APR — annual percentage rate — shows the real yearly cost of a loan, including not only the nominal interest but also origination, administration and other mandatory fees. It is regulated by GEO 50/2010 (the Romanian transposition of EU Directive 2008/48/EC) and must appear on every credit offer in Romania.
Why compare by APR, not by interest
Two loans with the same nominal interest can have very different total costs because of fees. APR brings them to the same basis, it includes the interest plus the origination fee (often 1-3% of the amount), the monthly administration fee (typically 0.1-0.5%), and, if mandatory, the credit life insurance.
Concrete example: a 50,000 lei loan over 60 months at 8.5% nominal interest can have an APR between 9.2% and 11.8% depending on fees. The gap means over 3,000 lei extra paid across the term.
How it's calculated
The APR formula is set by law and you don't calculate it yourself: the lender must display it. But you can verify: ask for the Standard European Consumer Credit Information (SECCI) sheet, a document required before signing, where all costs are listed transparently.
On Kreditano, offers are sorted by ascending APR by default. The cheapest is first. Filters let you select by amount and term, and the displayed APR reflects the lender's real offer, with no adjustments.
Common mistakes when comparing
Many users compare only the nominal rate or the monthly payment, ignoring APR. Low payments with a long term can hide a much larger total cost. Likewise, „free analysis fees” are already inside the APR — if you see a higher APR than expected, a hidden cost is in there.
Roman Dumitrescu, former BCR risk analyst and then ING consumer-credit product manager: "Back in 2017, when BCR tightened its personal-loan criteria, I had weeks with five or six clients a day asking why their APR ran two points above the ad. Same answer every time: the fees not shown on the banner were spelled out in the SECCI, if you bothered to look. Most hadn't."