Ally Auto Refinance Loan Review 2025

Ally Auto Refinance loan terms and requirements

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About Ally Auto Refinance: a closer look

Ally Auto Refinance, part of Ally Financial Inc., is a direct lender that offers refinancing and lease buyout loans. Applicants are able to receive pre-qualified offers based on a soft credit check, which won’t affect their credit scores. Pre-qualified offers show a rate estimate with different options for loan terms and payment amounts.

Because Ally is an online bank, it doesn't have physical locations. Applications for auto loan refinancing or a lease buyout loan are submitted online or by phone. Unlike some lenders, Ally doesn't require a Social Security number to see loan offers.

When reviewing and rating auto lenders, NerdWallet writers gather information about customer experience, transparency, loan affordability, loan requirements and flexibility. Ally tends to score high for ease of the application process and transparency in sharing eligibility criteria.

Ally also offers loans to buy a new or used car, as well as auto leasing, but these products aren't covered in this review. They are only available through a network of designated car dealerships that includes more than 21,000 franchise and independent dealers nationwide. You can search for locations in your area on the Ally website.

Do you qualify for an Ally auto refinance or lease buyout loan?

Here are Ally's borrower requirements to qualify for an auto refinancing or lease buyout loan. Note that meeting these requirements doesn’t guarantee approval.

Other Ally Auto Refinance details

• Pre-qualification and preapproval. Offers pre-qualification with a soft credit check.

• Upfront fees. Does not charge an application or document processing fee.

• Interest rate discounts. Does not offer any rate discounts.

• Refinancing time restrictions: Borrowers must have made six payments on the previous loan before they can refinance with Ally. Borrowers must also have at least seven months remaining on their loan in order to refinance it.

• Deferred payments. Does not offer option to defer payments at the start of a loan.

• Selected payment due date: Borrowers can select their payment due date after the first payment is made.

• Late payment grace period and fee: Offers a grace period of 10 or more days. Charges late payment fee of $15 or 5% of the part of the payment that is late, whichever is greater.

• Hardship plans: Offers the possibiity of a loan extension for short-term financial hardships or loan modification (lowering the monthly payment but extending the loan term) for continued financial hardships. Either option will increase the total interest paid over the life of the loan.

• Contacting Ally. During the application process, borrowers can reach Ally by email or phone, with Spanish-speaking agents available. Hours are Mon-Fri, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. ET.

• Mobile app to manage account: Yes.

Back to About Ally

Ally Auto Refinance may be a good fit for those who:

• Want to preview loan offers. Pre-qualification with a soft credit check provides rate and payment estimates and will not affect an applicant's credit score.

• Have a thin credit history. Ally has no minimum credit history requirement. Also, co-borrowers are accepted, which can help a person who might not qualify alone.

• Prefer an online application process. Ally's application is simple and 100% online, including document upload. After accepting an offer, applicants manage the loan process through a secure online portal.

Before you apply to Ally

Check your credit. You can get your free credit report on NerdWallet or at AnnualCreditReport.com. If you find errors, file a credit dispute to correct them before you apply for an auto loan.

Figure what monthly payment you can afford. Use an auto loan calculator to determine what APR and repayment term you need to get monthly car payments that fit your budget. An auto loan refinance calculator shows how much you can potentially save. For lease buyouts, our lease buyout calculator can help you figure the the cost to buy your leased car.

Gather your documents. Ally requires the following to submit an initial application: Address, time at address, phone, email, birthdate, employment status, income, housing status, housing payment amount, basic vehicle information and vehicle identification number.

How to apply for an Ally Auto Refinance loan

1. Pre-qualify online or by phone. Applicants can apply for a loan online or by phone at 1-888-925-2559. During the pre-qualification process, applicants are asked to provide information about the vehicle they’re financing as well as some personal and housing information. The pre-qualified offers show several different options for loan terms and the resulting rate and monthly payment. Pre-qualified loan offers aren’t a guarantee of approval and can change after a hard credit inquiry. If the information initially submitted was accurate though, the pre-qualification offer shouldn’t change significantly and can help with faster approval.

2. Preview offers and formally apply. After an applicant selects a loan offer, Ally will run a hard credit inquiry and request additional information, such as Social Security number. A hard credit inquiry slightly lowers your credit score, but only temporarily.

Back to About Ally

How do we review direct lenders for auto loans?

NerdWallet's review process surveys companies that offer any combination of new car purchase loans, used car purchase loans, auto refinance loans (traditional and/or cash-out) and lease buyout loans. These companies include direct lenders and aggregators; the latter group doesn't have in-house loan products but matches borrowers to third-party lenders within a network. Our aim is to provide an independent assessment of providers to help arm you with information to make sound, informed judgements on which ones will best meet your needs. We adhere to strict guidelines for editorial integrity.

Our survey for direct lenders has different questions than the survey for aggregators, but each includes more than 60 data points. NerdWallet independently confirms product details and, when necessary, follows up with company representatives. At least two writers and an editor verify the facts for every lender review to ensure data are accurate.

To receive a star rating, a lender must respond to NerdWallet’s annual auto loans survey. Star ratings are then assessed from poor (one star) to excellent (five stars).

For more details about the categories considered when rating direct lenders and our process, read our full methodology.