Personal loans can cover renovations, weddings, surprise medical bills and more. If you can complete the process online, they're very convenient.
CNBC Select evaluated dozens of lenders and picked the best for their online experience, while still considering interest rates, loan amounts, fees and more
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Best personal loans with online application
Best for long repayment terms: LightStream
Who's this for? LightStream offers low-interest loans with flexible terms of up to 240 months, the longest time frame of any lender on our list.
Standout benefits: Funds are typically available — and electronically deposited — the same day as approval.
LightStream Personal Loans offer low APRs, no fees and the ability to apply online. Its terms are as long as 20 years, or 240 months.
- Same-day funding available through ACH or wire transfer (conditions apply)
- Loan amounts up to $100,000
- No origination fees, no early payoff fees, no late fees
- LightStream plants a tree for every loan
- Requires several years of credit history
- No option to pay your creditors directly
- Not available for student loans or business loans
- No option for pre-approval on website (but pre-qualification is available on some third-party lending platforms)
Best for debt consolidation: Happy Monday
Who's this for? Happy Money offers The Payoff Loan,™ which sends payments directly to your creditors. According to Happy Money, borrowers who used The Payoff Loan™ increased their FICO Score by up to 40 points.
Standout benefits: There is an origination fee based on your credit score but Happy Money doesn't charge early payoff penalties.
Peer-to-peer lending platform makes it easy to check multiple offers
- Peer-to-peer lending platform makes it easy to check multiple offers
- Loan approval comes with Happy Money membership and customer support
- No early payoff fees
- Fast and easy application
- U.S.-based customer service
- Higher loan minimums ($5,000)
- Must submit soft inquiry to see origination fees and other details
Best for larger loans: SoFi
Who's this for? SoFi approves borrowers for loans of up to $100,000, making it a good first stop if you need a large amount of funding.
Standout benefits: Borrowers can choose between variable or fixed APRs, which is uncommon among most lenders
No origination fees required, no early payoff fees, no late fees
- No origination fees required, no early payoff fees, no late fees
- Unemployment protection if you lose your job
- DACA recipients can apply with a creditworthy co-borrower who is a U.S. citizen/permanent resident by calling 877-936-2269
- Can have more than one SoFi loan at a time (state-permitting)
- May accept offer of employment (to start within the next 90 days) as proof of income
- Co-applicants may apply
- Applicants who are U.S. visa holders must have more than two years remaining on visa to be eligible
- No co-signers allowed (co-applicants only)
Fixed rates from 8.74% APR to 35.49% APR. APR reflect the 0.25% autopay interest rate discount and a 0.25% SoFi Plus interest rate discount. SoFi Platform personal loans are made either by SoFi Bank, N.A. or, Cross River Bank, a New Jersey State Chartered Commercial Bank, operating from its Delaware branch, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender. SoFi may receive compensation if you take out a loan originated by Cross River Bank. These rate ranges are current as of 02/23/26 and are subject to change without notice. Not all rates and amounts available in all states. See SoFi Personal Loan eligibility details at https://www.sofi.com/eligibility-criteria/#eligibility-personal. Not all applicants qualify for the lowest rate. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on a variety of factors, including evaluation of your credit worthiness, income, and other factors.
Best for quick funding: Avant
Who's this for? Avant typically funds borrowers the following business day, with loan amounts ranging from $2,000 to $35,000.
Standout benefits: Avant consider applicants with credit scores below 600, although you may end up paying a higher rate.
Lends to applicants with poor credit and offers next-day funding.
- Lends to applicants with poor credit
- No early payoff fee
- Can prequalify with a soft credit check
- Funding often available next day
- Late-payment grace period of 10 days
- Origination fee
- Potentially high interest
- No autopay discount
- No direct payments to creditors for debt consolidation
- No co-signers
Best for bad (or no) credit: Upstart
Who's this for? Upstart will approve applicants with a 300 FICO Score (the lowest possible) as well as those with no credit history at all.
Standout benefits: You can apply for as little as $1,000 in funding, making it a great choice if you don't need much cash.
Upstart offers accessible personal loans for people with fair or average credit.
- Accept applicants with low or no credit
- No early payoff fees
- Most loans funded the next business day
- High late fees
- Origination fee of 0% to 10% of the target amount
- $10 fee for paper copies of loan agreement
Can I get a personal loan with a 450 credit score?
It may still be possible to get a loan with a 450 credit score if you shop around with lenders that accept applicants with bad credit. In fact, a few lenders may consider credit scores as low as 300.
However, even if you get approved for a loan, you can be charged interest rates on the higher end of the lender's APR range. You may also be offered unfavorable repayment terms.
Because of this, it's generally advisable to improve your credit score before applying for a loan. If you need funding in a pinch and can't improve your score fast enough, you may consider getting a co-signer to help you qualify for better rates and terms.
Is it better to go through a bank or an online lender?
When considering a traditional bank or online fintech company as a personal loan lender, the best option ultimately depends on your needs.
For instance, if you're applying with less-than-ideal credit, you may have trouble getting approved by traditional banks. An online lender, however, can often show more flexibility with its lending requirements.
Another consideration is the amount of funding you plan to apply for. Traditional banks may have higher minimum funding amounts so if you need to borrow way less, look into other lending options.
Where can I get a personal loan online quickly?
Many of our personal loan recommendations offer quick approval and can disburse loans within one business day, assuming that applicants submit complete and accurate information. Some lenders outline specific deadlines by which applications should be submitted in order to receive funds as soon as possible.
In some instances, banks and credit unions may be able to disburse your loan faster if you already have a bank account with them.
Pros and cons of applying for a personal loan online
- No need to visit a branch or call a loan officer to apply.
- Online lenders often have more flexible eligibility requirements
- Can quickly compare rates between lenders
- Less interaction with customer service agents
- Approval may be reliant on an algorithm rather than a personal assessment
FAQs
How do you get a loan when no one will approve you?
If you aren't able to qualify for a personal loan given your current financial and credit history, consider applying with a co-signer. A co-signer with healthy credit may help you get approved and receive better interest rates and loan terms.
What is the easiest loan to get approved for?
Some of the easiest loans to get approved for may be lenders with lower credit requirements or lenders that consider applicants with insufficient credit history. Keep in mind that these loans can come with higher interest rates. Payday loans are also typically easier to get approved for, however, they can also come with near-six-figure interest rates. Because of this, payday loans are typically an absolute last resort.
What credit score do you need for a personal loan?
Typically, you need a credit score of at least 580 to qualify for a personal loan, and a 700 for lower interest rates and larger loan amounts. Lenders like Upstart approve applicants with scores as low as 300, but they often charge higher rates and fees.
Why trust CNBC Select?
At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice to help them make informed financial decisions. Every personal loan review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of personal loan products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.
Our methodology
To determine which personal loans were the best, CNBC Select analyzed dozens of U.S. personal loans offered by banks (both online and brick-and-mortar) and large credit unions that come with no origination or sign-up fees, fixed-rate APRs, and flexible loan amounts and terms to suit an array of financing needs.
When narrowing down and ranking the best personal loans for excellent credit, we focused on the following features:
- No origination or sign-up fee: Most of the lenders on this list charge borrowers an upfront fee for processing your loan.
- Fixed rate APR: Variable rates can go up and down over the lifetime of your loan, but having a fixed rate APR means you'll lock in a particular interest rate for the duration of your loan's term so monthly payments won't vary and your budget will be easier to plan out.
- Flexible minimum and maximum loan amounts and terms: Each lender on the list provides a variety of financing options that you can customize based on your monthly budget and how long you need to pay back your loan.
- No early payoff penalties: These lenders do not charge borrowers for paying off loans early.
- A streamlined application process: We considered whether each lender offered same-day approval and a fast online application.
- Customer support: Every loan on our list provides customer service via telephone, email or secure online messaging. We also chose lenders with an online resource hub or advice center that helps educate customers about the personal loan process and their finances.
- Fund disbursement: The loans on our list disburse funds promptly via electronic wire transfer or paper check. Some lenders will pay your creditors directly.
- Autopay discounts: We noted which lenders offer a 0.25% to 0.5% rate reduction for setting up autopay.
- Creditor payment limits and loan sizes: The lenders listed above offer loans ranging from $500 to $100,000. While each lender advertises its loan sizes, completing the preapproval process can give you a better idea of what your interest rate and monthly payment will be.
We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.
After reviewing the above features, we determined the best personal loans with online applications were:
- Best for long repayment terms: LightStream
- Best for debt consolidation: Happy Money
- Best for larger loan amounts: SoFi
- Best for quick funding: Avant
- Best for bad (or no) credit: Upstart
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Fixed rates from 8.74% APR to 35.49% APR. APR reflect the 0.25% autopay interest rate discount and a 0.25% SoFi Plus interest rate discount. SoFi Platform personal loans are made either by SoFi Bank, N.A. or, Cross River Bank, a New Jersey State Chartered Commercial Bank, operating from its Delaware branch, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender. SoFi may receive compensation if you take out a loan originated by Cross River Bank. These rate ranges are current as of 02/23/26 and are subject to change without notice. Not all rates and amounts available in all states. See SoFi Personal Loan eligibility details at https://www.sofi.com/eligibility-criteria/#eligibility-personal. Not all applicants qualify for the lowest rate. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on a variety of factors, including evaluation of your credit worthiness, income, and other factors.
