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- Multiple repayment and discount options
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Best Low-Interest Personal Loans for September 2024
![Best Low-Interest Personal Loans](/personal-finance/static/6215bce6067f9ebd9ef82a67d529507e/8ae18/best-low-interest-personal-loans.jpg)
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A low-interest personal loan can give you access to cash you need for emergency expenses, home projects, big purchases, or even debt consolidation, while limiting your out-of-pocket costs for that money. The best personal loans offer lower interest rates, limited fees, and a wide range of loan and repayment terms.
Here’s a look at some of the best low-interest personal loans we’ve found and what each lender offers to borrowers.
Personal loans through Upgrade are available to borrowers (and co-borrowers) for anywhere from $1,000 to $50,000. Loan terms range from 24 to 84 months with multiple discount opportunities. Upgrade has a 4.5 out of 5 stars rating on TrustPilot with more than 39,500 consumer reviews, so borrowers hoping for a great customer service experience needn’t look further.
All Upgrade personal loans have an origination fee of 1.85% to 9.99%, which will add to the loan’s total cost. Interest rates are very competitive on the lower end but can reach into the mid-30s percent-wise. For this reason, less qualified borrowers may not find this lender to be as low-interest as others. They also may have trouble qualifying with a credit score lower than 600.
While the name is synonymous with credit cards, Discover also offers low-interest personal loans to borrowers in all 50 states. Loans can range from $2,500 to $40,000 with repayment terms from three to seven years. There are no origination fees or prepayment penalties on Discover personal loans, though late fees are charged if you don’t make your monthly payment on time.
Discover doesn’t allow for joint loan applications or co-borrowers, so you’ll need to be able to qualify on your own with a minimum credit score of at least 660 . Interest rates are already competitive, and there is no discount for signing up for automatic payments, as some lenders offer.
PenFed Credit Union offers personal loans of Up to $50,000 with low interest rates starting at just 7.99% APR. Borrowers can get pre-approved online without affecting their credit score, and there are no origination fees or closing costs involved. Loans can be disbursed as quickly as the next business day, and joint loan applications with a co-borrower are accepted.
In order to qualify for a PenFed personal loan, you’ll need to join and become a member of the credit union. (The criteria are pretty easy.) If you’re using your PenFed loan to pay off other balances or consolidate debt, you won’t have the option of automatically disbursing funds to creditors, so this will need to be done manually.
Borrowers looking for flexible personal loan repayment might consider Lightstream, which offers terms from 24 to 240 months. Loans are available from $5,000 to $100,000, and joint applicants are accepted. If you need fast funding, loans can be disbursed as quickly as the same business day in some cases.
There is no online pre-approval option through Lightstream, so you aren’t able to check rates without affecting your credit. Additionally, Lightstream only offers personal loans to borrowers with good or excellent credit profiles.
With quick online pre-approval and next business day funding, Avant makes it simple to take out a low-interest personal loan from $2,000 to $35,000. Repayment terms range from 12 to 60 months and interest rates, while not the lowest available, remain competitive for a variety of borrowers. This lender also has an easy-to-use mobile app that makes managing your balance, payments, and account payoff activity simple, even on the go.
Avant personal loans are available in most but not all states. Joint loan applications aren’t accepted. While Avant doesn’t disclose a minimum credit score requirement, the lender does state that most approved borrowers have a score between 600 and 700. Personal loans have an administrative (origination) fee of 4.75%, which adds to your total cost of borrowing.
Rather than submit multiple applications to find the best personal loan rates, an online platform like Happy Money can present you with multiple offers from various lenders at once. The lenders on the Happy Money platform offer loans from $5,000 to $40,000 with repayment terms from 24 to 60 months. You can get pre-approved in about two minutes online without affecting your credit, and loan funds can be disbursed directly to existing creditors.
The caveat is that Happy Money Payoff Loans are only available for debt consolidation purposes. This means that you won’t be able to use these funds to cover an emergency expense, make a large purchase, or even tackle a home improvement project. Additionally, many Happy Money lenders charge origination fees on their loans, and the lowest available interest rates are limited to loans under $15,000.
Next paycheck
If you need cash fast to cover an unplanned bill or emergency expense, a Dave Cash Advance could be the answer. By linking a Dave or external bank account to the Dave app, you may qualify for a cash advance Up to $500 that can be transferred in just a matter of minutes. There are 0.00% interest charges, just a Flat fee between $3 and $25, depending on whether you transfer your funds to a Dave Spend account or any other external account.
These quick cash advance loans are repaid with either your next paycheck or the Friday after your loan is disbursed. There are no credit checks or minimum scores required, either.
Lender | APR | Loan amount | Payoff period | Min. credit score |
---|---|---|---|---|
Upgrade | 8.49% to 35.99% | $1,000 to $50,000 | 24 to 84 months | 580 |
Discover® Bank | 7.99% to 24.99% | $2,500 to $40,000 | 36 to 84 months | 660 |
PenFed | 7.99% to 17.99% | Up to $50,000 | Up to 60 months | 580 |
LightStream | 6.99% to 25.99% | $5,000 to $100,000 | 24 to 240 months | 660 |
Avant | 9.95% to 35.99% | $2,000 to $35,000 | 12 to 60 months | 580 |
Happy Money | 11.72% to 17.99% | $5,000 to $40,000 | 24 to 60 months | 640 |
Dave Loans | 0.00% | Up to $500 | Next paycheck | Undisclosed |
Not sure which personal loan lender is right for you? Here are some considerations to help you choose.
Each lender has its own loan limits, which will determine how much (or how little) you’re allowed to borrow. Some lenders also limit how those funds can be utilized, such as only offering debt consolidation loans.
It’s important to know how much money you need, depending on your purpose for borrowing those funds, before you start shopping around. That way, you can rest assured that the lender you choose offers the right loan for you.
Rather than choosing the first lender that approves you, consider shopping around a bit first to find the best rates. You can either get pre-approved through multiple lenders (usually without impacting your credit), or you can apply through a lender platform and get multiple offers at once. Then, choose the loan offer with the lowest rates and fees.
Your new personal loan will have a repayment term that, along with the loan’s interest rate, will determine how much you pay monthly. Be sure to consider your household budget before you choose a loan amount and repayment term, to ensure that you’re able to meet that new obligation until the debt is repaid.
The less you pay in fees to a lender, the more of your own money you keep in your pocket. Origination fees, application fees, early repayment penalties, late fees, and interest charges can all add up, so try to find a lender that either doesn’t require these or charges the lowest possible amount.
Ready to borrow? Here’s how to qualify for a low-interest personal loan and snag the best possible terms.
As you might expect, the lowest interest rates on personal loans are reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. With all other factors the same, a borrower with a 750 credit score will usually be offered a more enticing rate than one with a 650 score.
Additionally, many of the best lenders have minimum credit score thresholds for borrowers. If you want to qualify for one of these loans, make sure your credit score is healthy and that you don’t have any late payments, delinquent accounts, or a too-high debt-to-income ratio (DTI).
Some lenders allow for joint loans, which are loans issued to two co-borrowers who take equal responsibility for the debt. As a result, the incomes and credit histories of both borrowers are taken into account, and the lender generally takes on less risk.
By adding a creditworthy co-borrower to your new loan, you may find that you’re offered even lower interest rates than applying alone. If you are struggling to find a low-interest loan or even qualify on your own, consider adding someone else who’s willing to share the loan.
In many cases, you’ll be offered a lower interest rate when you take out a smaller personal loan or choose a shorter repayment period. Some lenders may provide an online loan estimate tool where you can adjust your loan terms to see what rates are offered. If your goal is to get the lowest interest rate possible, you might want to see which loan term combination is best.
Of course, personal loans aren’t the right answer for everyone. If you aren’t sure whether you should take out a personal loan or aren’t able to qualify for a low-interest loan, here are some alternatives to consider.
A credit card is an easy option when you need to make an unexpected payment, cover a large purchase, or even consolidate other balances. If you have a credit card in your pocket with an available credit limit, this gives you access to a line of credit anytime you need it. Some credit cards even offer cash advances, if you need access to liquid funds.
Interest rates are generally higher than with personal loans, so keep this in mind when using plastic. Some credit cards also have 0% APR offers on new purchases or balance transfers, which can be used to consolidate debt or make big purchases without paying any interest charges; just be sure to pay off the entire balance before the promotional period ends.
If you own a home and have equity in the property, you may be able to tap into that value for big purchases or projects. With a home equity line of credit (HELOC) or home equity loan, you can either get a lump sum installment loan or revolving line of credit that is secured by your property’s value.
Since these loans are secured, interest rates may be lower than with credit cards or even personal loans. Funding generally takes longer as it may require a home appraisal, but if you don’t need funds immediately, this can be a viable option.
Here are some things to know and keep in mind about low-interest personal loans.
While the best rates and terms are reserved for borrowers with good credit or better, there are bad credit personal loans if you have a lower score or limited credit history. You may not be able to borrow from every lender, and you should expect that your interest rates may be higher than if you had better credit, but funding may still be available.
Many lenders have annual income requirements in order to qualify for low-interest personal loans. This income can usually come from a W-2 or 1099 employment, investments, or other sources. If you don’t have a job or source of steady income, you could find it difficult to get approved and might need to turn to a secured personal loan instead.
You can use a personal loan to consolidate existing debt, such as credit card balances, in order to lower interest rates, adjust monthly payment requirements, or both. A low-interest personal loan may have an interest rate that is a fraction of the rate you’re paying on a revolving credit card account, so refinancing and consolidating one or more of these balances can save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars on repayment.
You can use the disbursed loan funds to pay off credit cards, then direct that monthly payment toward your new loan. Some lenders even offer to disburse your loan funds directly to the creditors, simplifying the entire process for you.
A low-interest personal loan provides you with funding for big projects, large purchases, unexpected expenses, or even debt consolidation, while limiting the amount of interest you’ll pay for the debt. These loans are generally reserved for borrowers with good credit and can give you access to funds as quickly as the same day.
While you can get a personal loan with a low interest rate, there are no 0% personal loans available to consumers. If you want to avoid interest charges altogether, your best option is a 0% APR purchase or balance transfer offer on a credit card. These offers are promotional, so you’ll need to pay off the balance before the promotion ends to avoid that deferred interest.
According to the Federal Reserve, the average interest rate on a 24-month personal loan in November 2023 was 12.35%, so a good interest rate on a personal loan could mean anything below that. Many of the lenders mentioned here have rates below 10%, which can save you even more money.
Your personal loan interest rate is determined by factors like your requested loan amount, repayment term, and location. It’s also impacted by your credit history and rating, income, debt-to-income ratio (DTI), credit utilization, and, in some cases, your purpose for the loan.
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