Earnest Personal Loans: 2025 Review

Name: Earnest
Item: Earnest
Rating: 3.7
Author: Lauren Nowacki

Written by

Lauren Nowacki

Edited by

Rhys Subitch

Updated on March 27, 2025

At Bankrate we strive to help you make smarter financial decisions. While we adhere to strict , this post may contain references to products from our partners. Here's an explanation for .

At a glance

Find my best rate

Get offers from top lenders

3.7

Bankrate Score

Availability

4.3

Affordability

3.0

Customer Experience

4.3

Transparency

3.8

Full methodology

Earnest is a loan servicer known primarily for its student loans. Earnest has partnered with MoneyLion, a lender matching platform, to help borrowers find, compare and choose from qualifying lenders.

Lender Details

Loan amount

$1,000-$100,000

APR from

Varies by lender

Term lengths

6 months to 12 years

Funds available in

Varies by lender

Earnest is best for comparing loan offers

Earnest’s partner, MoneyLion, is a lender matching platform. If you apply with individual lenders, you have to submit a new application to each lender to see the actual rates you qualify for with each one. Multiple applications can lead to confusion and can be harder to compare with one another. And, if they're spread out over time, they could hurt your credit score, as loan applications require hard credit inquiries. With Earnest, you only need to apply once to see all of your offers.

Where Earnest personal loans stand out

Convenient comparison shopping: With several lending partners, Earnest allows you to prequalify at many different lenders and compare terms all in one place.
Range of terms: Earnest’s lending partners offer repayment terms as low as six months and as high as 144 months. The highest max term many competitors offer is 84 months.
Ability to add cosigner: Borrowers without a strong credit history can increase their chance of approval with the help of a cosigner.

Where Earnest personal loans fall short

No mobile app: All loan upkeep must be handled through whichever lender services your loan.
Doesn’t provide loans directly: Earnest does not directly provide loans, so it isn't transparent about APRs and qualification requirements as they vary by lender.
Potential fees: Some of the lenders you may get matched with have origination fees, late fees or other penalties.

Earnest customer resources

Customer support

Earnest offers customer support via online chat Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT. You can also submit a request through an online form.

Customers with personal loans serviced by SST can call customer service Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday, 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. PT.

Those who have loans from other lenders or services may have different customer support options with that lender or servicer.

Digital experience

Earnest users have access to an online account to manage their loan application. However, unlike other personal loan lenders, Earnest does not have a mobile app. Depending on the lender customers match with on Earnest's platform, the digital experience may be different.

How this lender compares

3.7

Bankrate Score

APR from

Varies by lender

Loan Amount

$1,000-$100,000

Term Length

6 months to 12 years

Min Credit Score

Not disclosed

Compare rates

on Bankrate

4.7

Bankrate Score

APR from

7.90%-35.99%

Loan Amount

$1,000-$40,000

Term Length

24-72 months

Min Credit Score

600

Read our review

on Bankrate

4.5

Bankrate Score

APR from

9.95%-35.99%

Loan Amount

$2,000-$35,000

Term Length

24-60 months

Min Credit Score

550

Read our review

on Bankrate

Earnest vs. LendingClub

LendingClub, similar to its competitor Earnest, encourages its borrowers to apply with a cosigner. A cosigner with better credit than yours may help you qualify for a loan or land you better rates. Unlike Earnest, LendingClub has disclosed term lengths and APR ranges. This makes it a better option for a borrower who wants a firm grasp on expected rates prior to applying. However, its maximum loan amount of $40,000 is far lower than Earnest’s.

Learn more: LendingClub Review

Earnest vs. Avant

If your credit score is too low for Earnest and you don’t have a cosigner, Avant may be another good lender option. Avant carries a minimum credit score of just 550. To offset the risk bad-credit borrowers pose, its maximum APR is on the higher side at 35.99 percent. Unlike Earnest, Avant does not allow joint applications.

Learn more: Avant Review

Do you qualify for an Earnest personal loan?

Through MoneyLion, Earnest works with a network of lenders, which have varying creditworthiness guidelines. Its frequently asked questions note that some lenders may require collateral.

An Earnest representative informed Bankrate that the lowest credit score its partners accept is 680, which falls into the good credit range. However, that information isn’t available on Earnest’s website.

Once you have submitted a loan application through Earnest, the platform will match you with lenders that qualify you and that offer the terms you’re looking for. From there, you can compare your offers before making a decision.

How to apply for a personal loan with Earnest

Earnest works with MoneyLion, a fully online personal loan search engine. In order to apply for a loan through this platform, take the following steps:

Tap “Check my rate” and provide some basic information on the form that populates. This includes your loan purpose, loan amount, estimated credit score and contact information.
Within minutes, Earnest will match you with lenders that meet your needs. Compare your offered rates and terms and choose a lender from the results.
Once you choose a lender, you'll apply online or over the phone with that lender.
Approval and funding times will depend on the lender you choose.

How Bankrate rates Earnest

Overall Score	3.7
Availability	4.3	Earnest offers a wide range of loan amounts and the ability to add a co-signer, but the funding timeline isn’t clear.
Affordability	3.0	You can’t preview how much you’ll pay in interest and fees for Earnest’s partners’ loans without prequalifying.
Customer Experience	4.3	Customer service has limited hours, but there is online access.
Transparency	3.8	Earnest’s website does not list rates, fees or qualification requirements.

Methodology

Bankrate's trusted personal loans industry expertise

Read our full methodology

years in business

lenders reviewed

loan features weighed

900

data points collected

Bankrate considers 20 factors when reviewing lenders. We weigh what makes a lender competitive on the market and appealing to borrowers with varying needs. The Bankrate Score for personal loans consists of four categories:

Availability: What the minimum loan amounts are, its eligibility requirements and loan turnaround are considered in this category.
Affordability: The interest rates, penalties and fees are measured in this section of the score. Lower rates and fees and fewer potential penalties result in a higher score.
Customer experience: This category covers customer service hours, if online applications are available, online account access and mobile apps.
Transparency: This category is measured by how accessible credit requirements, rates and fees are on the lender's page. We also considered whether prequalification was available, as all these factors are key for consumers to make an informed decision.

Editorial disclosure: All reviews are prepared by Bankrate.com staff. Opinions expressed therein are solely those of the reviewer and have not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. The information, including rates and fees, presented in the review is accurate as of the date of the review. Check the data at the top of this page and the lender’s website for the most current information.

What customers think

What people across the web are saying about Earnest

As of March 19, 2025, Earnest has a 4.6 out of 5 rating on Trustpilot. However, it's important to point out the company's profile includes reviews from student loan borrowers, not just those with personal loans.

Positive user reviews frequently mentioned quick approval and funding and reasonable rates. One reviewer wrote:

5.0

“I applied for a personal loan. It took about 24 hours from the time I applied to time my loan was approved, then another business day for the loan to deposit into my bank account. And I got a great rate! I paid attention to my emails and responded promptly. There was a process at the end in which I was asked a series of questions to confirm my identity. Everything went smoothly.”

Trustpilot user

Posted on Trustpilot

Still, others were not fans of using Earnest for getting a loan, but having the loan be from a third-party lender or servicer. Whether they understood Earnest as a loan marketplace or not, some felt betrayed by the act of having their loan sold to another company. One user commented:

1.0

“Excellent until they sold my personal loan to a company called SST, which does not allow me to service my loan online or use any of the Earnest features I was accustomed to. True bait and switch. Maybe student loans are different, but I wouldn't trust them.”

Trustpilot user

Posted on Trustpilot

Outlinked content may contain views and opinions that do not reflect the views and opinions of Bankrate. Please see the issuer’s website for updated terms and conditions.

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Earnest Personal Loans: 2025 Review

The Bankrate promise

At a glance

Lender Details

Loan amount

APR from

Term lengths

Funds available in

Earnest is best for comparing loan offers

Where Earnest personal loans stand out

Where Earnest personal loans fall short

Earnest customer resources

Customer support

Digital experience

How this lender compares

Earnest vs. LendingClub

Earnest vs. Avant

Do you qualify for an Earnest personal loan?

How to apply for a personal loan with Earnest

How Bankrate rates Earnest

Methodology

Bankrate's trusted personal loans industry expertise

What customers think

What people across the web are saying about Earnest

We wanna know what you think about Earnest

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