Best Personal Loans for Good Credit in 2026

NerdWallet's guide to the best personal loans for good credit

When curating this list, we considered lenders’ minimum credit score requirements along with their affordability, funding times and other helpful features.

Here’s a closer look at our picks.

Discover: Best for no fees

Why we chose this lender: If you get a personal loan from Discover, you won’t have to pay an origination fee, which is a common fee many personal loan lenders charge. Origination fees can be up to 10% of your loan amount and are typically deducted from your loan before the money is disbursed to you. Discover also doesn’t charge any late fees, prepayment penalties or other fees.

What to be aware of: The maximum loan amount you can get from Discover is $40,000. Consider another lender if you need to borrow more than that.

U.S. Bank: Best for joint loans

Why we chose this lender: U.S. Bank allows you to apply for a personal loan with another individual, which is helpful if you’re financing the cost of a shared expense. Getting a joint loan with a co-borrower could also help you qualify for a larger amount or at a lower rate.

What to be aware of: You can potentially borrow more, have longer repayment terms and get faster funding if you’re an existing U.S. Bank customer.

Earnest: Best for rate discounts

Why we chose this lender: Earnest offers three ways to get a rate discount. You can shave 0.25 percentage points off your loan’s annual percentage rate by opting into automatic monthly payments. If you’re an existing Earnest customer, you can get a 2 percentage point rate discount. You can also earn rate reductions of up to 0.75 percentage points by making on-time loan payments.

What to be aware of: You have the option of paying an origination fee ranging from 1% to 8% of your loan amount. You’ll get a lower rate if you opt into paying the origination fee, but the fee will lower the amount of money you receive.

SoFi: Best for same-day funding

Why we chose this lender: If you need to borrow money fast, SoFi can fund a personal loan the same day it approves your loan application. Just be sure to apply for the loan on a business day and sign all loan documents before 5:30 p.m. ET.

What to be aware of: SoFi loans have an optional origination fee that could be up to 7% of your loan amount. Choosing to pay the origination fee may mean a lower interest rate in exchange.

Happen Bank (formerly LendingClub): Best for debt consolidation

Why we chose this lender: If you’re getting a personal loan to consolidate your existing debt, Happen Bank will send your loan funds directly to your creditors, saving you a step in the debt payoff process. This lender also has a 0.5 percentage-point rate discount if you choose to have the loan money sent directly to your creditors to consolidate debt.

What to be aware of: You’ll need a debt-to-income ratio no higher than 40% to qualify for a Happen Bank loan.

Patelco Credit Union: Best for low rates

Why we chose this lender: Patelco Credit Union’s maximum APR is under 18%, which is significantly lower than the other lenders on this list. Lower rates mean lower monthly payments and overall interest.

What to be aware of: You’ll need to be a member of Patelco Credit Union in order to get one of its personal loans. You can be eligible for membership if you live or work in certain parts of California or by simply joining the Financial Fitness Association, a financial literacy nonprofit organization.

Rates and monthly payments for good-credit personal loans

Typical rates

Each lender has its own underwriting process — or system for determining loan approval, but the lowest personal loan rates are often reserved for borrowers with high credit scores and low debt-to-income ratios.

The average APR for borrowers with good credit (a score from 690 to 719) who pre-qualified for a personal loan with NerdWallet over the last 30 days was 19.54%. The APR you receive may vary from that average.

Monthly payments

Once you know your estimated APR, you can plug it into our personal loan calculator, along with your desired loan amount and repayment term, to figure out your estimated monthly payments.

Review your budget to ensure you can comfortably afford your loan payments plus your other financial obligations.

How to choose a personal loan

A good credit score could get you loan offers from multiple lenders. It’s best to pre-qualify with multiple lenders, so you can compare rates and terms. Consider these factors when choosing the right loan for your plans:

Rates: Credit unions and banks sometimes offer lower rates than online lenders, but they may require you to be an existing customer. Take note of lenders that offer discounts that will lower your loan’s rate.

Loan amount: Personal loans tend to range from about $1,000 to $50,000, though some lenders offer up to $100,000. Determine how much you need to borrow, and make sure the lenders you’re considering offer that loan amount.

Loan term: Personal loan repayment terms generally range from two to seven years. A shorter loan term means you'll pay less total interest on the loan. A longer term lowers your monthly payments.

Additional loan features: Special features — like same-day funding, a mobile app or the option to have funds sent directly to your creditor for debt consolidation — can set one lender apart from others.

» MORE: Features to compare in a personal loan

How can a personal loan affect your credit?

Pre-qualifying for a personal loan typically won’t hurt your credit score, but a lender will conduct a hard credit check when you formally apply. This can cause your score to drop a few points.

Making on-time loan payments can build your score. Conversely, a missed payment can cause your score to drop significantly — potentially 100 points or more. That’s why it’s important to choose a loan with monthly payments you can afford.

A personal loan could also build your credit score if you don’t have other forms of installment credit, such as a student loan or auto loan. In that case, getting a personal loan diversifies your credit mix, which can have a small, positive impact on your score.

» MORE: How does a personal loan affect your credit score

Other borrowing options to consider

While a good credit score may qualify you for low personal loan rates, consider alternatives to ensure you’re getting the best deal.

Zero-interest credit card: A 0% APR credit card lets you borrow at no cost, as long you pay the card’s balance within the introductory period — typically 15 to 21 months. Most zero-interest cards require good or excellent credit.

Personal line of credit: A personal line of credit functions like a mix between a personal loan and a credit card. During the “draw” period, you borrow against your credit limit as needed and make payments. You can borrow more as your balance replenishes.

Your monthly payments and interest costs are based on your outstanding balance. Once the draw period ends, you just make monthly payments until the balance is repaid.

Home equity financing: With a home equity loan or home equity line of credit, you can borrow against your home’s equity. Your equity is the home’s value minus what you owe on it.

Equity financing options usually have lower rates and longer repayment terms than personal loans. Your home is collateral for this type of financing. This means the lender could take your property if you default.

Next steps

Pre-qualify for a personal loan through NerdWallet to get loan offers from some of our trusted partners. Pre-qualifying is fast, free and does not affect your credit score.

Answer a few questions about yourself and your desired loan, and you can receive personalized results within minutes. Compare rates and terms to choose the best offer for you.

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.

60+

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 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 60 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.

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