Personal loan guides

Compare and decide

By purpose

• Debt consolidation
• Home improvement
• Medical bills
• Auto repair
• Major purchases
• Moving costs
• Weddings and events
• Emergency expenses
• Credit card payoff
• Small business owners

By credit range

• Excellent credit
• Good credit
• Fair credit
• Limited credit
• Free options

Compare alternatives

• Personal loan vs HELOC
• Personal loan vs credit card
• Personal loan vs balance transfer card
• Secured vs unsecured
• FAQ

How to choose where to start

This hub lists every guide we publish. If you are not sure where to begin, follow this path. First, read how to compare personal loans, because every other guide builds on it. Second, look at the guide for your purpose: debt consolidation, home improvement, medical bills, auto repair or another. Third, read the guide for your credit range so that your expectations match the market. Fourth, use the calculators and the offer checklist with real numbers.

How we write the guides

Each guide starts with a direct answer of about fifty words, then gives the steps, a worksheet or table and a list of mistakes to avoid. We cite sources at the bottom, mostly the CFPB, FTC, Federal Reserve and Census Bureau, and we do not state rates or promise offers. Our editorial policy explains how we handle corrections and how compensation from lending partners is kept away from what the guides say.

Local guides

City guides combine Census income, rent and housing figures with original context. They help you see how your situation compares with your neighbors' and what local resources exist. Find yours on the local guides page.

Not sure a loan is right?

Visit our free options page first. Sometimes a payment plan, a credit counseling session or a community assistance program solves the problem for less.

Every guide, with a one-line description

• How Personal Loan Compare works: How the three-minute fit check works, what happens to your information, what lenders do next, and exactly how we are paid.
• How to compare personal loans: the 6-line scorecard: A six-line scorecard for comparing personal loan offers on total cost, APR, fees, payment fit, flexibility and lender credibility, with questions to ask in writing.
• Personal loan offer checklist: 20 checks before you sign: A tickable 20-point checklist for any personal loan offer: cost, fees, lender license, scam red flags, payment fit and paperwork. Use it before you accept.
• Personal loan calculators: Three free calculators: a debt consolidation break-even tool, a debt-to-income calculator and a side-by-side comparison of up to three loan offers.
• Personal loan requirements: what lenders check: What lenders typically check for a personal loan: credit, income, debt-to-income, employment, identity and documents, plus a prep list and the honest reasons.
• Personal loan scams: 9 warning signs and what to do: Nine warning signs of advance-fee and fake lender personal loan scams, how to verify a lender, and how to report one to the FTC and CFPB.
• Personal loan vs HELOC: which fits?: Personal loan vs HELOC explained side by side: collateral, rate behavior, fees, draw periods, speed and who each fits, with a decision rule and sources from.
• Personal loan vs credit card: when each costs less: Personal loan vs credit card: how fixed payments, revolving balances and fees change total cost, with a break-even rule for a purchase or a consolidation.
• Personal loan vs balance transfer card: the break-even test: Personal loan vs balance transfer card: transfer fees, promotional windows, what happens at the end of the promotion and a simple break-even test for each path.
• Secured vs unsecured personal loans: Secured vs unsecured personal loans explained: what collateral is, what you risk, why secured can cost less, and the questions to ask before pledging an asset.
• Personal loan for debt consolidation: the 3-P test: Decide whether a debt consolidation loan helps with the 3-P test: price, payoff date and pattern.
• Personal loan for home improvement: a pay-by-milestone plan: Use a personal loan for home improvement without overpaying: fix versus upgrade, contractor payment schedules, when a HELOC is the alternative, and questions.
• Personal loan for medical bills: 5 steps before you borrow: Before borrowing for medical bills, get an itemized bill, ask about financial assistance, negotiate, set up a provider payment plan, then compare a personal.
• Personal loan for auto repair: the repair-or-replace rule: Should you borrow for a big car repair? Use a repair-or-replace rule, compare shop financing, and check costs before taking a personal loan for auto repair.
• Personal loan for a major purchase: wait, save or borrow?: Use a three-question test to decide whether to borrow for a major purchase, plus how deferred-interest store offers differ from fixed-payment personal loans.
• Personal loan for moving costs: budget and employer asks: How to budget a move, what costs people forget, what to ask an employer about relocation help, and when a personal loan for moving costs makes sense.
• Personal loan for a wedding or event: how to borrow less: Plan an event budget, decide what is worth borrowing for, and compare a personal loan with vendor payment plans and credit cards for a wedding or large event.
• Personal loan for an emergency expense: the 24-hour triage: A 24-hour triage for emergency expenses: what must be paid now, what can be negotiated, which low-cost options to try first, and how to avoid scams that target.
• Personal loan to pay off credit cards: strategies compared: Avalanche, snowball or a personal loan? Compare credit card payoff strategies, with a rule for choosing and the traps that make a payoff loan fail.
• Personal loan for small business owners: what to know: What small business owners should know before using a personal loan for business costs: lender rules, personal liability, separating finances and when business.
• Personal loans with excellent credit: what to negotiate: With excellent credit, many lenders will approve you, so the work is comparing and negotiating. Learn what to ask about fees, terms and prequalification.
• Personal loans with good credit: how to get the best terms: Good credit opens many personal loan options. See what lenders look for, the small moves that improve your offer and how to compare lenders without extra inquiries.
• Personal loans with fair credit: realistic options: Fair credit can still qualify for a personal loan, but costs and limits change. Learn the realistic options, how to prepare and which offers to avoid.
• Personal loans with limited credit: what to do first: With a limited credit score or history, a personal loan may cost too much or be out of reach. See safer first steps:.
• Personal loan questions, answered plainly: Thirty plain-language answers to common personal loan questions: how they work, APR vs rate, credit scores, fees, scams and how Personal Loan Compare is paid.

Reading order for different readers

If you are in a hurry: read personal loan requirements, then the offer checklist. That is ten minutes and avoids most mistakes.

If you are weighing options: read the comparison guides for credit cards, balance transfers, HELOCs and secured loans. Each lays out when the alternative is cheaper.

If your credit is a concern: read the guides by credit range and the free options page, which lists credit counseling and credit union paths.

If you are worried about fraud: read the scam guide before you submit your details anywhere.