Citibank Personal Loans: 2023 Review
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Our Take
4.0
Citibank personal loans can be a good choice for Citibank customers, but you may find more flexible options elsewhere if you have strong credit.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- No fees.
- Multiple rate discounts.
- Wide variety of repayment term options.
- Fast funding.
Cons
- No co-sign or joint loan option.
- No option to choose or change your payment date.
- No large loan amounts.
Compare to Other Lenders
Full Review of Citibank
Citibank provides unsecured personal loans that can be used for almost any purpose.
Previously, Citibank only offered personal loans to existing customers, but applications are now open to all prospective borrowers, according to the lender.
Citibank’s loans come with consumer-friendly features, like no fees, multiple rate discounts and a wide range of repayment terms. However, borrowers with excellent credit (720 credit score or higher) may find more flexible options elsewhere.
» MORE: Best bank loans
Table of Contents
Citibank personal loans at a glance
Minimum credit score | 720. |
APR | 10.49% - 19.49%. |
Fees | No fees. |
Loan amount | $2,000 to $30,000. |
Repayment terms | 1 to 5 years. |
Time to fund after approval | Funds can be sent the same day you're approved with a Citi deposit account. |
Loan availability | Loans available in 50 states and Washington, D.C. |
- Disclosure from Citibank
Rates as of 10‐06‐2023. Your APR may be as low as 10.49% or as high as 19.49% for the term of your loan. The lowest rate quoted assumes excellent credit, and a loan term of 36 months or shorter. Otherwise, a higher rate will apply. For example, if you borrow $10,000 for 36 months at 15.99% APR, to repay your loan you will have to make 36 monthly payments of approximately $351.52. There is a 0.5% APR discount if you enroll in automatic payments at loan origination. Additionally, existing Citigold and Citi Priority customers will receive a 0.25% discount to the interest rate. If you are in default, your APR may increase by 2.00%. No down payment is required. Rates subject to change without notice. You must be at least 18 years of age (21 years of age in Puerto Rico). Co‐applicants are not permitted. Loan proceeds cannot be used for post-secondary educational or business purposes. If you apply online, you must agree to receive the loan note and all other account disclosures provided at loan origination in an electronic format and provide your signature electronically. Credit cards issued by Citibank, N.A. or its affiliates, as well as Checking Plus and Ready Credit accounts, are not eligible for debt consolidation, and Citibank will not issue payoff checks for these accounts. If you are unsure of the issuer on the account, please visit https://www.citi.com/affiliatesproducts for a list of Citi products and affiliates
Where Citibank personal loans stand out
Rate discounts: The lender offers multiple opportunities to get a discount on the loan’s annual percentage rate, which can save you money on interest. For example, by setting up automatic payments at the loan’s origination, you’ll receive a 0.50-percentage-point discount on your rate. Existing Citigold and Citi Priority customers get an additional 0.25-percentage-point discount.
No fees: Citibank doesn’t charge any fees for its personal loan, including no origination fee, late fee or prepayment fee. Though it’s common for banks not to charge an origination or prepayment fee, it’s much harder to find a lender — bank or otherwise — that doesn’t charge a late fee for missed payments.
Wide range of repayment terms: Citibank borrowers can choose from repayment terms of one to five years, while other lenders may have more limited term offerings. A short repayment term can help you save on interest, but a longer term can lower your monthly payments.
Fast funding: Customers with a Citi deposit account can get their funds the same day they’re approved. Borrowers without a Citi deposit account may need to wait up to two business days to receive funds through direct deposit. Though online lenders often fund loans the same day or the next day, it’s harder to find banks with fast funding.
» COMPARE: Fast personal loans with quick funding
Where Citibank personal loans fall short
No large loan amounts: Citibank’s max personal loan amount is $30,000, which may be enough for some borrowers. But if you’re looking to fund a large expense, like a home improvement project, other lenders offer personal loans as high as $50,000 or $100,000.
» MORE: Best home improvement loans
No option to choose or change your payment date: Borrowers are given a payment date when they accept a Citibank loan, and that date can't be changed. The option to change your payment date, which is offered by some other lenders, is useful if you get a new payday or want to balance the loan with other monthly obligations.
No co-applicants: Citibank doesn’t offer joint or co-signed loans. Both types of loans allow you to add another borrower to your application, which can help you get approved or qualify for a larger loan amount.
» MORE: Compare co-sign and joint loans
Do you qualify for a Citibank personal loan?
Citibank doesn't publicly disclose many of its borrower requirements, but according to the lender, you need a 720 credit score or higher to qualify for a personal loan.
Prospective borrowers must be at least 18 years old to apply (21 in Puerto Rico), and co-applicants are not permitted.
Before you apply
Check your credit. You can get your free credit report on NerdWallet or at AnnualCreditReport.com. Doing so will help you spot and fix any errors before you apply.
Calculate your monthly payments. Use a personal loan calculator to determine what APR and repayment term you’d need to get a loan with affordable monthly payments.
Make a plan to repay the loan. Review your budget to see how the loan’s monthly payments impact your cash flow. If you have to cut other expenses in order to repay the loan, it’s better to know that before you borrow.
Gather your documents. Citibank may request proof of income, which can be a W-2 or paystub, as well as proof of address and a Social Security number. Having these documents handy can speed up the application process.
How to apply for a Citibank personal loan
Here are the steps to apply for a Citibank loan.
Pre-qualify on Citibank’s website. Citibank offers pre-qualification, so you'll fill out a short application, including how much you want to borrow and what the funds are for. You can then preview potential loan offers. There’s no hard credit pull at this stage.
Formally apply. After viewing your loan options, you can submit a formal personal loan application. This could require more documents, like W-2s, pay stubs and bank statements. Citibank conducts a hard credit check when you apply, so your credit score could temporarily dip.
Stay on top of your loan payments. Citibank reports payments to the three main credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion), so on-time payments will help build your credit score, but missed payments will hurt it. Setting up automatic payments and keeping an eye on your budget are two ways to manage your loan payments.
Compare Citibank to other lenders
Personal loan lenders offer different rates, loan amounts and special features, so it pays to weigh your options. The best personal loan is usually the one with the lowest APR.
LightStream and SoFi accept borrowers with similar credit, but they may offer more flexible features compared to Citibank.
Citibank vs. LightStream
LightStream offers a rate discount, zero fees and fast funding, making it a similar option to Citibank. However, its larger loans (up to $100,000) and extended repayment terms for home improvement projects may be a better fit for borrowers looking to fund a major home-related expense.
» MORE: Read our review of LightStream
Citibank vs. SoFi
SoFi personal loans come with unique perks, including free career and financial advising and unemployment protection, that make it stand out from other lenders. Unlike Citibank, SoFi also offers joint loans and all borrowers can pre-qualify with a soft credit check.
» MORE: Read our review of SoFi
How we rate Citibank personal loans
NerdWallet writers rate lenders against a rubric that changes each year based on how personal loan products evolve. Here’s what we prioritized this year:
Category | Star rating |
|---|---|
Affordability | |
Underwriting | |
Transparency | |
Loan flexibility | |
Customer experience | |
Overall |
- Category definitions
Affordability (30%)
An affordable loan has low rates and fees compared to other similar loans and may offer rate discounts.
Underwriting and eligibility (25%)
A lender reviews borrowers' credit reports and credit history, and tries to understand their ability to repay a loan, before making a final application decision.
Loan flexibility (20%)
A flexible loan is one that lets users customize terms and payments. That means offering a wide range of repayment term options, allowing the borrower to change their payment date, offering loans in most states and funding it quickly.
Customer experience (15%)
A good customer experience can include a fully online application process, financial education on the lender’s website and a customer service team that’s available most of the time and can be reached multiple ways.
Transparency (10%)
A transparent lender makes information about the loan easy to find on its website, including rates, terms and loan amounts. Transparency also means allowing users to pre-qualify online to preview potential loan offers and reporting payment information with the major credit bureaus.
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Find the Best Personal Loan
NerdWallet’s review process evaluates and rates personal loan products from more than 35 technology companies and financial institutions. We collect over 50 data points from each lender 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.
