Best of

10 Best Long-Term Personal Loans

Long-term personal loans carry repayment terms of more than five years. Though you'll have smaller monthly payments, total interest can be higher.

Jackie VelingAmrita Jayakumar
By
and
Last updated on December 18, 2023
Edited by
✅ Fact checked and reviewed
Kim Lowe
Edited by
✅ Fact checked and reviewed

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NerdWallet’s

Best of Award Winner
Best Personal LoanOverall
SoFi
SoFi Personal Loan
SoFi
5.0
NerdWallet rating
Est. APR
8.99-29.99%
Loan amount
$5,000-$100,000
Min. credit score
None
on SoFi's website
More details

Why our nerds love it

SoFi stands out with competitive rates, no required fees and multiple rate discounts. It offers fast funding, a wide range of loan amounts and terms, plus perks like free financial advice. Read our methodology

Read our methodology
See all winners

Best Long-Term Personal Loans

Lender
NerdWallet Rating
Est. APR
Loan amount
Min. credit score
Learn more
SoFi

SoFi Personal Loan

Visit Lender
on SoFi's website
on SoFi's website
Check Rate
on NerdWallet
on NerdWallet
🏆 Top 3 most visited
Rate discount

8.99-29.99%

$5,000-$100,000

None

Discover

Discover® Personal Loans

5.0
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

7.99-24.99%

$2,500-$40,000

660

Upgrade

Upgrade

5.0
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

8.49-35.99%

$1,000-$50,000

560

First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan

First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan

Check Rate
on NerdWallet
on NerdWallet
5.0
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

8.99-18.00%

$500-$50,000

660

Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan

Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan

5.0
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

7.49-18.00%

$250-$50,000

None

Santander Personal Loan

Santander Personal Loan

5.0
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

6.99-24.99%

$5,000-$50,000

700

Lightstream

LightStream

4.5
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

7.99-25.49%

$5,000-$100,000

660

Wells Fargo Personal Loan

Wells Fargo Personal Loan

4.5
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

7.49-23.74%

$3,000-$100,000

None

U.S. Bank Personal Loan

U.S. Bank Personal Loan

4.5
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

8.24-21.49%

$1,000-$50,000

660

USAA Personal Loan

USAA Personal Loan

4.0
/5
Best for Long-term personal loans

9.34-17.74%

$1,000-$100,000

None

Our pick for

Long-term personal loans

SoFi
Visit Lender
on SoFi's website
on SoFi's website
SoFi

SoFi Personal Loan

5.0
Est. APR

8.99-29.99%

Loan amount

$5,000-$100,000

Min. credit score

None

Lightstream
Lightstream

LightStream

4.5
Est. APR

7.99-25.49%

Loan amount

$5,000-$100,000

Min. credit score

660

Discover
Discover

Discover® Personal Loans

Est. APR

7.99-24.99%

Loan amount

$2,500-$40,000

Min. credit score

660

Upgrade
Upgrade

Upgrade

Est. APR

8.49-35.99%

Loan amount

$1,000-$50,000

Min. credit score

560

Wells Fargo Personal Loan
Wells Fargo Personal Loan

Wells Fargo Personal Loan

Est. APR

7.49-23.74%

Loan amount

$3,000-$100,000

Min. credit score

None

First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan
First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan

First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan

Est. APR

8.99-18.00%

Loan amount

$500-$50,000

Min. credit score

660

Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan
Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan

Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan

Est. APR

7.49-18.00%

Loan amount

$250-$50,000

Min. credit score

None

USAA Personal Loan
USAA Personal Loan

USAA Personal Loan

Est. APR

9.34-17.74%

Loan amount

$1,000-$100,000

Min. credit score

None

U.S. Bank Personal Loan
U.S. Bank Personal Loan

U.S. Bank Personal Loan

Est. APR

8.24-21.49%

Loan amount

$1,000-$50,000

Min. credit score

660

Santander Personal Loan
Santander Personal Loan

Santander Personal Loan

Est. APR

6.99-24.99%

Loan amount

$5,000-$50,000

Min. credit score

700

» MORE: Best unsecured personal loans

Pros and cons of long-term loans

Pros of taking a long-term personal loan

  • Larger loan amounts: When you want to borrow a large sum of money, perhaps for a home improvement project or to consolidate debt, lenders may give you the option of a longer term to pay the loan back.

  • Lower monthly payments: Loans with longer terms will have lower monthly payments than shorter-term loans. However, the benefit of having a longer term may be offset by a higher interest rate. Choose a monthly payment you can afford, but factor in both the interest rate and the loan term when you apply for a loan.

Cons of taking a long-term personal loan

  • Higher interest rates: Lenders may charge higher rates for long-term loans because they are considered more risky. The longer you have to pay back a loan, the greater the possibility that your money situation will change in a way that prevents you from paying back the loan as agreed.

  • More interest: Unless you pay the loan off early, you will pay more in interest over the life of the loan than you would with a shorter-term loan.

  • Your finances might change: Your financial picture is likely to evolve in the course of six to seven years. Carrying a long-term debt means you might have to make trade-offs with future financial decisions.

When to consider a long-term personal loan

A long-term loan is ideal when you’re borrowing a large sum of money and need more time to pay it back. You may need to borrow $50,000 for a major home improvement, like a kitchen remodel, and a longer term will reduce your monthly payments.

If you want a long-term loan to consolidate multiple debts into one simple payment, consider this first: A debt consolidation loan works best if you get a lower interest rate on the loan than the combined interest rate on your existing debt, or if the loan allows you to get rid of debt faster than your current pace.

For example, if you know it will take you 10 years to pay off your cards, a seven-year consolidation loan may be a better option. Use our debt consolidation calculator to estimate potential savings before you opt for a loan.

Where to get a long-term personal loan

Banks: Discover, Wells Fargo, USAA, Santander and U.S. Bank offer loan terms up to seven years, though you may need to be an existing customer to qualify. If you have a good relationship with your bank, you may see other benefits, like lower rates or larger loan amounts. Banks typically look for borrowers with good credit (690 credit score or higher).

Credit unions: First Tech Federal Credit Union offers loan terms up to seven years, while Navy Federal Credit Union offers up to 15 years for home improvement loans. Credit union personal loans tend to have low rates and flexible loan features. Though you’ll first need to join the credit union before applying for a loan, most credit unions consider fair- and bad-credit borrowers (689 credit score or lower).

Online lenders: Only a handful of online lenders offer longer loan terms, including LightStream, SoFi and Upgrade. These lenders cater to borrowers with good credit, with the exception of Upgrade, which accepts borrowers with bad credit (629 credit score or lower). Online loans are fast and convenient, and borrowers usually receive the funds within a few days.

Next steps: Check rates on long-term personal loans

To get a long-term personal loan, you’ll first want to pre-qualify with a few lenders. Pre-qualifying gives you a preview of the loan offers you might receive, without hurting your credit score.

You can pre-qualify with lenders on NerdWallet to see if you're approved for a loan, and if so, at what rate. Once you’ve pre-qualified and compared offers, you can apply for the loan.

CHECK RATES ON NERDWALLET

Last updated on December 18, 2023

Methodology

NerdWallet’s review process evaluates and rates personal loan products from more than 35 technology companies and financial institutions. We collect over 50 data points from each lender and cross-check company websites, earnings reports and other public documents to confirm product details. We may also go through a lender’s pre-qualification flow and follow up with company representatives. NerdWallet writers and editors conduct a full fact check and update annually, but also make updates throughout the year as necessary.

Our star ratings award points to lenders that offer consumer-friendly features, including: soft credit checks to pre-qualify, competitive interest rates and no fees, transparency of rates and terms, flexible payment options, fast funding times, accessible customer service, reporting of payments to credit bureaus and financial education. Our ratings award fewer points to lenders with practices that may make a loan difficult to repay on time, such as charging high annual percentage rates (above 36%), underwriting that does not adequately assess consumers’ ability to repay and lack of credit-building help. We also consider regulatory actions filed by agencies like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. We weigh these factors based on our assessment of which are the most important to consumers and how meaningfully they impact consumers’ experiences.

NerdWallet does not receive compensation for our star ratings. Read more about our ratings methodologies for personal loans and our editorial guidelines.

To recap our selections...

NerdWallet's Best Long-Term Personal Loans

  • SoFi Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • LightStream: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • Discover® Personal Loans: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • Upgrade: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • Wells Fargo Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • First Tech Credit Union Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • Navy Federal Credit Union Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • USAA Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • U.S. Bank Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
  • Santander Personal Loan: Best for Long-term personal loans
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