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Fixed or variable rate: how to choose

Updated on 14 plans compared14 providers
In short

A fixed rate guarantees the same monthly payment for the whole term. A variable rate is revised against a legal reference index, within a cap that limits how far it can rise above the starting rate. That cap is what separates the Belgian market from countries where a variable rate can climb without a contractual ceiling.

Our verdict

Fixed remains the reasonable default in Belgium because it removes all uncertainty from a twenty-year commitment. Variable deserves examination when the starting gap is wide and you can absorb the maximum rise the cap allows — a figure the lender must give you in writing before you sign, and the only number on which this decision can honestly be made.

Belgian mortgage lenders and their advertised rates.
ProviderPlanRateKey points
KBC
 Crédit logement KBC 3.54%
  • Borrowing rate 4,74% to 4,88%
  • Simulate and sign up online
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
CBC Banque
KBC
 Crédit logement CBC 3.55%
  • Borrowing rate 4,74% to 4,92%
  • French-language brand of the KBC group
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
Keytrade Bank
 Crédit hypothécaire Keytrade 3.62%
  • Borrowing rate 3,33% to 3,48%
  • Online bank, no branches
  • No file fees
View plan
Argenta
 Crédit logement Argenta 3.85%
  • Borrowing rate 3,99% to 4,39%
  • Network of independent agents
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
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Belfius
 Crédit habitation Belfius 4.00%
  • Borrowing rate 4,01% to 6,11%
  • Discount if your salary is paid in
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
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Elantis
 Crédit hypothécaire Elantis 4.08%
  • Borrowing rate 4,11%
  • Subsidiary of AG Insurance
  • Distributed through brokers
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Beobank
 Crédit hypothécaire Beobank 4.20%
  • Borrowing rate 4,61% to 6,40%
  • Branch network across Belgium
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
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ING
 Crédit habitation ING 4.70%
  • Borrowing rate 4,41% to 6,81%
  • Discount with salary payment and ING insurance
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
Hello bank!
BNP Paribas Fortis
 Crédit habitation Hello bank! 4.78%
  • Borrowing rate 4,62% to 4,85%
  • Online bank of the BNP Paribas Fortis group
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
AXA
 Crédit logement AXA 4.80%
  • Borrowing rate 4,78% to 4,90%
  • Distributed through brokers
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
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Crelan
 Crédit habitation Crelan 5.23%
  • Borrowing rate 4,73% to 4,85%
  • Belgian cooperative bank
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
BNP Paribas Fortis
 Crédit logement BNP Paribas Fortis 5.47%
  • Borrowing rate 4,95% to 6,95%
  • Belgium's largest banking network
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
Fintro
BNP Paribas Fortis
 Crédit logement Fintro 5.47%
  • Borrowing rate 4,95% to 6,95%
  • Network of independent agents of the BNP Paribas Fortis group
  • APR "from": the rate actually granted depends on the amount, the term and your file
View plan
Nagelmackers
 Crédit hypothécaire Nagelmackers On request
  • Borrowing rate 4,45% to 4,60%
  • Belgium's oldest bank
  • APR not published
View plan

Prices and features surveyed on August 31, 2026. They may have changed since. Always check the offer on the provider’s website before signing up.

Reading 1/1/1, 3/3/3 and 5/5/5

These notations describe how often the rate is revised. A 5/5/5 loan is revised every five years, a 3/3/3 every three, a 1/1/1 every year. The three digits refer to the successive revision periods.

The longer the period, the closer the starting rate sits to the fixed rate and the more visibility you have. The shorter it is, the lower the starting rate and the more your payment can move over the life of the loan.

Revision is not discretionary. It follows a legal reference index published periodically, and the lender applies the formula written in the contract to that published index. Nothing about the new rate is negotiated at revision time.

The cap: the Belgian protection to get quantified

Belgian mortgage credit law imposes a ceiling on rate variation. Your rate cannot rise beyond a defined limit relative to the starting rate, and that limit must appear in the credit offer you receive.

This makes the worst case calculable, which is unusual. Before choosing a variable formula, ask the lender for the monthly payment corresponding to the maximum rate reachable under the cap. Every lender can produce that figure on request.

If that maximum payment still sits comfortably inside your budget, a variable rate becomes a rational trade rather than a gamble. If it does not, the fixed rate wins whatever the starting gap, because the gap is worth nothing against a payment you could not meet.

Note also that the cap works in both directions in most contracts: a symmetrical floor limits how far the rate can fall. Read that clause too, since it caps the upside you are buying the risk for.

Frequently asked questions

What does a 5/5/5 mortgage mean?

The rate is revised every five years against the reference index written into the contract. Between two revisions the monthly payment does not change. The variation stays inside the legal cap, which limits how far the rate can rise relative to the rate you started with.

Can I switch from a variable rate to a fixed one?

Not automatically. It requires a refinancing, either with the same lender or another, and carries the associated costs: a reinvestment fee, and where you change lender, releasing the existing mortgage registration and taking a new deed. Run the calculation with those costs included before assuming it pays.

Is a Belgian variable rate riskier than a fixed one?

It is riskier, but the risk is bounded and known from the day you sign, which is not the case in several neighbouring markets. The question is not whether the rate can rise but whether you could pay the instalment if it rose to the capped maximum. Ask for that instalment in writing.

How do I know what rate I will actually be offered?

Advertised rates are base conditions, generally reserved for the strongest files. The rate you are offered depends on your loan-to-value, your income, the term and any side products you take. Only a written credit offer binds the lender, and only that document is worth comparing.

See also