SoFi Personal Loans

SoFi’s personal loans have the standard features of a five-star lender: a wide variety of loan amounts, flexible repayment terms, plus special features like free financial planning and estate planning discounts. SoFi loans can be used for common purposes like debt consolidation, as well as for adoption or in vitro fertilization procedures, travel or weddings. The average SoFi borrower has good or excellent credit.

Though SoFi charges no mandatory fees, borrowers may pay an optional origination fee of up to 7% of the loan amount. SoFi says paying this fee may lower your interest rate, but your APR will remain the same — meaning the fee lets you rearrange interest payments, but may not lower them.

Pros

• Multiple rate discounts.
• Fast funding.
• Large loan amounts.
• Joint loan option.
• Mobile app to manage loan.

Cons

• High minimum loan amount.
• No secured loan option.

SoFi personal loans at a glance

• Disclosure from SoFiFixed rates from 8.99% APR to 29.99% APR reflect the 0.25% autopay interest rate discount and a 0.25% direct deposit interest rate discount. SoFi rate ranges are current as of 02/06/2024 and are subject to change without notice. The average of SoFi Personal Loans funded in 2022 was around $30K. Not all applicants qualify for the lowest rate. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed and will depend on the term you select, evaluation of your creditworthiness, income, and a variety of other factors. Loan amounts range from $5,000– $100,000. The APR is the cost of credit as a yearly rate and reflects both your interest rate and an origination fee of 0%-7%, which will be deducted from any loan proceeds you receive. Autopay: The SoFi 0.25% autopay interest rate reduction requires you to agree to make monthly principal and interest payments by an automatic monthly deduction from a savings or checking account. The benefit will discontinue and be lost for periods in which you do not pay by automatic deduction from a savings or checking account. Autopay is not required to receive a loan from SoFi. Direct Deposit Discount: To be eligible to potentially receive an additional (0.25%) interest rate reduction for setting up direct deposit with a SoFi Checking and Savings account offered by SoFi Bank, N.A. or eligible cash management account offered by SoFi Securities, LLC (“Direct Deposit Account”), you must have an open Direct Deposit Account within 30 days of the funding of your Loan. Once eligible, you will receive this discount during periods in which you have enabled payroll direct deposits of at least $1,000/month to a Direct Deposit Account in accordance with SoFi’s reasonable procedures and requirements to be determined at SoFi’s sole discretion. This discount will be lost during periods in which SoFi determines you have turned off direct deposits to your Direct Deposit Account. You are not required to enroll in direct deposits to receive a Loan.

Where SoFi personal loans stand out

Multiple discounts. Borrowers may qualify for multiple discounts that can lower their interest rate. A rate discount of 0.25 percentage points is available for setting up autopay. If the loan is for debt consolidation, borrowers can get another 0.25 percentage point discount for having SoFi directly pay off creditors.

An additional rate discount of 0.25 percentage points may apply for borrowers who set up direct deposits of at least $1,000 a month to a SoFi checking account and use that account for autopay on their personal loan.

Fast funding: SoFi says it can fund approved personal loans as soon as the same day if the loan agreement is signed before 7 p.m. ET on a business day. While other lenders promise fast funding, same-day funding is rare.

Large loan amounts: SoFi offers personal loans up to $100,000, which is higher than most lenders. This can be useful for borrowers looking to finance a big expense, such as a home remodel.

Joint loans. SoFi offers joint personal loans. Adding someone with better credit or higher income can improve your chances of qualifying or getting a low rate. SoFi co-borrowers must live together and are both responsible for loan payments. SoFi says joint applications may require up to two weeks to process.

Mobile app to manage the loan. Borrowers can use SoFi’s mobile app to manage their money, check available rates, monitor their credit score and make loan payments.

Hardship assistance. If you lose your job while paying off the loan, you can apply for SoFi’s hardship assistance program. If you qualify, SoFi may put the loan into forbearance and modify the monthly payments.

Where SoFi personal loans fall short

High minimum loan amount: SoFi loans start at $5,000, which could be too high for borrowers looking to consolidate a small amount of debt or finance a minor expense.

No secured loan option: Borrowers can’t secure a SoFi loan with collateral such as a car or savings account. A secured loan often helps in getting a lower annual percentage rate or higher loan amount.

Our expert take:

If you’re looking for one of the best personal loans on the market — particularly if you need a larger loan — look no further than SoFi. This lender offers same-day funding, top-notch mobile app, joint loan flexibility and peace of mind if you lose your job.

But the best perk might just be the multiple rate discounts. With SoFi, you can potentially qualify for not one, not two, but three separate rate discounts. This lowers your monthly payment in the short-run and saves you money on interest in the long-run.

— Jackie Veling, Lead Writer

How to use SoFi personal loans

You can use a SoFi personal loan for:

• Home improvement projects.
• Debt consolidation.
• Emergencies.
• Medical and dental bills.
• Vacations.
• Weddings.
• Funerals.
• Vehicle financing.
• Family planning.

SoFi prohibits the use of its personal loans for:

• Real estate.
• Business expenses.
• Investing.
• College expenses.

SoFi personal loan customer reviews

As of August 2024, SoFi has 4.5 stars on Trustpilot, a website that collects consumer reviews. Customers mention the company’s direct payment to creditors feature on debt consolidation loans and fast funding. The lender’s mobile app received 3.9 stars across 35,800 reviews on Google Play and 4.8 stars across 344,500 reviews on the Apple App Store.

Do you qualify for a SoFi personal loan?

Most lenders have basic requirements to apply, and some have financial requirements or recommendations to qualify. SoFi evaluates loan applicants’ overall cash flow, ability to pay, credit history and additional factors, but it doesn’t have specific credit score or income requirements.

To apply for a SoFi personal loan, you must be:

• At least 18 years old in most states. 
• A U.S. citizen, permanent or non-permanent resident, including DACA recipients and asylum seekers.
• Employed, have sufficient income from other sources, or have an offer of employment to start within the next 90 days. Acceptable income sources include a spouse’s income, retirement, alimony, child support, Social Security payments and disability benefits.

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. Most lenders require 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 the application process.

How to apply for a SoFi personal loan

Here are the steps to apply for a SoFi loan.

1. Pre-qualify on SoFi’s website. Select the “view your rate” button on SoFi’s website to begin the pre-qualification process. You’ll provide personal information like your name, email and state of residence. You’ll also be asked whether you want to add a co-applicant, in which case you’ll need to provide income and employment information for the both of you. The lender conducts a soft credit pull at this stage, which won’t affect your credit score.
2. Complete the loan application. If you pre-qualify and choose to move forward with a SoFi personal loan, you’ll be asked to select a loan term and complete the formal personal loan application. The lender may require more documents, like W-2s, pay stubs and tax documents, to confirm the information you gave during pre-qualification. SoFi will do a hard credit check on a loan application, causing your credit score to temporarily dip.
3. Stay on top of loan payments. SoFi reports payment to all three major 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 SoFi to other lenders

Personal loan lenders offer different rates, loan amounts and special features, so it pays to weigh other options. The best personal loan is usually the one with the lowest APR.

Like SoFi, LightStream and Wells Fargo offer large personal loans with wide repayment term options.

LightStream

Wells Fargo

How we rate SoFi 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 definitionsAffordability (25%)An affordable loan has low rates and fees compared to other similar loans and may offer rate discounts.Customer experience (20%)A good customer experience includes allowing borrowers to choose and change their repayment date, a fully online application process, a mobile app to manage the loan and a customer service team with wide availability.Underwriting and eligibility (20%)The lender reviews borrowers’ credit reports and credit history and tries to understand their ability to repay a loan. It offers loans in most states and doesn’t restrict eligibility by requiring a pre-existing relationship.Application process (20%)Borrowers can pre-qualify to check their potential rate, loan amount, repayment term and APR without affecting their credit score. They can easily find answers to questions about the personal loan on the lender’s website. The application process is fast enough to allow funding within a couple of days or less.Loan flexibility (15%)A flexible loan is one that offers a wide range of loan amounts and repayment term options. It includes common features like additional loan types and direct payment to creditors on debt consolidation loans.DiscretionaryA lender’s star rating can be reduced if the lender is sued by a state or federal regulator for unfair consumer practices or has been accused by a reputable source of suspicious business practices.

Methodology

NerdWallet’s review process evaluates and rates personal loan products from more than 35 financial technology companies and financial institutions. We collect over 50 data points 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.