Bank of America Personal Loan Alternatives

Discover Personal Loans Review Summary

Discover personal loans require minimum credit score of 660 and allow customers to borrow up to $35,000 at a time. Discover loans are especially good if you want a long repayment period, as Discover's payoff timelines are 36, 48, 60, 72 or 84 months. Plus, Discover's personal loan APRs can be as low as 6.99%, which makes them useful for people who want to consolidate existing debt at a low cost.

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Yes, Bank of America can loan you money if you get a mortgage, a home equity loan, an auto loan, a business loan or a Balance Assist™ loan. Balance Assist lets you borrow up to $500 for 90 days, but it's only available online or through the company's mobile banking app. You can also borrow money with a Bank of America credit card.

Bank of America does not offer personal loans, though. If you're interested in getting a personal loan, you can check out the top-ranked Bank of America personal loan alternatives on WalletHub. You can also estimate your potential rates with our free pre-qualification tool.

The best banks for personal loans offer $0 origination fees, low APRs and relatively large loan amounts. Other features of the best banks to get a personal loan from include long payoff periods and quick approval times. Most of the top personal loans from banks are available nationwide, too, but some lenders operate on a more regional basis.

Best Banks for Personal Loans in 2023

To identify the best banks for personal loans, WalletHub compared offers from more than 15 of the largest banks in the U.S. Below, you can see WalletHub’s picks, along with what makes them the best. 

This content is not provided or commissioned by any issuer. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of an issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by an issuer. Please keep in mind that while some offers may come from WalletHub advertising partners, sponsorship status played no role in loan selection.

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There are many pros and cons of bank loans, but the pros tend to outweigh the cons. Some of the pros of bank loans are the ability to fill out an application in person, the lack of origination fees and potentially low minimum APRs. The cons of bank loans include high credit score requirements, potentially high maximum APRs and slower approval.

The term "bank loans" in this context refers to personal loans taken out from a bank, as opposed to a credit union or an online lender. You might also see the term used to describe personal loans in general or business-specific loans, though.

Below, you can learn more about the pros and cons of getting a personal loan from a bank.

Pros of Bank Loans

• In-person applicationsMany, but not all, banks have branches where you can apply in person with a credit specialist. Banks typically offer applications online and by phone, too.
• No origination feesMost of the biggest banks that offer personal loans do not charge origination fees to process the loan. That may not be the case with smaller, local banks, though.
• Low minimum APRsBanks can offer some of the lowest APRs on the market - around 5%, at a minimum.
• Lots of fundingBanks often have more lending power than credit unions or online lenders, and you might be able to get loans of up to $100,000 from some banks.

Cons of Bank Loans

• High credit score requirementsMost major banks that offer personal loans require a credit score of at least 660 for approval, and some require a score of 700+.
• High maximum APRsThe maximum APR on a personal loan from a bank is usually 25% or lower. For comparison, maximum APRs at credit unions are usually 18% or lower.
• Slower approvalIf you want to get your loan as quickly as possible, an online lender is usually the way to go. Banks can typically fund your personal loan within 7 business days after you apply, though.

Banks can offer very good deals on personal loans, but you should also consider credit unions and online lenders when choosing the best personal loan for you. You can check out WalletHub's guide on the best place to get a personal loan for more information.

Many banks do personal loans, including Wells Fargo, Citibank, American Express, Discover and U.S. Bank, to name a few of the biggest lenders. In addition to large national lenders, there are thousands of local banks that offer personal loans, giving borrowers plenty of choices. Below, you can see some of the biggest banks that do personal loans, along with their rates.

Major Banks That Do Personal Loans

• American Express: 6.98% - 19.98% APR
• Discover: 6.99% - 24.99% APR
• Wells Fargo: 7.49% - 23.74% APR
• Citibank: 8.99% - 23.99% APR
• Barclays Bank US: 4.99% - 20.99% APR
• Citizens Bank: 6.79% - 20.88% APR
• PNC: 5.99% - 32.24% APR
• TD Bank: 8.99% - 21.99% APR
• USAA: 7.24% - 17.65% APR

If you don't find a bank that you like from among the biggest lenders in the country, you can check out local banks that do personal loans. You can find banks in your area on WalletHub.

Keep in mind that banks aren't the only financial institutions that offer personal loans. You can get a personal loan from a credit union or an online lender, too, so it's worth considering all your options before you settle on one. You can take a look at WalletHub's picks for the best personal loans to get started.

The major bank with the lowest interest rate for a personal loan is Barclays, at 5.74%. Other notable banks with low personal loan rates include HSBC (5.99%) and PNC (5.99%). Some smaller banks across the country may also offer personal loans with similarly low rates.

Banks with the Lowest Interest Rates for Personal Loans

• Barclays: 5.74%+ APR
• HSBC: 5.99%+ APR
• PNC: 5.99%+ APR
• American Express: 6.90%+ APR
• Discover: 6.99%+ APR
• Fifth Third Bank: 6.99%+ APR
• Santander Bank: 6.99%+ APR
• TD Bank: 6.99%+ APR

But just because a lender advertises an interest rate below 6% or 7% on personal loans, as many do, does not mean you are guaranteed that minimum rate. In fact, you'll likely need excellent credit (a score of 750+) to qualify for a lender's lowest rate. Personal loan providers usually display their APRs as a range. For example, Barclays has a minimum APR of 5.74%, but their maximum is 20.99%. The exact rate you receive will depend on such things as your income, credit score and current debts.

Of the largest banks in the country that offer personal loans, those listed above have the lowest interest rates. A few other banks with personal loans have slightly higher minimum rates. For example, Wells Fargo's APRs start at 7.24%. Others have minimum APRs that are significantly higher; USAA's personal loan APRs start at 9.49%.

If you use WalletHub's free pre-qualification tool, you can see which major lenders are likely to approve you and what rates you might qualify for.

It's also good to note that banks aren't the only place to get personal loans. Credit unions and online lenders are options, too. Each type of lender has its own advantages and disadvantages.

To get a personal loan from a bank, first check your credit score, then compare available offers to find the best rates, fees and payoff periods. After that, check for pre-qualification, submit an application either online or in person and wait for a decision. The steps may not sound all that complex, but preparing to get a loan can be time consuming.

How to Get a Personal Loan from a Bank

Check Your Credit

The first step in getting a personal loan from a bank is always to check your credit score and reports because credit history is the biggest deciding factor for approval and most personal loans require a credit score of 660 or higher. There are some major banks that offer secured personal loans for people with bad credit, including Wells Fargo, PNC, Fifth Third Bank and KeyBank. But if your score is on the lower side, you may want to consider credit unions or online lenders instead, as they are more likely to offer personal loans for bad credit.

Choose Between the Available Offers

Next comes the most difficult part of the process, comparison shopping. WalletHub's tool can help you find available loans from banks that cater to your credit level. From there, you can choose which loans are best for you based on their lengths, required payments, interest rates and more.

Check for Pre-qualification

Once you've decided on a few good options, you will want to check if you are pre-qualified for any of them. The bank may have a tool to do this on their website, or you may be able to check in a branch. If you want to get pre-qualified with multiple lenders at once, you can use WalletHub's free pre-qualification tool. Getting pre-qualified means you have very high (but not 100%) chances of being approved. Pre-qualification also has no effect on your credit.

Apply Online or in Person

Eventually, you'll settle on one personal loan. At that point, you can apply either online or at a bank branch. Applying online typically gives you the fastest decision, since it's automated. But applying in-branch may plug you right into an automated system, too. And you'll have the expertise of a banker with you.

Wait to Hear Back

In most cases, it won't take long to receive a decision. You may get one instantly, and typically won't have to wait more than a few business days. Occasionally, it could take up to a few weeks. After you're approved, it will usually take at least one business day for the bank to transfer the funds to you.

There aren't too many differences between how to get a personal loan from a bank and how to get one from other types of lenders. But there are a few. First off, you're more likely to need a credit score of 660 or better to get a loan from a bank, while credit unions and online lenders are more likely to cater to people with subpar credit. In addition, unlike online lenders, banks offer the ability to apply in person. You can have a credit specialist sitting right there with you as you apply.

Banks do offer debt consolidation loans but not by that name. Rather than providing loans solely for the purpose of debt consolidation, banks offer loans and lines of credit that can be used for debt consolidation as well as other types of transactions. These include personal loans, home equity loans, home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), and credit cards.

Just four of the 10 largest consumer banks in the U.S. have all four major debt consolidation options. But nine have more than one. Let's take a look at some of the biggest banks in the U.S. and which methods of debt consolidation they offer.

Banks That Offer Debt Consolidation Loans & Lines of Credit

Pretty much any bank will offer at least one financial product that you can use for debt consolidation. However, you shouldn't discount other types of lenders. Credit unions and online lenders offer debt consolidation loans, too, and some of them may have better deals than banks.

Getting a personal loan without a bank account can be tricky, and the only way to do it is by getting a secured card that doesn't require a bank account, such as the OpenSky Secured.

You need to fund a security deposit that becomes your credit limit, so technically you're not getting a loan. There aren't really other ways to obtain a loan without a bank account.

Bank of America does not offer debt consolidation loans, or personal loans for any purpose. However, BofA does provide two different non-loan methods for consolidating debt. They are home equity lines of credit and balance transfer credit cards. Alternatively, you could look outside of Bank of America. Plenty of different lenders do offer debt consolidation loans.

Bank of America's first option is a home equity line of credit, or HELOC. A HELOC is a line of credit where the amount you can borrow depends on the difference between how much your house is worth and how much you still have left to pay on it. This means you may be able to borrow very high amounts. BofA also offers APRs as low as 5.9%. The catch is that you have to use your house as collateral on the loan. So it's dangerous if you default.

The second option is to apply for a balance transfer credit card. Bank of America has a number of balance transfer offers, the best of which is the BankAmericard credit card. Its balance transfer APR is 0% for 21 billing cycles for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. And the balance transfer fee is 3% for each balance consolidated.

Depending on the amount of debt you need to consolidate and what rates you can qualify for, either a HELOC or a balance transfer card may be a good option for you. However, you may also want to consider debt consolidation loans from other lenders, like Wells Fargo or Marcus by Goldman Sachs.