What are the best personal loan interest rates?

The smallest personal loan you can get is $250 from Navy Federal Credit Union. The company has an APR range of 7.49% - 18%, repayment periods of Up to 60 months (up to 180 for home improvement) and an origination fee of $0. You do have to be part of the military community to qualify, though.

The minimum loan amount available from most other major loan providers ranges from $1,000 to $3,500. You might be able to find loan offers for $250 or less from some smaller companies, but we don’t recommend them because they tend to have very high interest rates and fees.... read full answer

Smallest Personal Loans

To see more of the top-ranked offers, check out WalletHub’s complete picks for the best small personal loans.

If you're having trouble finding a small enough loan from a major loan provider, you should look into alternatives. Using a credit card or getting a loan from a friend or family member may be a better option for you.

Some of the best fixed rate personal loans are from LightStream by SunTrust Bank, which offers APRs ranging from 3.99% to 16.99%. A fixed rate means the APR the borrower receives at the beginning will never change over the life of the loan. The alternative to a fixed rate personal loan is a variable rate personal loan, where the APR is tied to an index rate. That is usually the prime rate, the rate at which banks lend to each other. However, most personal loans have a fixed rate; it’s rare for them to have a variable rate.... read full answer

WalletHub’s personal loan partners only offer fixed rate personal loans. Below, you can see their general APR ranges. Your individual rate could be anywhere within the range, depending on your credit, income, existing debt load and other factors. But it’s locked in from the moment you open the loan until the moment you pay it off.

Popular Fixed Rate Personal Loan Options

• LightStream: 5.99% - 22.49% APR. Loans up to $5,000 - $100,000 for as long as 24 - 84 months.
• Best Egg: 7.99% - 35.99% APR. Loans up to $2,000 - $50,000 for as long as Up to 60 months.
• Avant: 9.95% - 35.99% APR. Loans up to $2,000 - $35,000 for as long as 24 - 60 months.
• LendingClub: 8.05% - 35.89% APR. Loans up to $1,000 - $40,000 for as long as 36 or 60 months.
• Happy Money: 10.5% - 29.99% APR. Loans up to $5,000 - $40,000 for as long as 24 - 60 months.
• LendingPoint: 7.99% - 35.99% APR. Loans up to $2,000 - $30,000 for as long as 24 - 72 months.
• Prosper: 6.99% - 35.99% APR. Loans up to $2,000 - $50,000 for as long as 24 or 36 or 48 or 60 months.
• Achieve Personal Loans: 7.99% - 29.99% APR. Loans up to $5,000 - $50,000 for as long as 24 - 60 months

It’s pretty rare to find a personal loan without a fixed rate. If you’re wondering whether a certain lender has fixed or variable rates, just look for the words “fixed” or “variable” in the terms and conditions for the loan.

If you want to get a better idea of what rates you can expect on a personal loan, use WalletHub’s free pre-qualification tool. It will check with multiple lenders to see who is likely to approve you for a loan and what your potential interest rates could be.

No major lenders offer 0% APR personal loans. A personal loan is a type of loan that allows the borrower to do whatever they wish with the funds. Personal loan interest rates range from 6% to 36%, for the most part.

However, there are places that offer loans with 0% APRs for a specific purpose rather than for anything the borrower wants. Stores may offer 0% financing on certain items; medical providers sometimes offer 0% loans for procedures; and car dealers can have interest-free promotions. But many of these options use a system of “... read full answerdeferred interest.” If you don’t pay off what you owe in full by the end of the promotional period, you owe interest on the entire purchase amount as if it had accrued from the day you made the purchase.

The closest thing you’ll find to a 0% APR personal loan is a 0% APR credit card. You’ll be able to make purchases anywhere credit cards are accepted, and you won’t have to pay interest for a certain number of months.

Places that offer loans with 0% APRs

Stores

Various retailers may offer 0% APR financing for specific products. For example, you might buy an appliance and have 0% interest for a year. However, this is often not true 0% financing. Most stores use a system of “deferred interest.”

Credit card companies

Many credit cards have introductory 0% APR periods. These can range from 6 to 24 months. For the majority of 0% APR credit cards, you’ll only owe interest on any balance that’s left at the end of the promotional period. However, some store credit cards use deferred interest.

Medical providers

Some medical providers may offer 0% APR loans to pay for certain healthcare expenses. It doesn’t hurt to ask about financing options if you have an expensive procedure coming up. The interest may be deferred, however.

Car dealers

A car dealership might use a 0% car loan as a sales promotion. However, you may have to pay off the loan more quickly than normal, with higher monthly payments. Or, a higher rate may kick in after a while. So it might not be that much cheaper in the long run. In addition, you likely won’t qualify without excellent credit.

While you can find plenty of places that offer 0% financing on certain purchases, you won’t be able to get a 0% APR personal loan that you can use for anything. The only exception is if you have a family member or friend who is willing to give you cash and not charge any interest. If this is the case, make sure to draw up a written agreement including required monthly payments and penalties for not paying on time.