Best Personal Loans

SoFi offers excellent loan rates, even if they’re not the absolute lowest. A more important feature in its favor, however, is its unemployment protection. If you lose your job, SoFi will work with you to put your loan into forbearance while it offers you assistance and resources to find a new job. That might come in handy during a recession, for example.?

SoFi is also one of the few lenders to truly charge zero fees on its loans—not even late fees. (There are other consequences if you pay late, though, like a potential hit to your credit score.) It’s also very fast; nearly 9 out of 10 people who signed their loan agreement before 7 p.m. Eastern Time received their funds on the same day they applied, according to 2021 data from the company.?

• Available in all states and Washington, D.C.
• Must have a source of income or a job starting in the next 90 days
• Must be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or non-permanent resident?alien
  

Big banks have a reputation for being not quite so customer-friendly, but that’s not the case with U.S. Bank, at least for personal loans. In addition to low rates on loans, it was rated as the second-best bank for quality customer service in 2022, according to a J.D. Power survey.

U.S. Bank’s personal loans are easiest to apply for if you’re already a customer, because you can do it all online. But if you’re not already banking with U.S. Bank, you can still apply for a personal loan. You’ll just need to apply in person, and you’ll be a bit more limited in your loan options (a maximum amount of $25,000, with a term length up to five years). Since U.S. Bank isn’t available in every state across the country, this means some people won’t be able to apply.?

• Must have a credit score of 660 or higher (higher for non-customers)
• Must be the age of majority in your state
• Must live in a state where U.S. Bank operates
• Must have a valid Social Security number

If your credit isn’t the best, PenFed is a good option to consider. Not only is it quite tolerant of fair credit scores already, but if you still need help, you can apply with a co-borrower. This is a bit different from a co-signer, who essentially agrees to repay your loan for you if you default. A co-borrower, on the other hand, agrees to be responsible for the loan along with you right from the get-go.?

Some other benefits of PenFed are that you can get pre-qualified before you commit to fully joining the credit union, if you’re not already a member. And membership is open to anyone. Some credit unions, such as Navy Federal, don’t have the option to pre-qualify for a loan and have more restricted membership.?

• Must be a member of the PenFed Credit Union, or join during the application process
• Must be the age of majority in your state
• Must have a valid Social Security number or individual taxpayer identification number
• Must have a verifiable source of income
  

If you live in a state where Regions operates and you have excellent credit (usually defined as 800 or higher), consider yourself lucky. This lender offers some of the lowest-cost loans out there for people with excellent credit, although you can use collateral or find a joint applicant if your credit isn’t the best.?

However, there are some limits to be aware of. If you’re not a current Regions customer, you’ll need to call or visit a Regions branch to apply. Only current Regions customers are eligible to apply online, and only if you’re applying as a solo applicant. Anyone with a joint applicant—current customer or not—will need to apply in person.???

• You must have a valid Social Security number.
• You must have a verifiable source of income.
• You must have a valid bank account.
• If you are a Regions customer, you must provide your online banking credentials or your ATM or debit card numbers.

Regions’ personal loans are only available in the 15 states—primarily in the South, Midwest, and Texas—where Regions operates.

If you don’t need to borrow a large amount and don’t want to go through the hassle of joining a credit union (which often offer smaller-dollar loans), then Upgrade might be your best bet, especially if your credit isn’t the greatest. If you’re open to switching banks, there’s also a lot to say for Upgrade, which offers plentiful rewards and discounts for using its other financial products too.?

The downside is that Upgrade’s loans are a bit on the pricey side, especially if you do have bad credit. Depending on your loan profile, you’ll have to pay an origination fee ranging from 1.85% to 8.99%. We’d also like to see shorter-term loan options offered, such as six months or even just one year.?

• Recommended credit score of 560 or higher
• Debt-to-income ratio of 75% or less
• Must have a valid email address and bank account
• Available in all states except for Washington, D.C.
• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident or have a valid visa

Discover offers some of the best personal loan rates for debt consolidation (or almost any other purpose, really). If you are consolidating debt, a good feature to look for is a lender who will send the funds directly to your old creditors to pay off your old debt. This saves you an extra step (and the temptation to not use the loan funds for their intended purpose). Discover does offer this ability.?

However, if you’re looking to consolidate any other debt from Discover, such as its popular credit cards, you may need to find another debt consolidation loan. Discover doesn’t allow you to use the funds to consolidate any other Discover debt. In addition, it does offer a nice interest-free money-back guarantee where you can return the loan funds within 30 days if you change your mind, but this doesn’t apply to debt consolidation loans since that money is generally already spent.

• Minimum recommended credit score of 660
• Must be the age of majority in your state
• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Must have an income of $25,000 or more

Loan funds cannot be used to repay a secured loan, such as a car loan, or to directly pay off a Discover credit card.

Credit unions have a reputation for being more willing to work with people who have fair credit (a score from 580–669, according to FICO) than your average lender, and First Tech FCU is no exception. The upper end of its APR range is quite low (18% is the maximum for credit unions), making for an excellent rate option for people who have fair credit. You can also use your stocks or First Tech FCU certificates and savings accounts as collateral for a secured loan, if necessary.?

If you’re worried about being able to make your payments, First Tech FCU also has you covered here too. You can purchase an optional Debtsafe debt protection plan with your loan so that if something happens, you can have some of your payments or even your entire loan canceled entirely.

• Must be the age of majority in your state
• Recommended credit score of 600 or higher (or have a creditworthy co-signer)
• Must be a member of First Tech FCU

To join First Tech FCU, you must meet one of the below criteria:?

• Have a family or household member that is a current member of First Tech FCU
• Work for one of the credit union’s partner employers?
• Work or live in Lane County, Oregon
• Belong to the Computer History Museum or the Financial Fitness Association (you can join online; digital memberships start at $15 per year)
  

If you’ve run into an emergency and need money fast, Rocket Loans is one of the best lenders. If you complete your loan application, receive an approval decision, and sign the final agreement before 1:00 p.m. ET on a regular business day, Rocket Loans will submit an ACH deposit that same day. Depending on your bank’s policies, the money will then show up right away or it could take a few days.

Rocket Loans says its application approvals generally happen in “real time,” but you may need to provide extra documents in some cases. If you round up a copy of your driver’s license, recent pay stubs, current bank statements, and your most recent tax return in advance, you can speed up the loan approval process in case the company does request these documents.

• Must be a U.S. resident
• Must be at least 18 years old
• Available in all states except Iowa, Nevada, and West Virginia

You’ll need to become a Navy Federal Credit Union member before you apply for this loan, and membership is only open to active duty service members, veterans, civilian contractors, and their family members. If you’re able to get past that hurdle, though, there’s a lot to like about these loans.?

NFCU personal loans cover an extremely broad range of options. You can get a small $250 loan to tide you over until payday or take out a big $50,000 lump sum to consolidate your debt or remodel your home, for example. The only downside is there isn’t any pre-qualification option. But if you get all of your loan shopping done within two weeks the credit scoring models will mark those all as one credit inquiry, thereby limiting the damage to your credit score.

• Must be the age of majority in your state
• Must have a verifiable source of income
• Must be a member of the credit union

Not everyone is eligible for Navy Federal Credit Union membership. To join, you must belong to one of the following groups:?

• Active duty service members
• U.S. military veterans
• Family members of qualifying service members or veterans
• Department of Defense civilian employees and retirees