The best student loan refinance lenders of October 2026

Refinancing a student loan can get you a lower rate or better terms, saving you thousands of dollars in interest. A refi can also allow you to release a co-signer, switch from a variable to a fixed loan or consolidate multiple student loans into one.

CNBC Select has picked the top lenders for student loan refinancing, considering a variety of factors, including rates, terms, and credit and income requirements. See our methodology for more information on how we made this list.

Who's this for? Unlike some student loan lenders, SoFi is a full-service bank, and members have access to benefits like one-on-one financial planning, premium travel offers and preferred rates on other loans.

Standout benefits: In addition to a 0.25% autopay discount, SoFi Plus customers can receive an additional 0.125% rate reduction if they set up direct deposit.

Who's this for? Earnest approves refinancing borrowers with fair credit (a FICO Score of 580 to 669). You can also add a co-signer to improve your chances of approval.

Standout benefits: Borrowers can skip one payment a year without penalties.

Who's this for? Existing Citizens™ customers can earn a 0.50% rate discount for enrolling in autopay, twice the industry standard.

Standout benefits: International graduate students can apply with an eligible co-signer.

Who's this for? Rather than a direct lender, Splash Financial is an online lending marketplace that connects borrowers to its network of partner banks and credit unions, offering competitive rates for private student loans and refinancing.

Standout benefits: Specialized refinancing for medical/dental residents is available, with payments as low as $100 per month.

Who's this for? KeyBank offers unique refinancing options for medical professionals, including specialized programs with payments as low as $100 per month during your residency or fellowship and a 0.25% rate discount for members of the AMA, AAP and other professional organizations.

Standout benefits: Borrowers can utilize up to 12 months of forbearance if they face unemployment or financial hardship and co-signers can be released after just 12 on-time payments. KeyBank does not charge application or origination fees for refinancing.

Who's this for? While income-based repayment (IBR) is typically only for federal loans, RISLA offers an IBR option for private refinanced loans that includes forgiveness of any remaining balance after 25 years of qualifying monthly payments.

Standout benefit: RISLA doesn't charge origination, application or late fees. It's also one of the few lenders that approves refinancing even if you didn't complete your degree.

Who's this for? ELFI allows borrowers to combine Parent PLUS and private loans and transfer them into their child's name.

Standout benefit: Borrowers are assigned a dedicated loan advisor to guide them through the refinancing process.

Private student loans: Private loans can generally always be refinanced to secure a lower interest rate, lower monthly payment or a more favorable repayment structure. In order for refinancing to be cost-effective, your credit history should have improved or interest rates in general should have dropped since you originally took out your loans.

Federal student loans: Refinancing a federal student loan means first turning it into a private loan. If you have excellent credit, you may get a better rate, but you'll forfeit federal benefits such as income-driven repayment plans, federal deferment and forbearance options and potential student loan forgiveness.

Before you shop for a new lender, decide if you qualify for refinancing. Consider the following:

• Credit score: When you refinance, private lenders typically have their own credit score requirements. Generally, they look for credit scores in the high 600s or above, but a higher credit score is even better because you can get approved for some of the lowest interest rates this way.
• Student status: Some lenders require borrowers to have graduated with a degree or certificate.
• Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio: Your DTI is the amount of debt you're carrying compared to your monthly gross income. Lenders usually look for a DTI of 40% to 50%, but scores under 36% will get you a better rate.
• Income requirements: A lender may require a minimum salary or monthly income.

It's possible to use a co-signer to refinance your student loans, especially if your credit score isn't high enough to qualify for the best interest rates on your own. A co-signer becomes legally responsible for repaying your debt if you default on your loan, so you'll want to choose your co-signer carefully and make sure they are aware of the potential responsibility.

A co-signer can help you get a lower interest rate on your refinance if their credit profile is in a much better place compared to your own.

Some private student loan lenders offer co-signer release, which allows you to assume full responsibility for the loan after a certain number of on-time payments.

Here's how to refinance a student loan:

• Check eligibility: Make sure you qualify by knowing the above eligibility requirements.
• Compare lenders: Shop around to find the best refinance company for your needs.
• Get prequalified: Many lenders will let you prequalify for approval and check your rate with no impact on your credit score.
• Complete application: When you submit an official application, your lenders will need to run a hard credit inquiry, which will temporarily lower your credit score.
• Consider a co-signer: If you have poor credit, you may want to add one to boost your odds of getting a good interest rate.

If you're comfortable with the terms of your new loan, including the rate, fees and loan terms, you can accept and sign for your new loan and begin following your lender's repayment schedule.

Interest rates for private student loans have continued to creep upward over the last 10 years. But if your credit score and income have improved since you took out your loans and you qualify for a better rate, now could be a good time to refinance.

There are also major changes to federal student loan programs that may make refinancing more attractive. As of July 1, 2026, new loans will not be eligible for Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR), Pay As You Earn (PAYE) or Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plans.

Existing plans will sunset by July 1, 2028, requiring borrowers to switch to a standard repayment or the new Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP), which offers loan forgiveness after 30 years. (Parent PLUS loans are generally not eligible for RAP.)

If these changes make your loan payments less affordable, refinancing now may be a smart option.

There are several factors to consider when looking at lenders to refinance your loan:

• Loan amount: The minimum loan amount for student loan refinancing typically ranges from $5,000 to $10,000, although a lending marketplace like Credible may help you find a lender with a lower minimum. The cap on loan amounts for refinancing is usually $300,000 for undergraduate degrees and $750,000 for professional degrees.
• APR: Ideally, you'll want to refinance for a lower APR than what you originally had, since this is how you'll be able to save money on your monthly payments.
• Loan term: Seek a lender offering longer repayment terms if you want a lower monthly payment (although this means you pay more in interest overall). With a shorter repayment term, your monthly payments are higher but you pay less interest overall since you pay off your loan quicker.
• Co-signer release: If you apply with a co-signer, find out whether the lender offers a co-signer release and when it becomes available.

While there are lenders that cater to student loan applicants with bad credit, they're likely to charge higher interest rates. Since the goal of refinancing is typically to secure a lower rate, that can defeat the purpose.

Some options include:

• Improving your financial profile: Paying down debt, making on-time payments and increasing your income can improve your credit score and, in turn, your chances of approval and a lower interest rate.
• Alternative approval criteria: Some refinancing lenders will look at factors beyond your credit score, like your income, employment history, education and earning potential.
• Apply with a co-signer: Many lenders are willing to approve applicants with weak credit if they have a creditworthy co-signer.

There are alternatives to student loan refinancing, but they depend on whether you're trying to refinance federal or private loans.

For federal student loans

• Income-driven repayment plans: If you are facing financial hardship, you may qualify for a monthly payment based on your income and family size, with forgiveness available after a set number of years of regular payments. As of July 1, 2026, new federal student loans will not be eligible for Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR), Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plans.) Borrowers will be limited to a standard repayment plan or a new income-based plan called the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP).
• Federal loan consolidation: You can combine multiple federal student loans into one new restructured loan, with a new interest rate that is a weighted average of your existing rates.
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF): The remaining balance on eligible Direct Loans can be forgiven if you work full-time for a qualifying public service employer and make 120 qualifying monthly payments.
• Deferment or forbearance: Federal student loans include protections that allow borrowers to temporarily pause or reduce payments in certain situations, such as school enrollment, unemployment, financial hardship and military service. Interest may or may not accrue, depending on the circumstances and program.

For private student loans

• Debt consolidation loan: A debt consolidation loan allows you to combine numerous debts (including student loans) into one loan, ideally at a lower rate. Many lenders will pay your creditors directly.
• A home equity loan or HELOC: If you are a homeowner with at least 15% or 20% home equity, you can leverage that to take out either a lump sum of money or a line of credit to pay off your student loans. While HELOC and home equity loan rates can be lower than student loan rates, you're trading unsecured debt for secured debt that uses your home as collateral. If you're unable to make regular payments, you may be forced into foreclosure.
• Deferment or forbearance: Private lenders are not required to offer deferment or forbearance options, but some may do so — especially in cases of economic hardship. Payments may be reduced or paused for a set period, during which Interest may or may not accrue.
• Loan modification: Your lender may be willing to change the terms of your existing loan, lowering your interest rate or monthly payment, extending your term, or temporarily reducing or suspending payments. They may also consider capitalizing missed payments into your total balance.

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every student loan list is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of student loan products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.

To determine which lenders are the best for student loan refinancing, CNBC Select compared private student loan funding from banks, credit unions and online lenders.

We only considered those with competitive rates and compared each company on the following features:

• Availability: The lenders on our list offer federal and private student loan refinancing in all 50 U.S. states, with both variable and fixed interest rates.
• Loan amounts and terms: We considered the minimum and maximum loan amounts of each lender, and favored those with a variety of term options.
• Credit score: Lenders with more flexible credit score and income requirements were given more weight.
• Fees: None of the lenders on our list charge application, origination or underwriting fees or penalize early payoffs.
• Application process: All lenders offer prequalification without damaging their credit scores and have easy-to-use online applications, with approval within 1-2 business days.
• Co-signers: We considered whether lenders allow co-signers and how long it takes for them to be discharged.
• Discounts: Companies that provided a rate reduction for establishing autopay were given more weight.
• Funding: We considered how quickly lenders could disburse funds. By law, lenders must include a 3-day rescission period during which borrowers can change their minds.
• Private student loan protections: While private loans lack federal protections such as deferment and forgiveness, all the lenders on our list offer some form of hardship protection for borrowers.
• Customer support: Every company on our list provides customer service available via telephone, email or secure online messaging. We also opted for lenders with an online resource hub or advice center to help you educate yourself about the student loan refinancing process.

We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.

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*Fixed rates range from 4.49% APR to 10.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount and 0.125% SoFi Plus discount. Variable rates range from 5.74% APR to 10.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount and 0.125% SoFi Plus discount. Unless required to be lower to comply with applicable law, Variable Interest rates will never exceed 13.95% (the maximum rate for these loans). SoFi rate ranges are current as of 9/23/26 and are subject to change at any time. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on the term you select, evaluation of your creditworthiness, income, presence of a co-signer and a variety of other factors. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. For the SoFi variable-rate product, the variable interest rate for a given month is derived by adding a margin to the 30-day average SOFR index, published two business days preceding such calendar month, rounded up to the nearest one hundredth of one percent (0.01% or 0.0001). APRs for variable-rate loans may increase after origination if the SOFR index increases. You may pay more interest over the life of the loan if you refinance with an extended term.

Autopay Discount: The SoFi 0.25% autopay interest rate reduction requires you to agree to make monthly payments as outlined in your loan agreement by an automatic monthly deduction from a savings or checking account. This benefit will discontinue and be lost for periods in which you do not pay by automatic deduction from a savings or checking account. When the autopay interest rate deduction is added or removed, the next time the loan is re-amortized (quarterly for fixed rate loans; monthly for variable rate loans),the principal balance of your loan will be spread over the remaining loan term, and your monthly payment amount will change. This benefit is suspended during periods of deferment, grace period, or forbearance. Autopay is not required to receive a loan from SoFi.

Once you become eligible during the initial period, the discount will be removed or reinstated depending on whether the criteria have been met. Each time your loan is re-amortized, your monthly payment amount will change based upon the interest rate that was in place. SoFi reserves the right to modify or terminate this offer at any time for unenrolled participants. You are not required to meet these criteria to be approved for a loan.