Personal loans can help you pay off high-interest credit card debt or finance major expenses, like a home down payment. But if you're not careful when shopping for a loan, you could end up paying more than you need in loan fees and interest charges. Rocket Loans charges an origination fee, which keeps it off of our list of best personal loans, but it also offers plenty of perks and discounts that could make it a good choice, especially if you're already comfortable with Rocket's other products like Rocket Money or Rocket Mortgage.
What we'll cover
Can receive your funds as soon as the same business day and there's no penalty for paying off your loan early.
- No early payoff fee
- Offers autopay discount
- Can receive your funds as soon as the same business day
- Charges a late fee
- Origination fee is quite high
APR
Rocket Loans come with APRs that range from 8.01% to 29.99%, depending on your credit profile. To qualify for the lowest rate, you must have excellent credit, meet certain conditions and select autopay.
Perks
Rocket Loans offers a range of loan amounts and payment terms, along with the convenience of same-day funding. If you complete the application process and are approved by 1 p.m. ET, you'll likely receive your funds within the same business day.
Rocket doesn't charge a pre-payment penalty fee, freeing you to pay off your loan as quickly as you want without taking a financial hit. You can also get a discounted rate by selecting autopay for your monthly payments, which is available at the time of your application.
Fees
The biggest drawback of Rocket Loans is the origination fee it charges. This can be up to 9.99% of the approved loan amount, which is less than ideal. This fee is deducted from your loan balance before the funds are disbursed. For example, if you take out a $10,000 loan with a 5% origination fee, $500 will be deducted upfront. This means you'll receive only $9,500 in your account, but you'll still be responsible for repaying the full $10,000, plus interest.
Rocket Loans also charges a late fee of $15 per payment cycle if you fail to make any monthly payment within 10 calendar days of its due date.
Loan amount
Loan amounts range from $2,000 to $45,000, depending on factors such as your credit score, requested amount and term, credit usage, credit history and other details on your loan application.
Ohio residents, however, must take out loans of at least $5,001.
Term lengths
Term lengths range from 36 to 60 months, which vary depending on factors like loan purpose and your credit.
Rocket Loans alternatives
If Rocket Loans isn't for you, there are still plenty of other personal loan options in the market that can suit your needs.
Rocket Loans vs. LightStream Personal Loans
LightStream Personal Loans could be a great alternative for anyone put off by Rocket Loans' origination fees. LightStream doesn't charge any of those fees, and won't hit you with late or pre penalty fees either. Like Rocket Loans, LightStream also offers same-day funding through wire transfer or ACH. While you can't use your loans for higher education and small business purposes, you can use them for things like buying a new car, remodeling the bathroom, consolidating debt or covering medical expenses.
LightStream Personal Loans
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
7.24% - 24.89%* APR with AutoPay
Loan purpose
Debt consolidation, home improvement, auto financing, medical expenses, and others
Loan amounts
$5,000 to $100,000
Terms
24 to 144 months* dependent on loan purpose
Credit needed
Good
Origination fee
None
Early payoff penalty
None
Late fee
None
Terms apply. *AutoPay discount is only available prior to loan funding. Rates without AutoPay are 0.50% points higher. Excellent credit required for lowest rate. Rates vary by loan purpose.
SoFi Personal Loans also don't charge origination or late fees and won't penalize you for an early payoff. SoFi also offers unemployment protection, which lets qualified borrowers pause payments in three-month increments if they lose their jobs under certain circumstances. Funds are typically dispersed quickly — sometimes even the same day— if you sign SoFi's agreement before 7 p,m. ET on a business day.
SoFi Personal Loans
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)
8.74% - 35.49% when you sign up for autopay
Loan purpose
Debt consolidation/refinancing, home improvement, relocation assistance or medical expenses
Loan amounts
$5,000 to $100,000
Terms
24 to 84 months
Credit needed
Good to excellent
Origination fee
No fees required
Early payoff penalty
None
Late fee
None
Terms apply.
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