Best Motorcycle Loans in 2025
Find the best bike loan with no impact to your credit score
Motorcycle lenders at a glance
How does motorcycle financing work?
Motorcycle financing works like other types of financing. Instead of paying for your motorcycle up front, you take out a loan from a bank, credit union or online lender. Then, you pay back what you borrowed plus interest in monthly installments. You’ll usually have between 12 and 84 months to pay off your purchase.
Motorcycles are fun to have, but they don’t qualify as an essential purchase for most people. Before you get your heart set on a new bike, be sure that you aren’t ignoring other priorities like creating an emergency fund or getting out of debt.
Types of motorcycle loans
There are two types of motorcycle loans: secured and unsecured. The terms we’ve listed above are for unsecured loans, meaning your motorcycle won’t act as collateral for your loan.
UNSECURED
- No down payment
- Won’t lose motorcycle if you miss payments
- Easy to find
- Higher interest rates
SECURED
- Lower interest rates
- Can be easier to get with bad credit
- Down payment usually required
- Lender can take your motorcycle if you miss payments
Where to get a secured motorcycle loan
We’ve listed the best unsecured motorcycle loans on this page, but if you want a secured motorcycle loan, consider these options:
Manufacturer motorcycle loans
Best for: Buying new bikes
Manufacturer loans are offered by the brand of your motorcycle, like Honda or Suzuki. These loans tend to have some of the most competitive rates, especially during the holidays. It’s common for manufacturers to offer deals and buyer incentives during this time.
Bank motorcycle loans
Best for: Current customers
Some banks offer secured motorcycle loans, but they might refer to them by a different name, like a powersport loan, or lump them in with RV loans. Check with your bank to see if they have secured motorcycle loans, since bank loans tend to come with low rates and few fees.
Credit union motorcycle loan
Best for: Deal hunters
Credit union motorcycle loans generally come with low APRs, making them ideal for bargain hunters. For instance, Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) offers motorcycle loans with rates as low as 7.25%. You can also borrow up to 125% of your bike’s value to pay for related expenses like protective gear.
In-house financing, or buy here, pay here lots, usually have the worst terms of all motorcycle loan options. These lots target bad-credit borrowers by making their loans easy to get. In turn, their loans come with much higher rates — meaning less money in your pocket.
How to find a motorcycle loan
1. Shop for a bike
At this point, you don’t need to know exactly what bike you’re going to buy, but you do need to have an idea of how much it will cost. Add up the cost of the motorcycle and everything else you need, like protective gear, insurance and motorcycle classes. You can roll these expenses into your loan. Then, use our motorcycle loan calculator to get a feel for your monthly loan payment.
2. Check your credit score
Check your credit score for free with LendingTree Spring. Knowing your score will help you understand what loans you can qualify for and whether their rates are competitive.
3. Shop around and compare
You can get motorcycle loan offers from up to five of our trusted lending partners when you fill out a single form with LendingTree. You could save up to $3,138 by shopping around for a personal loan.
4. Get your money
When you’ve found the best loan for your situation, it’s time to fill out a formal application and get your money. The lender will likely send it to you via direct deposit, and you can use the loan money to pay for your bike.
How to get a motorcycle loan with bad credit
Getting a motorcycle loan with bad credit isn’t impossible, but the monthly payments may be out of your budget. These tips will help you get approved for a more affordable loan.
Pay off debt.
Lenders look at your debt-to-income ratio when you apply for a motorcycle loan. If your DTI ratio is higher than 35%, consider paying some outstanding debts before applying for more.
Add a co-borrower or cosigner.
Taking out a joint loan with a creditworthy family member or friend could land you a loan with lower rates. Keep in mind that late payments will affect their credit score as much as yours. Your co-borrower will also have equal access to the loan, though a cosigner will not.
Consider a secured loan.
Offering up your motorcycle as collateral on a secured loan may help you get approved. You’ll typically find these loans with banks and credit unions.
Frequently asked questions
It’s difficult to get an affordable unsecured motorcycle loan (or personal loan) if your credit score is below 640. Some lenders specialize in bad credit, but you’ll pay higher APRs.
Generally, secured motorcycle loans are easier to get, since they use your bike as collateral (and sometimes require a down payment). Still, putting down collateral doesn’t guarantee approval.
The hard credit pull that lenders run when you apply for a motorcycle loan will cause a slight, temporary drop to your credit score. In the long run, making on-time loan payments will boost your credit, but missing payments will tank your score.
Based on our unbiased research, the best motorcycle loans come from:
- Discover: Best motorcycle loans for excellent customer service
- Navy Federal Credit Union: Best motorcycle loans for people with military ties
- PenFed Credit Union: Best small motorcycle loans
- SoFi: Best quick motorcycle loans
- Upgrade: Best motorcycle loans if you also need a new bank account
- Upstart: Best motorcycle loans for bad credit
Our methodology
We reviewed more than 30 lenders to determine the overall best six motorcycle loans. To make our list, lenders must offer personal loans that can be used to purchase a motorcycle with competitive APRs. From there, we prioritize lenders based on the following factors:
Accessibility. Lenders are ranked higher if their personal loans are available to more people and require fewer conditions. This may include lower credit requirements, wider geographic availability, faster funding and easier and more transparent prequalification and application processes.
Rates and terms. We prioritize lenders with more competitive fixed rates, fewer fees and greater options for repayment terms, loan amounts and APR discounts.
Repayment experience. For starters, we consider each lender’s reputation and business practices. We also favor lenders that report to all major credit bureaus, offer reliable customer service and provide any unique perks to customers, like free wealth coaching.
According to our systematic rating and review process, the best motorcycle loans come from Discover, Navy Federal Credit Union, PenFed Credit Union, SoFi, Upgrade and Upstart.