Student loan comparison sites enable you to view and compare multiple student loan opportunities in order to find the package that’s best for you. But before you start comparing, there are a few things you need to keep in mind.
The following student loan comparison sites and directories of education lenders may accept paid placement for their listings. The loans may initially be ranked according to criteria that maximize profit to the directory and not necessarily criteria that minimize cost to the borrower. Some of the least expensive loans may be excluded from such directories because the lenders may be unwilling to pay for placement. Also, some of the directories rank loans by the best advertised rates or average rates, as opposed to the actual rates.
Featured Student Loan Comparison Sites
Credible
Credible offers borrowers a “kayak-style” experience while shopping for personalized prequalified rates. Similar to the “Common App,” users (and co-signers) complete a single, brief form and receive personalized prequalified rates from multiple lenders. Checking rates on Credible is free and does not impact a user’s credit score to compare offers.
Credible’s marketplace includes:
- Ascent
- Citizens
- College Ave
- Custom Choice
- ELFI
- INvestEd
- MEFA
- Nelnet Bank
- Sallie Mae – UG
- Sofi
Please be advised that the operator of this site accepts advertising compensation from companies that appear on the site, and such compensation may impact the location and order in which the companies (and/or their products) are presented.
Disclosure: Personalized Prequalified Rates on Credible is free and doesn’t affect your credit score. However, applying for or closing a loan will involve a hard credit pull that impacts your credit score and closing a loan will result in costs to you. Prequalified rates are based on the information you provide and a soft credit inquiry. Receiving prequalified rates does not guarantee that the Lender will extend you an offer of credit. You are not yet approved for a loan or a specific rate. All credit decisions, including loan approval, if any, are determined by Lenders, in their sole discretion. Rates and terms are subject to change without notice. Rates from Lenders may differ from prequalified rates due to factors which may include, but are not limited to: (i) changes in your personal credit circumstances; (ii) additional information in your hard credit pull and/or additional information you provide (or are unable to provide) to the Lender during the underwriting process; and/or (iii) changes in APRs (e.g., an increase in the rate index between the time of prequalification and the time of application or loan closing. (Or, if the loan option is a variable rate loan, then the interest rate index used to set the APR is subject to increases or decreases at any time). Lenders reserve the right to change or withdraw the prequalified rates at any time.
Loan
Choose between personalized prequalified rates, as well as deferred and interest-only repayment options for your school loans.
Graduate and undergraduate loans for almost every degree type.
Repayment options range from immediate full repayment (principal and interest payments immediately after the loan is fully disbursed), interest only (interest-only payments while you are in school, and start making principal and interest payments after you leave school), full deferral while in school, flat payment while in-school, graduated repayment (payments increase over time).
Limits
COA-Aid (annual limit)
Borrow up to $170,000 through Credible’s marketplace.
Annual max (100% of school certified costs minus other financial aid received).
Lifetime aggregate loan amount 200K.
Rates
3.6% Fixed APR (with autopay)* and 5% Variable APR (with autopay) See Terms*.
*Read rates and terms at Credible.com.
Fees and Terms
No fees.
5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 15 and 20 year terms available.
Student Loan Providers
Abe Student Loans
An Abe private student loan can cover up to 100% of the cost of college.1
Abe offers plain, honest student loans with competitive variable and fixed rates, and other benefits such as:
- Prequalifying in minutes2 with no impact on your credit score.
- Zero Fees: No application, processing, or late fees.
- Four repayment plans, five loan terms3 to fit your needs.
- Only Abe offers In-School Default Protection.4
1. The minimum loan amount is $1,000, except for (a) student applicants who are permanent residents of Iowa in which case the minimum loan amount is $1,001, and (b) student applicants or cosigners who are permanent residents of Massachusetts in which case the minimum loan amount is $6,001. The maximum loan amount to cover in-school expenses for each academic year is determined by the school’s cost of attendance, minus other financial aid, such as federal student loans, scholarships, or grants, up to $99,999. The loan amount must be certified by the school. The loan amount cannot cause the aggregate maximum student loan debt (which includes federal and private student loans) to exceed $225,000 per applicant (on cosigned applications, separate calculations are performed for the student and cosigner).
2. In order to estimate the rates and loan options you prequalify for, DR Bank will perform a soft credit inquiry, as authorized by you. Soft credit inquiries do not affect your credit. If you prequalify, the rates and loan options offered to you are estimates only. Once you choose your loan options and submit your application, DR Bank may perform a hard credit inquiry, as authorized by you. Loan approval, options, and final rate depend on the verification of information provided on your application, and information obtained from the credit inquiry(ies) (and any cosigner’s credit inquiry(ies)).
3. The 15- and 20- year term and Flat Payment Repayment option (paying $25 per month during in-school deferment) are only available for loan amounts of $5,000 or more. Making interest only or flat interest payments during deferment will not reduce the principal balance of the loan. Payment examples (all assume a 14-month deferment period, a six-month grace period before entering repayment, no auto pay discount, and the Interest Only Repayment option): 5-year term: $10,000 loan, one disbursement, with a 5-year repayment term (60 months) and a 9.60% APR would result in a monthly principal and interest payment of $210.51. 7-year term: $10,000 loan, one disbursement, with a 7-year repayment term (84 months) and a 8.82% APR would result in a monthly principal and interest payment of $159.98. 10-year term: $10,000 loan, one disbursement, with a 10-year repayment term (120 months) and a 8.57% APR would result in a monthly principal and interest payment of $124.36. 15-year term: $10,000 loan, one disbursement, with, a 15-year repayment term (180 months) and a 8.48% APR would result in a monthly principal and interest payment of $98.36. 20-year term: $10,000 loan, one disbursement, with, a 20-year repayment term (240 months) and a 8.62% APR would result in a monthly principal and interest payment of $87.54.
4. Borrowers with Interest Only or Flat Payment loans that reach at least 120 days delinquent during an in-school deferment period will automatically have their repayment option transitioned from the Interest Only or Flat Payment repayment option to the Full Deferment repayment option. Under these circumstances, the interest rate on the loan will automatically increase to match the interest rate associated with the corresponding Full Deferment loan. For an Interest Only loan, the interest rate will increase by one percentage point (1.00%). For a Flat Payment loan, the interest rate will increase by one quarter of one percentage point (0.25%). Any unpaid accrued interest at the end of an in-school deferment period may be capitalized in accordance with the Credit Agreement.
Loan
An AbeSM student loan is a private student loan, also called a gap loan. Why is it called a gap loan? Because private student loans can fill the gap between all of your other college financing resources and the total cost of going to school.
To figure out how much you need, add up all your other college financing amounts from federal student and parent loans, scholarships, grants, school financial aid packages, and college savings plans. Subtract the total from your overall annual cost of tuition, room and board, supplies, and expenses — that’s how much you can request from Abe to fill the gap.1
Limits
Abe lets you borrow as little as $1,000 or up to $99,999 per loan. If needed, you can take out more than one loan. As long as your total amount of all student loans doesn’t exceed $225,000, you’re good.
Rates
Variable Rates: 5.13% to 16.36% APR
Fixed Rates: 3.69% to 15.00% APR
Fees and Terms
Zero Fees: No application, processing, or late fees.
5, 7, 10, 15, or 20 Year terms available3
Private Student Loans
Compare multiple lenders instantly with Private Student Loans
Find the best interest rates and benefits
Student loans available for students, parents, and professional degree seekers
Competitive terms and benefits available–including cosigner release
Expert tips on borrowing you won’t find anywhere else.
Loan
The lenders we work with offer loans for undergraduate, graduate, parents and professional students. We also provide loans options to compare for income share agreements. Borrowers have several repayment options to choose from with our lenders, including interest-only payments while in school, full deferral while in school, immediate full repayment, and even the ability to repay based on a fixed percentage of future income.
Limits
Borrow up to the Cost of Attendance (COA) minus Student Aid annually.
Aggregate loan limits apply and vary by lender.
Rates
Variable rates as low as 1.04% APR (with autopay)*
Fixed rates as low as 3.34% APR (with autopay)*
Some lenders may offer interest-rate discounts not offered by other lenders.
Fees and Terms
Many lenders offer no fees for loan origination or paying off your loan early.
Choose between a variety of terms ranging from 5 to 15 years.
Please be advised that the operator of this site accepts advertising compensation from companies that appear on the site, and such compensation impacts the location and order in which the companies (and/or their products) are presented.
Best Student Loan Comparison Sites
The most useful student loan comparison sites need to satisfy the following minimal standards:
- Present consumers with actual interest rates and fees, not just the best advertised rates or average interest rates. This will ensure that consumers are making comparisons based on relevant information.
- Include a critical mass of lenders sufficient to ensure that the borrower has a reasonable chance of obtaining a rate that is close to the best rate the borrower could find on his or her own.
- Minimize the impact on the prospective borrower’s credit score. Each credit inquiry for student loans results in up to a 5-point hit to the borrower’s credit score. More than three or four such inquiries are likely to shift the borrower from one credit tier to the next, increasing their costs.
- The presentation of information must be based solely on the prospective borrower’s best interests. In particular, the initial sorting of results must be based on the total cost of the loan, including interest rates and fees, not paid placement or other criteria.
- The lender listings must provide sufficient information about the loans to permit the prospective borrower to make an informed decision.
- The sites must provide clear disclosures regarding any potential or actual biases. In particular, the comparison tools should disclose whether the lenders provide any payment for inclusion in the loan comparison tool and whether the payments influence the ranking of the loan product comparisons.
- The comparison site should provide sufficient contact information for the lender, such as telephone numbers and web links, to permit the prospective borrower to apply for the loan.
- Prospective borrowers should not be charged any fees for using the comparison site.
- Loan comparison sites should recommend, in a clear and conspicuous fashion, that prospective borrowers should borrow federal first before relying on any private student loans.
- Find the best graduate student loans.
To date, none of the loan comparison sites satisfy all of these standards, although all satisfy some of them.
