible makes the result easier to reconcile with a lender, broker, accounting system, or contract.
Elapsed days: =DAYS(B5,B4)Actual/365 year fraction: =YEARFRAC(B4,B5,3)Simple Actual/365 interest: =B2*B3*DAYS(B5,B4)/365You can add a method selector in B12 and return the selected result with:
=SWITCH(B12,"Simple Actual/365",B2*B3*DAYS(B5,B4)/365,"YEARFRAC",B2*B3*YEARFRAC(B4,B5,B6),"Periodic Bond",ACCRINT(B8,B9,B5,B3,B2,B7,B6),"Maturity Security",ACCRINTM(B8,B10,B3,B2,B6),"Coupon Period",B2*B3/B7*COUPDAYBS(B5,B10,B7,B6)/COUPDAYS(B5,B10,B7,B6),NA())If compatibility with an older Excel setup is important, use separate output cells or nested IF statements instead of SWITCH.
Add validation rules
Useful checks include:
=IF(B5<B4,"Check dates",calculation)- Require a positive principal where the selected financial function requires it.
- Limit bond frequency to 1, 2, or 4 for
ACCRINT. - Limit basis codes to 0 through 4.
- Require issue date before maturity for
ACCRINTM. - Flag missing coupon dates when a bond method is selected.
- Flag a changing balance or compounding instruction that makes a one-line formula unsuitable.
Common errors and edge cases
Dates stored as text
Enter genuine Excel dates or construct them explicitly:
=DATE(2026,1,1)Text dates can produce errors or be interpreted differently by regional settings. Microsoft identifies date validity as a requirement for ACCRINT and ACCRINTM.
Start date equals end date
A simple elapsed-day formula returns zero. Bond functions have stricter security-date requirements and may return an error. Do not assume identical inputs are valid for every method.
End date precedes start date
Stop the calculation and show an error message rather than silently returning a negative amount. For bonds, also check the issue, first-interest, settlement, and maturity-date relationships.
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Zero or negative rates
A manual formula can produce zero or negative interest. Microsoft’s ACCRINT and ACCRINTM documentation specifies error behavior for nonpositive rates or par values. Apply the rule appropriate to the selected method.
Inclusive versus exclusive dates
A subtraction such as =B5-B4 measures the interval between dates; it does not automatically count both calendar endpoints. If a contract explicitly includes the start date, an adjustment might be required:
=B5-B4+1Do not add one day without confirming the governing convention.
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Interest may reset or be paid on a coupon date. Settlement on that exact date should be tested against the applicable bond convention rather than assumed to behave like an ordinary loan date.
Amortizing loans
When payments change the outstanding balance, calculate interest on each balance over its own interval. IPMT calculates interest for a specified period of a constant-rate, constant-payment loan or investment; it is not a direct replacement for irregular date-based accrual. See Microsoft’s IPMT documentation.
Rounding and currency
Keep the underlying calculation unrounded where possible and format the output as currency. Use:
=ROUND(calculation,2)only when the amount must be posted or displayed to cents. Rounding every day can produce a different result from rounding only the final amount.
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Use an amortization schedule for changing loan balances, irregular payments, capitalization, or late-payment rules. For a bond settlement, payoff amount, tax figure, or financial statement, reconcile the worksheet with the broker’s quote, lender’s payoff statement, issuer’s documentation, or accounting system. A spreadsheet can apply the wrong convention perfectly.
Excel’s financial functions are available across current Microsoft 365 and several recent perpetual editions, but formula support, separators, language settings, and browser-versus-desktop behavior can vary. Check Microsoft’s function availability reference for the edition being used.
Quick Recap
Final checklist
- Identify whether the instrument is a simple loan, periodic-coupon security, maturity-payment security, or amortizing loan.
- Confirm the annual rate and principal or balance.
- Confirm the day-count basis: Actual/365, Actual/360, Actual/Actual, or 30/360.
- Confirm whether the start and end dates are inclusive or exclusive.
- Confirm compounding and payment frequency.
- For bonds, distinguish settlement date from a general accrual end date.
- Validate leap-year, coupon-date, and odd-period behavior.
- Display audit inputs and reconcile material results with the authoritative statement.
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