Best-Of Awards 2026 Methodologies

Best Mortgage Lender for VA Loans

Methodology:

All reviewed mortgage lenders are evaluated against the criteria below. The lender with the highest raw score is our Best Mortgage Lender for VA Loans.

1. VA loan rates and fees.
2. Market share of VA loans.
3. Variety of VA loan products.
4. Portion of lender’s overall mortgage business devoted to VA loans.
5. VA loan product accessibility.
6. Customer experience.
7. Rate transparency for consumers.

Tiebreaker:

1. Lender with the lowest origination fees.

How we picked the companies to evaluate:

NerdWallet reviewed more than 40 mortgage lenders, including the majority of the largest U.S. mortgage lenders by annual loan volume (measured among lenders with at least a 1% market share), lenders with significant online search volume and those that specialize in serving various audiences across the country. We rated them on criteria including rates and fees, product accessibility, customer experience and more.

Some of the providers are NerdWallet partners, but this did not influence our selection of the winner.

How we chose the winner:

The winner is the mortgage lender that had the highest raw score when evaluated against NerdWallet's VA mortgage lender star-rating rubric: average VA loan rates and fees (40%), VA loan market share (15%), variety of VA loans (10%), portion of business dedicated to VA loans (10%), VA loan product accessibility (10%), customer experience (10%), and rate transparency for consumers (5%). When available, NerdWallet network performance is included as a factor in a lender’s customer experience score. If NerdWallet does not have network performance data for a lender, the customer experience score is calculated using the remaining factors, with weights redistributed proportionally so lenders without this data are not penalized. Bonus points may be awarded for offering Native American Direct Loans. Points may be deducted for any recent regulatory action pertaining to the company’s mortgage lending business. In the event of a tie, the winner must charge the lowest fees.

How we verified our data:

NerdWallet solicits information from reviewed lenders on a recurring basis throughout the year. Lender-provided information is verified through lender websites and interviews. We analyzed 2025 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data for APR spread, market share, product distribution, and loan type information, and we referenced internal performance data when available.


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