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Best Long-Term Personal Loans
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7 Best Long-Term Personal Loans

Jackie VelingKim Lowe
Jackie Veling+1
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Last updated on July 16, 2025Fact Checked
Banks, online lenders and credit unions offer long-term personal loans, which carry repayment terms of seven years or more. Here's how to get a long-term cash loan.
 

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Methodology

Best for long-term loans for good credit

SoFi
NerdWallet rating

5.0

Est. APR

8.99 - 35.49%

Loan amount

$5K - $100K

Min. credit score

None

Loan term

2 to 7 years

Get My Rate

Our take on SoFi Personal Loan

SoFi offers online personal loans with consumer-friendly features for good- and excellent-credit borrowers. Read our review of SoFi Personal Loan

Best for large long-term loans

Lightstream
NerdWallet rating

4.5

Est. APR

6.49 - 25.29%

Loan amount

$5K - $100K

Min. credit score

660

Loan term

2 to 7 years

Get My Rate

Our take on LightStream

LightStream is a solid option for good-credit borrowers, with no fees and a promise to beat competitors’ rates. Read our review of LightStream

Best for long-term loans with multiple rate discounts

Upgrade
NerdWallet rating

5.0

Est. APR

7.99 - 35.99%

Loan amount

$1K - $50K

Min. credit score

580

Loan term

2 to 7 years

Get My Rate

Our take on Upgrade

Upgrade personal loans offer multiple rate discounts and direct payment to creditors. A low minimum credit score requirement makes the perks stand out even more. Read our review of Upgrade

Best for long-term loans for bad credit

Upstart
NerdWallet rating

5.0

Est. APR

6.70 - 35.99%

Loan amount

$1K - $50K

Min. credit score

None

Loan term

3 to 5 years

Get My Rate

Our take on Upstart

Upstart personal loans offer fast funding and may be an option for borrowers with low credit scores or thin credit histories. Upstart is a solid financing choice for large purchases. Read our review of Upstart

Best for co-signed and joint long-term loans

First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan
NerdWallet rating

4.5

Est. APR

8.14 - 18.00%

Loan amount

$500 - $50K

Min. credit score

660

Loan term

6 months to 7 years

Get My Rate

Our take on First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan

First Tech’s personal loans are a sound option for members who want a customizable loan with fast funding. Read our review of First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan

Best for long-term loans from a bank

Wells Fargo Personal Loan
NerdWallet rating

4.0

Est. APR

7.49 - 23.74%

Loan amount

$3K - $100K

Min. credit score

None

Loan term

1 to 7 years

Get My Rate

Our take on Wells Fargo Personal Loan

Wells Fargo personal loans are likely a good fit for existing customers, thanks to a wide range of loan amounts and repayment terms, plus perks like pre-qualification and a rate discount. Read our review of Wells Fargo Personal Loan

Best for secured long-term loans

Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan
NerdWallet rating

4.0

Est. APR

8.99 - 18.00%

Loan amount

$250 - $50K

Min. credit score

None

Loan term

1 to 5 years

Get My Rate

Our take on Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan

Navy Federal personal loans may be a good fit for most members, thanks to flexible amounts, consumer-friendly features and quick funding time. Read our review of Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan

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How we chose the best personal loans

Our team of consumer lending experts follows an objective and robust methodology to rate lenders and pick the best.

35+

Lenders reviewed

We review over 35 lenders, including major banks, top credit unions, leading digital platforms, and high interest installment lenders operating across multiple states.

25+

Categories assessed

Each lender is evaluated across five weighted categories and 27 subcategories, covering affordability, eligibility, consumer experience, flexibility, and application process.

70+

Data points analyzed

Our team tracks and reassesses hundreds of data points annually, including APR ranges, fees, credit requirements, and borrower tools, ensuring up to date, accurate comparisons.

Star rating categories

We evaluate more categories than competitors and carefully weigh how each factor impacts your experience.
Affordability

25%

We review lenders’ annual percentage rate offerings at least twice per year and the competitiveness of each lenders’ APR range. We also assess whether a lender charges an origination fee and any opportunity for borrowers to receive a rate discount.

Customer experience

20%

We consider the experience of the consumer trying to manage a personal loan, which means accessibility of customer service representatives, whether borrowers can choose and change their payment due date, and the ability to track their loan on a mobile app.

Underwriting and eligibility

20%

We consider the rigorousness of each lender’s underwriting practices and how widely available their loans are. This category includes whether a lender does a hard credit check before providing a loan, the range of credit profiles they accept and how many states their loans are offered in.

Loan flexibility

20%

We assess how flexible lenders can be with borrowers, including whether they offer multiple loan types, personal loan amounts and repayment term options and whether they offer direct payment to creditors on debt consolidation loans.

Application process

15%

We consider the lender’s full application process, including a borrower’s ability to preview their loan offer via pre-qualification, whether basic loan information such as APR range and repayment terms are available and easy to find online and how quickly a loan can be funded after approval.

5.0

Overall score

NerdWallet’s review process evaluates and rates personal loan products from more than 35 financial technology companies and financial institutions. We collect over 70 data points and cross-check company websites, earnings reports and other public documents to confirm product details. We may also go through a lender’s pre-qualification flow and follow up with company representatives. NerdWallet writers and editors conduct a full fact check and update annually, but also make updates throughout the year as necessary.
Our star ratings award points to lenders that offer consumer-friendly features, including: soft credit checks to pre-qualify, competitive interest rates and no fees, transparency of rates and terms, flexible payment options, fast funding times, accessible customer service, reporting of payments to credit bureaus and financial education. Our ratings award fewer points to lenders with practices that may make a loan difficult to repay on time, such as charging high annual percentage rates (above 36%), underwriting that does not adequately assess consumers’ ability to repay and lack of credit-building help. We also consider regulatory actions filed by agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. We weigh these factors based on our assessment of which are the most important to consumers and how meaningfully they impact consumers’ experiences.
NerdWallet does not receive compensation for our star ratings. Read more about our ratings methodologies for personal loans and our editorial guidelines.

Calculate your monthly payment

See how different loan amounts, rates, and terms affect your monthly payment

Estimated monthly payment

$309.92

Total interest over 3 years

$1,156.95

Total loan payment

$11,156.95

Loan amount

$10,000

Interest rate

7.25%

Loan term (years)

3

PRINCIPAL AMOUNT — $10,000TOTAL INTEREST PAID — $1,156.95
90%
10%

Best long-term personal loan lenders

Lender
Minimum credit score
Loan amounts
Repayment terms
SoFi
Undisclosed (likely good to excellent credit).
$5,000 to $100,000.
2 to 7 years.
LightStream
660.
$5,000 to $100,000.
2 to 20 years, depending on loan purpose.
Upgrade
580.
$1,000 to $50,000.
2 to 7 years.
Upstart
None.
$1,000 to $50,000.
3, 5 or 7 years.
First Tech
660.
$500 to $50,000.
6 months to 7 years.
Wells Fargo
Undisclosed (likely good to excellent credit).
$3,000 to $100,000.
1 to 7 years.
Navy Federal
None.
$250 to $50,000.
1 to 15 years, depending on loan purpose.

What are long-term personal loans?

Long-term personal loans are loans that let you pay back the amount you owe over a longer period of time. While most unsecured personal loans have terms between one and five years, long-term personal loans are seven years or longer.
Depending on the amount borrowed and the purpose of the loan, some lenders may even extend repayment terms up to 15 or 20 years. This is especially common with large home improvement loans.
It’s usually best to choose the shortest repayment term that still has monthly payments you can afford since this saves money on interest.

Pros and cons of long-term personal loans

Pros of long-term loans

You’ll have smaller monthly payments: Because you have a longer period of time to repay the loan, you don’t have to pay as much each month, which keeps the monthly payments affordable.
You can cover larger expenses: Long-term loans come with amounts up to $50,000 — in some cases, as high as $100,000 — which can help you cover a particularly large expense you wouldn’t be able to afford otherwise.

Cons of long-term loans

You’ll have a long financial commitment: Your financial picture will likely change over seven years or more. Carrying a long-term debt means you might have to make trade-offs with future financial decisions, like building up your emergency fund or saving for a down payment.
You’ll pay more interest: Loans with longer terms typically charge more interest, since they represent greater risk for the lender. Paying more interest means your loan costs more compared to a shorter-term loan.
For example, if you take out a $15,000 loan with a 14% APR, here’s how the monthly payment and interest vary, based on two different loan terms:
Three-year loan
Seven-year loan
Monthly payment:
$513.
$281.
Interest paid:
$3,456.
$8,612.
Total loan cost:
$18,456.
$23,612.
» MORE: How to choose the best personal loan term length

When to consider a long-term personal loan

A long-term loan is ideal if you need to keep monthly payments low, and you’re confident you can make the loan payments for the full term. It can also be helpful if you’re borrowing a large sum of money and need more time to pay it back — for example, if you need to borrow $50,000 for a kitchen remodel or another major home improvement project.
» COMPARE: Best lenders for a $50,000 loan
You may also consider a long-term loan for debt consolidation. A debt consolidation loan works best if you get a lower interest rate on the loan than the average interest rate on your existing debts, or if the loan helps you to get rid of debt faster.
For example, if it will take 10 years to pay off your credit cards, a seven-year consolidation loan may be a better option.
» COMPARE: Best debt consolidation loans

How to get a long-term cash loan

1. Determine your borrowing amount and ideal monthly payment

If you’re planning on taking out a long-term loan, it’s important to know exactly how much cash you need to borrow. Some lenders only extend their longest terms for loan amounts of $25,000 or more.
You’ll also want to know the amount you can afford to pay each month. NerdWallet’s personal loan calculator lets you plug in different loan amounts, terms and interest rates, so you can get an idea of what type of loan best fits your budget.

2. Research lenders that offer longer terms

Not all lenders offer long-term loans. The list above is a good summary, but you can also check what terms are offered at your local credit union. Credit unions tend to be more flexible, even when borrowers have fair or bad credit (any score between 300 to low 600s). You’ll need to become a member before you apply, but membership is quick and affordable at most credit unions.
Pay attention to any requirements for long-term loans, which vary by lender. In addition to larger loan amounts, some lenders require a specific loan purpose, like home improvement, to extend a longer term.

3. Pre-qualify and apply

Before applying for a long-term loan, pre-qualify with a few lenders to preview the loan offers you might receive. This helps you compare rates without hurting your credit score, so you can choose the most affordable option.
» COMPARE: Pre-qualify with multiple lenders for free on NerdWallet
Once you’ve settled on a lender, it’s time to apply. You’ll be asked to provide personal and contact information, like proof of identification, Social Security number, address and phone number. You may also need to provide proof of employment and income.
The lender will then conduct a hard credit pull and make an approval decision. While some decisions are instantaneous, other lenders may take a few days to get back to you.

4. Get funded and prepare to make your first payment

Funding time varies by lender, but most lenders fund loans within one week, and some can even fund your loan the same day you’re approved.
Once you receive the money in your account, add the monthly payment amount to your budget and get ready for your first payment (due in about 30 days). Missing even one payment over the length of the term can hurt your credit score and result in late fees.
» MORE: How to successfully manage your personal loan
It’s a good idea to repay the loan early if you’re able to, since you’ll save money on interest. Almost no lenders charge prepayment fees, so there’s no penalty for repaying early.