One way to save money on paying back your pesky student loan debt is to refinance — swapping in your current student loans for a new, consolidated one with a lower interest rate and different repayment term.
Below, CNBC Select crunched some numbers and average student loan figures to figure out just how great those savings can be.
How refinancing student loans saves you money
Compare private student loan refinancing rates
How much you can save by refinancing
Before seeing how much refinancing can save you, you have to understand how much you'd be paying without it. To illustrate this, we use the below-average student loan figures.
- Student loan balance: $37,853; this is the average federal student loan debt per borrower
- Repayment term: 10 years, or 120 months; this is the standard repayment plan for federal student loans
- Interest rate: 4.21% APR; this is the 10-year average federal student loan interest rate for undergraduates
- Monthly student loan payment: $387.03; we estimated using Bankrate's student loan calculator
Using the above figures, after your 10-year loan term is up, you'd end up paying a whopping total of $46,443.90, with $8,590.90 of that amount being interest.
Say, however, that you refinance this amount today, opting for a shorter repayment term of just five years. Student loan refinance rates are often in ranges that vary by lender and your credit score. For the sake of this example, we'll use the lower end of what lenders are currently offering, a fixed 3.99% APR. Your new monthly payment would go up to $696.95 (since you're cutting your loan term in half) but you'd end up paying just $3,963.99 in interest alone — a savings of $4,626.91.
If you instead choose to stay with the same repayment term of 10 years, but at the same refinanced rate of a fixed 3.99% APR, your new monthly payment would drop a little to $383.06. Over the course of the 10 years, you'd pay $8,114.60 in interest alone — a savings of $476.30 than if you didn't refinance at all.
What to look for when refinancing
If you decide you want to refinance with a private lender, look for one without application or origination fees, as well as no prepayment penalties. This way, you're likely to see the most savings from refinancing.
SoFi® offers some of the lowest refinancing rates on the market, along with zero fees whatsoever.
- 0.25% autopay interest rate discount
- 0.125% SoFi Plus discount
- No origination fees, no late fees and no insufficient fund fees
- Private loans, which means you lose federal loan benefits
- $5,000 minimum loan amount
Fixed rates range from 3.99% APR to 9.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount and 0.125% SoFi Plus discount. Variable rates range from 5.74% APR to 9.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount and 0.125% SoFi Plus discount. Unless required to be lower to comply with applicable law, Variable Interest rates will never exceed 13.95% (the maximum rate for these loans). SoFi rate ranges are current as of 5/6/26 and are subject to change at any time. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on the term you select, evaluation of your creditworthiness, income, presence of a co-signer and a variety of other factors. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. For the SoFi variable-rate product, the variable interest rate for a given month is derived by adding a margin to the 30-day average SOFR index, published two business days preceding such calendar month, rounded up to the nearest one hundredth of one percent (0.01% or 0.0001). APRs for variable-rate loans may increase after origination if the SOFR index increases. You may pay more interest over the life of the loan if you refinance with an extended term. Autopay Discount: The SoFi 0.25% autopay interest rate reduction requires you to agree to make monthly payments as outlined in your loan agreement by an automatic monthly deduction from a savings or checking account. This benefit will discontinue and be lost for periods in which you do not pay by automatic deduction from a savings or checking account. When the autopay interest rate deduction is added or removed, the next time the loan is re-amortized (quarterly for fixed rate loans; monthly for variable rate loans),the principal balance of your loan will be spread over the remaining loan term, and your monthly payment amount will change. This benefit is suspended during periods of deferment, grace period, or forbearance. Autopay is not required to receive a loan from SoFi. Member Rate Discount: To be eligible for an additional 0.125% interest rate reduction on a Student Loan Refinancing, you must, within 31 days of loan funding, either (1) be a SoFi Plus subscriber, (2) receive an Eligible Direct Deposit into a SoFi Checking or Savings account, or (3) receive at least $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits into a SoFi Checking or Savings account. You must continue to meet at least one of the above eligibility criteria every 31 days to maintain the discount. See the SoFi Plus terms for details on SoFi Plus subscription. For more details on Eligible Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits, please see https://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet. Once you become eligible during the initial period, the discount will be removed or reinstated depending on whether the criteria have been met. Each time your loan is re-amortized, your monthly payment amount will change based upon the interest rate that was in place. SoFi reserves the right to modify or terminate this offer at any time for unenrolled participants. You are not required to meet these criteria to be approved for a loan. SoFi Plus Discount: To be eligible to receive an additional (0.125%) interest rate reduction on your Student Loan Refinancing (your "Loan") for enrolling in SoFi Plus, you must enroll in SoFi Plus within 30 days of Loan funding, either by receiving an Eligible Direct Deposit to your SoFi Checking and Savings account, or by paying the SoFi Plus Subscription Fee. Once eligible, you will receive this discount during periods in which you have received Eligible Direct Deposit to your SoFi Checking and Savings Account, or during periods in which SoFi successfully receives payment of the SoFi Plus Subscription Fee. This discount lowers your interest rate but does not change the amount of your regular monthly payment. This discount will be removed during periods in which SoFi determines you have turned off Eligible Direct Deposit to your Checking and Savings account or in which you have not paid the SoFi Plus Subscription Fee. SoFi reserves the right to change or terminate this interest rate reduction offer for unenrolled participants at any time without notice. You are not required to enroll in Eligible Direct Deposit or to pay the SoFi Plus Subscription Fee to be eligible for Loan approval. See what qualifies as an Eligible Direct Deposit here: www.sofi.com/terms-of-use/#slr-discount
Eligible Direct Deposit means regularly recurring deposit of regular income to an Automated Clearing House ("ACH") Network during a 30-Day Evaluation Period (as defined below). Although we do our best to recognize all Eligible Direct Deposits, a small number of employers, payroll providers, benefits providers, or government agencies do not generate payments that are detectable by our system. So qualifying direct deposits are those where the student loan refinance discount rate is applied automatically for each month where you have an Eligible Direct Deposit of at least $1,000 per 30-day Evaluation Period. Eligible Direct Deposit does not include transfers between accounts you own, refunds, rebates, reimbursements, stimulus payments, merchant refunds, or payments from person-to-person payment services (such as Venmo). To qualify for the 0.25% interest rate reduction, the direct deposit must be recurring and paid directly into a SoFi Checking or Savings account. For the avoidance of doubt, deposits made via check, cash, or mobile check deposit are not eligible. Direct Deposit eligibility is determined by SoFi's sole discretion. The 30-Day Evaluation Period refers to the period starting on the "Start Date" and ending on the "End Date" set forth on the App Details page of your account, which comprises a period of 30 calendar days (the "30-Day Evaluation Period"). You can access the APV Details page at any time by logging into your SoFi account on the SoFi mobile app or SoFi website and selecting either (i) Banking → Checking → APV or (ii) Banking → Checking → APV Details. If you do not qualify for the discount during the initial 30-Day Evaluation Period, your loan will not be eligible for a discount unless you re-qualify in a later 30-Day Evaluation Period. If you qualify during the 30-Day Evaluation Period, the discount will be applied on a going-forward basis only. SoFi Bank determines eligibility. If you have a joint account, each account holder receives Eligible Direct Deposits into your SoFi Checking and Savings account, then you will be eligible for all SoFi Plus benefits, including on accounts you hold in your own name. Federal Loan Disclosure: Terms and conditions apply. SoFi Refinance Student Loans are private loans. When you refinance federal loans with a SoFi loan, YOU FORFEIT YOUR ELiIGIBILITY FOR ALL FEDERAL LOAN BENEFITS, including all flexible federal repayment and forgiveness options that are or may become available to federal student loan borrowers including, but not limited to: Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), Income-Based Repayment, Income-Contingent Repayment, extended repayment plans, PAYE or SAVE. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. Learn more at SoFi.com/eligiblity. SoFi Refinance Student Loans are originated by SoFi Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. NMLS #696891 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org).
To see how much you could potentially save by refinancing your student loans, use a student loan refinance calculator. You'll enter your current monthly payment, remaining balance and loan term, current interest rate, plus your new interest rate and new loan term. Feel free to test different loan terms (5, 7, 10, 15, 20 years) to see whether a shorter or longer repayment term works better for your financial situation.
ELFI offers refinancing loan terms ranging from five to 20 years, giving you flexibility in how large you want your monthly payment to be. And, according to ELFI's website, customers save an average of $278 per month when refinancing and an average of $20,774 over a lifetime.
ELFI
Cost
No origination fees to refinance
Eligible loans
Federal, private, graduate and undergraduate loans, Parent PLUS loans
Loan types
Variable and fixed
Variable rates (APR)
Student Loan Refinancing from 4.74%; Private Student Loans from 4.88%
Fixed rates (APR)
Student Loan Refinancing from 4.29%; Private Student Loans from 9.44%
Loan terms
From 5 to 20 years for student loan refinancing; 5, 7 or 10 years for parent loan refinancing
Loan amounts
From $10,000
Minimum credit score
N/A
Minimum income
N/A
Allow for a co-signer
Yes
Terms apply.
Is now a good time to refinance student loans?
Given the current rate environment, where interest rates are dropping, now can be a good time to refinance your student loans. Those who have good credit have the best chance at scoring the lowest refinanced rate possible.
For federal student loan borrowers specifically, keep in mind that refinancing with a private lender means giving up access to any government protections, such as income-driven repayment plans and student loan forgiveness programs. If you think you'll need assistance, check to see what protections private lenders offer as you shop around.
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At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every student loan article is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of student 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.
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Fixed rates range from 3.99% APR to 9.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount and 0.125% SoFi Plus discount. Variable rates range from 5.74% APR to 9.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount and 0.125% SoFi Plus discount. Unless required to be lower to comply with applicable law, Variable Interest rates will never exceed 13.95% (the maximum rate for these loans). SoFi rate ranges are current as of 5/6/26 and are subject to change at any time. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on the term you select, evaluation of your creditworthiness, income, presence of a co-signer and a variety of other factors. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. For the SoFi variable-rate product, the variable interest rate for a given month is derived by adding a margin to the 30-day average SOFR index, published two business days preceding such calendar month, rounded up to the nearest one hundredth of one percent (0.01% or 0.0001). APRs for variable-rate loans may increase after origination if the SOFR index increases. You may pay more interest over the life of the loan if you refinance with an extended term.
