Upstart vs. Best Egg: Which offers better personal loans?

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Published on July 18, 2024 | 4 min read

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Key takeaways

Best Egg is a good fit for debt consolidation and other loan purposes.
Upstart considers your education and career in addition to your credit score.
Both lenders offer standard personal loan terms for borrowers with good to fair credit.

Best Egg and Upstart are online lenders that offer personal loans for a variety of purposes. While both have similar terms, Best Egg stands out for debt consolidation. Upstart will be better for borrowers who don’t meet traditional credit score requirements.

And since they both offer prequalification, you can check your rates with Best Egg and Upstart to determine which is the better fit for you.

Best Egg vs. Upstart at a glance

Both Best Egg and Upstart offer similar personal loan products. However, their loans differ when it comes to APR ranges, eligibility requirements and more.

	Best Egg	Upstart
Bankrate score	4.6	4.8
Better for	Borrowers with a good credit score or better Debt consolidation	Borrowers with limited credit history Borrowers with a fair credit score or better
Loan amounts	$2,000–$50,000	$1,000–$50,000
APRs	6.99%-35.99%	7.40%-35.99%
Loan term lengths	36–60 months	36 or 60 months
Fees	Origination fee of 0.99%-9.99% $15 late fee $15 returned payment fee	Origination fee of 0%-12% Late fee of 5% of the total payment due or $15, whichever is greater $15 returned payment fee $10 paper copy fee
Minimum credit score	600	No Requirement
Time to funding	As soon as 1-3 business days	As soon as 1 business day
Co-signers permitted	No	No

Best for debt consolidation

Best Egg personal loans

4.6

Learn more in our Bankrate review

Best Egg offers very average loan amounts, terms and fees — and isn’t much different from what Upstart offers. Where it stands out is debt consolidation. Unlike many lenders, Best Egg offers Direct Pay. This option allows borrowers who are approved for a debt consolidation loan to choose if they want Best Egg to pay off their creditors directly, simplifying the process.
Pros

Personal loans can be secured or unsecured

Option to change payment due date

Debt consolidation payments sent directly to creditors
Cons

Minimum origination fee of 0.99 percent

No co-signers or joint applications

High income required to qualify for the lowest rates

Best for borrowers with limited credit history

Upstart personal loans

4.8

Learn more in our Bankrate review

Unlike many lenders, Upstart uses an alternative underwriting process that evaluates factors such as your education and job history to approve you for the loan. You can also qualify with poor credit — Upstart doesn’t set a minimum credit score for its borrowers. In addition, you may qualify for a loan without an origination fee, which could save you money over a loan from Best Egg.
Pros

Low starting APR of 7.80 percent

Flexible eligibility requirements beyond credit score

Loans eligible for education-related expenses
Cons

High maximum origination fee of 12 percent

No option to change your due date

Loan terms limited to 36 or 60 months

How to choose between Best Egg and Upstart

Both Best Egg and Upstart are good choices if you need a personal loan with less-than-perfect credit. Since both lenders allow you to prequalify, you can check your loan terms with both to determine which is the better choice for you.

APR range

Upstart has a slightly lower starting APR than Best Egg. If you have good to excellent credit, this could make Upstart a better choice — provided you qualify for a low interest rate and a small origination fee.

That said, most borrowers need to pay attention to the maximum APR. Best Egg and Upstart have the same maximum APR. In addition, according to Bankrate stats, Best Egg offers a lower average APR of 19.31 percent versus Upstart’s average APR of 25.60 percent.

Minimum credit score

Best Egg has a set minimum credit score of 600, so it’s a good option for fair credit borrowers. Upstart, on the other hand, doesn’t disclose its minimum. It considers your education, career and other factors in addition to your credit score. This can make it a good choice if you don’t have a strong credit history.

Repayment Terms

Best Egg is the better choice — barely. It offers loan terms between 36 to 60 months, while Upstart offers terms of either 36 months or 60 months. If you want a loan for 48 months, then Best Egg is the clear choice. This is especially true if you’ve already calculated potential monthly payments and know the exact loan term you want.

Time to Receive Funds

Upstart offers a quicker turnaround than Best Egg, with funds being sent in as little as one business day after approval. Best Egg’s turnaround is slightly slower, ranging from one to three business days.

For most borrowers, this won’t be a significant wait, and your bank will still take a day or two to make your loan funds available. However, Upstart will be the better option if you need an emergency personal loan.

Fees

Both lenders charge origination fees on top of late fees and returned payment fees. Like with APR, Upstart comes out ahead when you consider its minimum origination fee of 0 percent. If you are able to qualify for a personal loan without an origination fee, then it will be the better option.

Best Egg has a lower maximum origination fee. For most people, it makes sense to prequalify with both lenders and see which offers a more competitive origination fee.

The bottom line: Which lender is best?

Best Egg and Upstart are good options to consider if you need a personal loan with a fair credit score. Both offer competitive rates and the ability to prequalify. And since there aren’t any significant differences between their offers, it makes sense to see what you could qualify for and compare rates before committing.