Best Installment Loans in December 2024

Achieve offers installment loans online, with three available discounts. You might get a lower annual percentage rate (APR) by adding a co-borrower with sufficient income. Using at least 85% of your loan for debt consolidation is another discount opportunity. And if you can prove you have sufficient savings in a retirement account, you could get a rate reduction.

Still, Achieve charges a mandatory origination fee. This is an upfront fee that Achieve will deduct from your loan funds. Do the math to make sure that this fee doesn’t negate your APR discount (if you qualify for one).

Read our expert Achieve personal loan review.

Other than its minimum credit score (620), Achieve doesn’t disclose many details behind its approval decisions. You can see how likely it is that Achieve will approve you by prequalifying. When you apply, it will run a hard credit check. It may also ask for your:

• Proof of income
• Social Security number
• Proof of identity
• Employment status

You might know Discover for its credit cards, but it also offers unsecured installment loans. What helps Discover stand apart are its repayment assistance options. If you’re struggling, you can request to temporarily reduce your monthly payments, defer past due payments or permanently extend your loan term. Notably, LendingTree users have given Discover a nearly perfect satisfaction score.

But qualifying for a Discover loan can be hard. You can’t add a second person to your loan to help your approval odds and you must have excellent credit.

Read our expert Discover personal loan review.

You’ll need to meet these eligibility criteria to get a Discover loan:

• Age: Be at least 18
• Citizenship: Have a Social Security number
• Administrative: Have a physical address, email address and internet access
• Income: Minimum income of $40,000 (individually or as a household)
• Credit score: 720+

Since Happy Money only offers loans for credit card refinancing, it won’t work for everyone. Still, if you’re looking for this type of installment loan, this lender is worth considering. Happy Money is a lending platform that connects borrowers with lenders. Namely, credit unions.

By law, federal credit union loans can have a maximum APR of just 18%. That means the most creditworthy of Happy Money borrowers could get an ultra-competitive rate. But you must have at least fair credit to qualify.

Read our expert Happy Money personal loan review.

Happy Money provides clear eligibility requirements as to how you can qualify for a loan:

• Age: Must be 18 years or older
• Administrative: Must have a valid Social Security number and checking account
• Residency: Not live in Iowa, Massachusetts or Nevada
• Credit score: 640+
• Payment history: Zero current delinquencies on your credit profile

LightStream (an arm of Truist Bank) offers online loans for borrowers with good to excellent credit. This lender is so confident in its competitive APRs that it has a rate-matching program. If you get a similar loan offer with a lower APR, LightStream could beat it by 0.10 percentage points.

Unfortunately, you cannot prequalify for LightStream. That means you’ll take a hard credit hit to check your eligibility.

Read our expert LightStream personal loan review.

Although LightStream doesn’t disclose its minimum credit score requirements, it only works with borrowers with at least good credit. Approved LightStream borrowers have some factors in common, including:

• At least five years of credit history
• Assets, such as a retirement account or liquid assets like a checking or savings account
• An acceptable DTI ratio
• No delinquencies or other negative payment history issues

As a credit union, you can find lower-than-average interest rates with PenFed. It also offers small loans. Most lenders start their loans at $1,000 (or higher). In contrast, PenFed’s smallest installment loan is $600.

However, PenFed loans are only available to members.

Read our expert PenFed personal loan review.

You can prequalify before you’re a member, but you’ll need to join to accept your loan. All you have to do to join is open a savings account with a minimum deposit of $5.

PenFed doesn’t shed much light on its loan eligibility criteria. It may ask for bank statements, retirement statements, pay stubs or tax returns to verify your income.

Prosper is a peer-to-peer lender. That means individual investors, rather than financial institutions, fund its loans. Once investors pick up your loan, Prosper will send you the money, originated through WebBank. Although credit requirements are a bit more lax under this model, it could be days before Prosper approves you and an investor funds your installment loan.

Still, Prosper may be worth the wait. As long as your credit is fair (or on the high side of bad), you could qualify for a Prosper loan.

Read our expert Prosper personal loan review.

To get a loan with Prosper, you must meet the following requirements:

• Age: Be 18 or older
• Citizenship: Be a U.S. citizen
• Administrative: Have a U.S. bank account and Social Security number
• Residency: Not live in Iowa or West Virginia
• Credit score: 560+

If you’re looking for a fast installment loan, SoFi should be on your radar. The majority of SoFi applicants who apply before 7 p.m. EST on a weekday receives same-day funding. That is, unless you are consolidating debt directly.

SoFi doesn’t charge any required fees. It may offer an optional origination fee in exchange for a lower APR.

Read our expert SoFi personal loan review.

You must meet the requirements below in order to get a loan from SoFi:

• Age: Be the age of majority in your state (typically 18)
• Citizenship: Be a U.S. citizen, an eligible permanent resident or a non-permanent resident (a DACA recipient or asylum-seeker, for instance)
• Employment: Have a job or job offer with a start date within 90 days, or have regular income from another source
• Credit score: 680+

Upgrade isn’t just a loan marketplace. It also offers online savings and checking accounts through Cross River Bank. Upgrade’s Rewards Checking accounts are especially enticing. If you get at least $1,000 in monthly direct deposits, you can earn benefits like cash back and lower loan rates.

Upgrade makes more sense if you’re working on your credit. Excellent credit borrowers will probably find lower rates with a company like LightStream.

Read our expert Upgrade personal loan review.

When you apply for an Upgrade installment loan, it will review your credit score, credit usage and payment history. Its minimum credit score requirement is 580. You must also:

• Be the age of majority in your state
• Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident or live in the U.S. with a valid visa
• Have a verifiable bank account and email address

Getting an installment loan when your credit isn’t great can be tricky. You might have luck with Upstart.

This loan marketplace, which works with partner banks and credit unions, considers more than just your credit score. In some cases, your education can help you get approved, even if you have no credit.

However, if you do have bad credit, you’ll likely pay a high APR, a high origination fee or both.

Read our expert Upstart personal loan review.

Upstart has transparent eligibility requirements, including:

• Age: Be 18 or older
• Administrative: Have a U.S. address, personal banking account, email address and Social Security number
• Employment: Have a job or job offer that starts within six months, or have regular income
• Credit-related factors: Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio no higher than 50% (45% in Connecticut, Maryland, New York and Vermont), no bankruptcies within the last year, fewer than six inquiries on your credit report in the last six months and no current delinquencies
• Credit score: 300+