Top Personal Loans: Compare Offers & Find the Best Rates (October 2021)

Personal loans can be used to finance large purchases, make home improvements, consolidate debt, and much more. These loans can be a valuable tool in helping you achieve your financial and lifestyle goals, no matter what those goals might be. 

Personal loans typically come with varying repayment term lengths, though they tend to be relatively short-term, often between two and five years. It's also possible to get a personal loan quickly — lenders may disburse loan funds as soon as the next business day after your online application is approved.

You may want to know how to get a loan like this, but before you decide on the best personal loan for you, take some time to compare the personal loan offers from these top-rated personal loan lenders to find the rates and terms that will work for you.

In this article

• Best personal loans
• Best personal loan for large loans: LightStream
• Best personal loan for financial support: SoFi
• Best personal loan for good credit or excellent credit: Marcus by Goldman Sachs
• Best personal loan for small loans: Upstart
• Best personal loan for secured personal loan: Avant
• Best personal loan for fair to bad credit: Upgrade
• Best personal loan for paying credit card debt: Payoff
• Best personal loan for peer-to-peer lending: Prosper
• Best places to shop for a personal loan
• 6 things to know before you apply for a personal loan
• Our methodology
• The bottom line on personal loans

Best personal loans

Best personal loan for large loans: LightStream

If you are looking for a large personal loan, LightStream could be your best option. LightStream is a division of SunTrust Bank and offers personal loans up to $100,000. But that doesn’t mean you’ll necessarily have high payments, as it also offers terms up to 12 years in length.

It’s important to be aware that, unlike some other personal loan companies, LightStream will do a hard credit pull before approving you. On the positive side, if you are not completely satisfied with your LightStream loan, you could get $100, thanks to its 30-day satisfaction guarantee.

Read our LightStream review.