Small Personal Loans: Best Lenders for a $1,000 Loan in 2025
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Small Personal Loans: Best Lenders for a $1,000 Loan in 2025
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Last updated on May 30, 2025Fact Checked
A $1,000 loan or similar small personal loan can help you cover important expenses, such as a vet bill or car repair, without borrowing more than you need.
This service is free and will not affect your credit score.
LendingClub personal loans are a solid option for good-credit borrowers looking to consolidate debt and build their credit. Read our review of LendingClub
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
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
A Universal Credit loan is a sound option for bad-credit borrowers looking to build credit, but rates are high compared to similar lenders. Read our review of Universal Credit
LendingPoint personal loans are a solid borrowing option for fair- and bad-credit borrowers. They are funded quickly and have some flexible features. Read our review of LendingPoint
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.
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
$10,000
Interest rate
7.25%
7.25%
Loan term (years)
3
3 years
PRINCIPAL AMOUNT — $10,000TOTAL INTEREST PAID — $1,156.95
90%
10%
Estimated monthly payments for a $1,000 loan
Monthly payments on a personal loan are determined by your loan amount, APR and repayment term. Annual percentage rates tend to range between 6% and 36%, and repayment terms typically range from two to seven years.
Here are monthly payments for a three-year, $1,000 loan using estimated APRs for each credit score rating:
Borrower credit rating
Estimated APR
Monthly payment
Excellent (scores from 720 to 850).
11.81%.
$33.12.
Good (scores from 690 to 719).
14.48%.
$34.41.
Fair (630 to 689).
17.93%.
$36.12.
Bad (300 to 629).
21.65%.
$38.01.
Source: Average rates are based on aggregate, anonymized offer data from users who pre-qualified through NerdWallet from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024. Rates are estimates only and not specific to any lender. The lowest credit scores — usually below 500 — are unlikely to qualify. Information in this table applies only to lenders with maximum APRs below 36%.
Your loan’s APR might vary from the average. Use a personal loan calculator to estimate monthly payments at different rates and repayment terms. Check your budget to ensure you can afford the additional recurring expense.
How to get a small loan
Review your credit report and debts. Before applying, check your credit report for opportunities to address any negative marks or unpaid debts. Also, calculate your debt-to-income ratio, which lenders use to see how much of a borrower’s income goes to other debts. A DTI ratio of 36% or lower shows lenders you can likely handle a new loan. Some lenders will accept higher ratios.
Pre-qualify with multiple lenders. Pre-qualifying for a personal loan lets you see your estimated annual percentage rate and loan terms. Since pre-qualifying usually takes a few minutes and doesn’t affect your credit score, it’s a quick way to compare loans and determine which is the best for you.
Collect necessary documents. A formal loan application may require information like your Social Security number, W-2s and pay stubs. Gathering this information before you apply can speed up the loan application process.
Submit an application. This part may be done in person with local banks and credit unions, but many lenders have online applications. If you’re approved, expect funding within a day to a week. Applying will temporarily shave a few points off your credit score.
If you have bad credit (scores from 300 to the high 500s), you may still qualify for a small loan from a credit union or reputable online lender, but your rate could be on the high end of the lender’s range.
Add a co-signer whose credit score or income is higher than yours. A co-signer won't have access to loan funds or information about your payments, but they will be responsible for payments if you fail to repay.
Get a joint personal loan with someone whose credit score or income is higher than yours. Co-borrowers share the responsibility for repayment and have equal access to the loan funds and payment information.
Choose a lender that offers secured personal loans. A secured loan is usually easier to qualify for and often has a lower rate compared to an unsecured loan. You can typically use a savings account or vehicle as collateral.
Here are the most important features to compare between small loans.
APR: Annual percentage rate provides an apples-to-apples cost comparison for all loan types. The least expensive loan has the lowest APR.
Fees: Some lenders charge an origination fee, which can range from 1% to 10% of the loan amount. This fee is often subtracted from the loan before you receive the funds, so make sure you’re borrowing enough to meet your needs.
Monthly payments: Review your budget to see how much you can afford to repay on a loan. A personal loan calculator can show you what rate and repayment term you’d need to get an ideal monthly payment.
Repayment terms: Many small loans are repaid over a year or more, but some can have shorter repayment terms. A longer repayment term may mean lower monthly payments but you’ll pay more in interest. Look for a term that keeps payments affordable but helps you clear the debt quickly.
Funding time: Personal loan approval and funding can take a day or up to a week, depending on the lender and how smoothly the application process goes. If you need the funds urgently, look for a lender that offers quick loans.
Know the signs of predatory lending
A small loan from a predatory lender can damage your finances and trap you in a cycle of debt. Watch for these red flags when shopping for a small personal loan.
High interest rates: Reputable lenders cap APRs at 36%, the highest rate most consumer advocates say an affordable loan can have. Some high-interest lenders charge triple-digit interest rates or high fees that make the loan difficult to repay.
Extra short repayment terms:Payday loans are so named because you repay them on your next payday — usually in two weeks or less. These loans require a balloon payment (all or most of the loan repaid at once) and may not give you enough time to pull the funds together.
No credit checks: A lender that approves you without checking your credit isn't trying to ensure that you can repay the loan and may even be betting that you can’t, which could lead you to borrow more money to pay off the first loan.
Ways to get $1,000 or less without a traditional loan
Some of the nation’s largest banks offer small-dollar loans to their existing customers. These loans typically have shorter repayment terms than traditional personal loans. Here are a few examples:
The U.S. Bank Simple Loan is offered in amounts from $100 to $1,000 and is repaid over three months. The loan’s fee is $6 for every $100 borrowed.
The Wells Fargo Flex Loan is a short-term small loan that’s repaid in four monthly installments, according to the bank. Loans can be $250 with a $12 fee or $500 with a $20 fee.
Some federal credit unions also offer payday alternative loans, or PALs. These are small loans up to $2,000 with rates capped at 28% and repayment terms from one to 12 months. You must be a credit union member to apply.
Before applying for a loan, consider cheaper alternatives to get the money you need. Even if you urgently need cash, it can be useful to compare financing methods to find the best deal. Consider these options:
Borrow against your next paycheck with a cash advance app. These apps can be an affordable way to borrow a few hundred dollars, but advances are repaid on your next payday.
Use a “buy now, pay later” app to split the cost of a large purchase into smaller payments spread out over a few weeks or months.
Some lenders consider potential borrowers with a credit score of 580 or lower. To check your chances for approval, you can pre-qualify for a personal loan. Pre-qualifying won't hurt your credit score, and it allows you to see the rate and terms a lender may offer you.
Do banks offer small personal loans?
Few major banks offer personal loans below $1,000. However, these three large banks offer small-dollar loans to existing customers:
Some online personal loans start at $1,000. Credit union personal loans may have even lower starting amounts. Some large banks provide small loans to existing customers.
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