Edly Income-Based Loans: 2025 Review

How Eldy income-based loans work

While most private student loan lenders have a standard repayment plan with a fixed monthly payment based on your principal, interest and loan term, Edly's unique income-based loans have a monthly payment that adjusts based on the borrower's income. Each year, Edly recalculates a borrower's monthly payment, which is a percentage of their current salary. Additionally, borrowers who lose their job or make a salary below $30,000 can apply for forbearance.

Edly offers cosigning options, with cosigner release after the borrower makes six in-full payments after graduation and meets other financial criteria. While non-cosigned loans have a three-month grace period after college, cosigned loans require an in-school monthly payment as low as $100 per month.

Where Eldy stands out

• Income-based repayment plans: Minimum salary thresholds and monthly payments based on income help lower-earning borrowers afford their payments.
• Cosigner release: Edly allows cosigner release in less than one year as long as the borrower makes six in-full payments and meets financial criteria.
• Career training loans available: Edly also offers career training loans for students pursuing certificates or specific career training.

Where Eldy falls short

• Limited loan amounts: You can only borrow up to $15,000 per academic year and up to $25,000 total.
• Only one loan term: The only repayment term available is seven years.
• Higher interest rates: Edly's minimum APR is over 8 percent — much higher than other lenders that start below 5 percent — and the maximum can be up to almost 26 percent.

Eldy customer service

Borrowers can reach out through an online message, email or online chat. However, there is no telephone number provided for Edly customer service. 

Hours of operation are from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday.

Do you qualify for an income-based loan with Eldy?

To qualify for a loan from Edly, you or your cosigner must:

• Be a U.S. citizen or a permanent resident.
• Be enrolled at least half-time.
• Be attending a qualified institution and program.
• Meet Edly’s credit and income requirements.

Additionally, non-cosigned student loans require borrowers to be juniors, seniors or graduate students who are within 16 months of graduation for specific programs. Cosigned loans are available to the above-mentioned students and sophomores. Students must also meet their school's Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) guidelines. 

How to apply for an income-based loan with Eldy

Edly’s application process is entirely online. According to the website, it takes minutes to go through the preapproval and application process.

Here’s how to apply with Edly:

1. Select “Get Started” to see if you meet the eligibility criteria. You’ll be asked basic questions about your education, like your school name, major and anticipated graduation date. This will allow you to see your potential rates and terms with only a soft credit check.
2. After seeing your prequalified terms, you’ll need to go through a hard credit pull to receive your final loan terms.
3. If you accept your final loan terms and sign the loan document, Edly will verify your transcript and send the information over to your school for certification and disbursement.

How Bankrate rates Eldy income-based loans

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