5 Personal Loan Lenders To Consider If Your Credit Score Is Below 670

If your credit score is less than ideal, you may feel like you face additional challenges when it comes to accessing good financial products, like the best credit cards or the best personal loans. However, there are a few lenders that actually cater to applicants with lower credit scores in the poor/fair range (669 and below for the FICO® Score model, and 660 and below for the VantageScore^® model) to help them borrow money for emergency expenses, a medical bill, debt consolidation and other financing needs.

Below, Select rounded up five of the best personal loan lenders that still accept applicants who have credit scores below 670. We looked at fees, interest rates and flexible repayment options for different credit scores. (You can read more about our methodology below.)

In the meantime, remember that if you are applying for loans — or any line of credit — with a lower credit score, you are likely to receive higher interest rates because lenders will see you as more of a “riskier” borrower. It’s important to compare rates with different lenders and do your homework before signing on the dotted line to make sure you’re comfortable with your new loan terms.

When searching for a personal loan, it can be helpful to compare several different offers to find the best interest rate and payment terms for your needs. With this comparison tool, you’ll just need to answer a handful of questions in order for Even Financial to determine the top offers for you. The service is free, secure and does not affect your credit score.

This tool is provided and powered by Even Financial, a search and comparison engine that matches you with third-party lenders. Any information you provide is given directly to Even Financial and it may use this information in accordance with its own privacy policies and terms of service. By submitting your information, you agree to receive emails from Even. Select does not control and is not responsible for third party policies or practices, nor does Select have access to any data you provide. Select may receive an affiliate commission from partner offers in the Even Financial tool. The commission does not influence the selection in order of offers. 

Who’s this for? Sometimes, a potential borrower may have a low credit score because they have extremely limited credit activity. Other times, a lack of credit history may result in them having no credit score at all. Because of this, Upstart accepts applicants with no credit history — though this lender also looks at applicants with a FICO score of 600 or higher. Just keep in mind that if you are approved for the loan with a lower (or no) credit score, you may be subject to a higher interest rate.

You can apply for loan amounts as low as $1,000 and as much as $50,000. And while there are no penalties for paying off your balance early, Upstart does charge an origination fee (up to 8% of the amount you borrow) and late fees ($15 or 5% of the past due balance, whichever is greater).

When it comes to repaying the balance, loan terms range from 36 to 60 months, which can be appealing to borrowers who think they may need a longer time horizon to repay the entire loan.

Who’s this for? Upgrade typically looks at borrowers who have fair or good credit. With FICO, fair or good credit scores fall within the ranges of 580 to 739, and with VantageScore, fair or good ranges between 601 to 780.

Most personal loan lenders offer amounts starting around $3,000 or $5,000, but with Upgrade, you can apply for as little as $1,000 (and as much as $50,000). The $1,000 minimum makes the loan feel a little more digestible for those who don’t need to borrow too much money. This is especially important because it’s generally best to only apply for what you’ll need since borrowing more will result in higher monthly payments.

Also keep in mind that Upgrade personal loans have an origination fee of up to 8%, which is deducted directly from your loan proceeds. So, if you know you’ll need $1,000, you should account for the origination fee and apply for a loan amount closer to $1,080 to cover all your bases.

Upgrade doesn’t have any prepayment penalties, but it does have a late fee: If you pay late or miss a payment, you could be hit with a $10 late fee if your payment is not received in full within 15 calendar days of the due date. 

Otherwise, these loans are fast and easy to secure, and the funds should arrive in your checking account within one business day of submitting the required documents and being approved.

Who’s this for? OneMain Financial offers loan options that are much less rigid compared to other lenders. This lender generally accepts applicants with at least a poor or fair credit score, but if you’re worried your credit score will hurt your chances of securing a better interest rate, you may be able to submit your application with a co-applicant. Plus, borrowers can take advantage of repayment terms with a bit more flexibility compared to that of some lenders as terms range from 24 months to 60 months.

Another feature that makes this lender a little more flexible is the ability to secure your loan with collateral. Personal loans are generally unsecured debt, meaning you can borrow the money outright without having to offer up something of value. But with secured loans, a borrower essentially uses another asset as a “promise” that if they fail to repay their loan in full, the lender can seize that asset from them as collateral. Not only does OneMain Financial give you this option, but doing so also lets you potentially receive an even lower interest rate. Plus, borrowers can actually choose the date their monthly payments are due.

The origination fee with OneMain Financial is on the higher end: either a fixed fee between $25 and $500 or up to 10% of the loan amount, depending on which state you live in. And while there aren’t any penalties for paying off the loan early, there is a late fee that will run you either $30 or up to 15% (depending on your state).

Who’s this for? SoFi actually only considers applicants with good or excellent credit for its personal loan products. However, because this lender is very open to borrowers who need a co-applicant, it’s still worth considering if your credit score is closer to the poor/fair range.

A co-applicant on a personal loan can be beneficial for someone who has damaged credit, poor credit or a credit history that’s so insufficient that they likely may not be approved for the loan if they applied alone. Or, sometimes a co-applicant can be used to give qualifying borrowers with an already good credit score an extra boost for securing better interest rates.

An ideal co-applicant will have a higher credit score and higher income. These attributes tell lenders that the borrowers are more likely to be able to afford to repay the loan. The co-applicant is also financially on the hook for repaying the loan if the other co-applicant fails to make payments.

SoFi doesn’t charge any origination fees, late fees or early payoff fees. And, you can borrow between $5,000 to $100,000, which makes SoFi an attractive option for people who need to borrow larger amounts for bigger expenses.

You can get your loan funded the same day, or the next business day, provided you don’t need to apply with additional information. Plus, when you sign up for a SoFi Personal Loan, you can join its membership platform to take advantage of a host of other perks like career counseling, financial advising and more.

Who’s this for? Similar to OneMain Financial, Avant also provides the option for borrowers to secure their personal loan with collateral. One key difference between the two, however, is that OneMain Financial’s interest rates can range from 18.00% to 35.99% while Avant’s range from 9.95% to 35.99%, giving borrowers the ability to potentially secure a lower interest rate with Avant.

Avant will consider applicants with credit scores under 600, but, again, we remind you that the higher your credit score, the more likely you are to receive the lowest, best rates. This lender also offers personal loan amounts as low as $2,000 and as high as $35,000, and you can typically receive your funds as soon as the next business day after you’ve been approved.

While there are no penalties for early payoff, there is an origination fee of up to 4.75% and a late fee of up to $25 after the 10-day grace period.

Catch up on Select’s in-depth coverage of personal finance, tech and tools, wellness and more, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay up to date.

To determine which personal loans are the best, Select analyzed dozens of U.S. personal loans offered by both online and brick-and-mortar banks, including large credit unions, that come with fixed-rate APRs and flexible loan amounts and terms to suit an array of financing needs.