Prosper Loans: 2021 Personal Loan Review
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Our Take
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Option to change your payment date.
- Offers joint loans.
- Offers wide range of loan amounts.
Cons
- No rate discount for autopay.
- Funding time can be longer than many lenders.
- Charges origination and late fees.
- Borrowers can choose from only two repayment term options.
Compare to Other Lenders
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
Est. APR7.95-35.99% | Est. APR7.04-35.89% | Est. APR5.99-24.99% |
Loan Term3 to 5 years | Loan Term3 to 5 years | Loan Term2 to 5 years |
Loan Amount$2,000-$40,000 | Loan Amount$1,000-$40,000 | Loan Amount$5,000-$40,000 |
Min. Credit Score600 | Min. Credit Score600 | Min. Credit Score600 |
Compare estimated rates from multiple lenders
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Full Review
Prosper is a peer-to-peer lending platform that provides personal loans to borrowers with fair or good credit.
To qualify applicants, the company uses a proprietary rating system that considers data points like credit history and debt-to-income ratio. Borrowers are then assigned a Prosper score, which investors use to decide whether to fund your loan.
Your application expires if your loan request isn’t at least 70% funded within 14 days, though the company says most loans are funded within three days.
Prosper is best for borrowers who:
Have fair or good credit (630 to 719 FICO) and two years of credit history.
Want to add a co-borrower on their application.
Are interested in home equity financing.
Prosper at a glance
Affordability |
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» COMPARE: Personal loans for good credit
Key terms to know about personal loans
Where Prosper stands out
Wide range of loan amounts: Prosper provides access to loan amounts from $2,000 to $40,000, which allow borrowers to cover large and small expenses, including debt consolidation and pricey home improvement projects.
Joint loan option: Prosper's platform allows two borrowers to apply together as joint applicants. While the primary borrower must meet Prosper’s main credit criteria, the secondary borrower can qualify with a FICO score of 600, at least one open account on their credit report and no bankruptcy filings within the last 12 months.
Including a co-borrower with stronger credit can improve your chances of getting a loan or a lower annual percentage rate.
Home equity line of credit: In addition to its unsecured personal loans, Prosper offers access to a home equity line of credit for borrowers in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico and Texas. It's worth noting that the HELOC offering has different qualification requirements than the personal loan product.
With a HELOC, you borrow against the available equity in your home and use the house as collateral. HELOCs tend to have lower APRs and longer repayment terms, making monthly payments more affordable.
» MORE: Best fair-credit lenders
Compare Prosper with other loan companies:
Where Prosper falls short
Origination and late fees: Borrowers may be charged an origination fee ranging from 2.41% to 5%. Many online lenders charge an origination fee that can skim a few hundred to a few thousand dollars off the loan amount once approved.
There is a late fee for loan payments more than 15 days past due. The fee is 5% of the monthly payment amount or $15, whichever is greater.
Limited term lengths: Borrowers can choose a three- or five-year loan repayment term. That’s somewhat common for online lenders, but it doesn’t give you the option to choose a shorter term and pay less interest, or select a longer term to lower your monthly payments.
Funding time: While next-day funding is available, most borrowers receive loan funds in three days upon loan approval, according to the company. This is a longer funding time than competing lenders.
No rate discount for autopay: Unlike some other lenders, Prosper does not offer an additional rate discount for setting up autopay. The discount usually ranges from 0.25 to 0.5 percentage points and helps borrowers to pay on time.
No direct payments to creditors: Prosper does not send your loan proceeds directly to creditors when you consolidate debts with a loan. Instead, borrowers have to keep track of their own repayments.
» COMPARE: Peer-to-peer online lenders
How to qualify for a Prosper loan
Minimum credit score: 600; borrower average is 722.
Minimum credit history: 2 years.
Minimum income: No minimum income requirement; borrower average is $106,000.
Maximum debt-to-income ratio: 50% (excluding mortgage).
No bankruptcies filed within the past year.
At least three open accounts on credit report.
Fewer than five credit bureau inquiries in the last six months.
Must be at least 18 years old.
Must provide Social Security number and a U.S. bank account.
Loan example: A five-year, $15,000 loan with a 15.5% APR would cost $361 in monthly payments. You’d pay $6,660 in total interest on that loan.
How to get a Prosper loan
Pre-qualify on NerdWallet
NerdWallet recommends comparing loans to find the best rate for you. Click the button below to pre-qualify on NerdWallet. You may receive personalized rates from multiple lenders that partner with us, including Prosper. Pre-qualifying will not impact your credit.
Apply on Prosper
You can fill out an application on Prosper’s website. After entering your personal information, you’ll be presented with loan options for which you pre-qualify.
on Prosper's website
Personal Loans Rating Methodology
NerdWallet’s review process evaluates and rates personal loan products from more than 30 lenders. We collect over 45 data points from each lender, interview company representatives and compare the lender with others that seek the same customer or offer a similar personal loan product. 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. 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.
This methodology applies only to lenders that cap interest rates at 36%, the maximum rate most financial experts and consumer advocates agree is the acceptable limit for a loan to be affordable. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for our star ratings. Read our editorial guidelines.
Find the Best Personal Loan
Frequently asked questions
Once all documents are submitted, it could take two to three days for your personal loan application to be reviewed through Prosper’s platform.
Prosper has a minimum credit score requirement of 640, which is in the fair-credit range. The average score is 722.
