Best Credit Card Consolidation Loans in January 2024

Checking rates won't affect your credit score

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LendingTree is compensated by companies on this site and this compensation may impact how and where offers appear on this site (such as the order). LendingTree does not include all lenders, savings products, or loan options available in the marketplace.
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Best loans to pay off credit card debt

Written by Alex Cook and Carol Pope | Edited by Jessica Sain-Baird and Xiomara Martinez-White | Updated December 28, 2023
How Does LendingTree Get Paid?
LendingTree is compensated by companies on this site and this compensation may impact how and where offers appear on this site (such as the order). LendingTree does not include all lenders, savings products, or loan options available in the marketplace.

How Does LendingTree Get Paid?

LendingTree is compensated by companies on this site and this compensation may impact how and where offers appear on this site (such as the order). LendingTree does not include all lenders, savings products, or loan options available in the marketplace.
LenderUser ratingsBest for…APR rangeLoan termsLoan amountsCredit score required
Discover logo
(1,592)
User Ratings & Reviews rating-reviews-tooltip-icon

Ratings and reviews are from real consumers who have used the lending partner’s services.

Repayment assistance options7.99% to 24.99%36 to 84 months$2,500 - $40,000720View Personalized Offers
Happy Money logoPersonalized service11.72% to 24.67%24 to 60 months$5,000 - $40,000640View Personalized Offers
Laurel Road logoUser ratings
coming soon
Midsize credit card consolidation loan9.49% to 24.25% (with autopay)36 to 60 months$5,000 - $45,000Not specifiedView Personalized Offers
Long-term credit card consolidation loans9.49% to 25.49% (with autopay)24 to 84 months$5,000 - $100,000Not specifiedView Personalized Offers
(3,619)
User Ratings & Reviews rating-reviews-tooltip-icon

Ratings and reviews are from real consumers who have used the lending partner’s services.

Peer-to-peer lending6.99% to 35.99%24 to 60 months$2,000 - $50,000560View Personalized Offers
(94)
User Ratings & Reviews rating-reviews-tooltip-icon

Ratings and reviews are from real consumers who have used the lending partner’s services.

Credit card consolidation loans with no fees8.99% to 25.81% (with discounts)24 to 84 months$5,000 - $100,000680View Personalized Offers
(15,418)
User Ratings & Reviews rating-reviews-tooltip-icon

Ratings and reviews are from real consumers who have used the lending partner’s services.

Bad-credit borrowers6.40% to 35.99%36 and 60 months$1,000 - $50,000300View Personalized Offers
Read more about how we chose our picks for best credit card consolidation loans.

Credit card consolidation lenders at a glance

Discover logo

Discover: Best for repayment assistance options

APR range7.99% to 24.99%
Loan amounts$2,500 - $40,000
Loan terms36 to 84 months
Origination feeNo origination fee
Minimum credit score720
ProsCons

 Multiple assistance options if you can’t make your payment

 Competitive APRs

 Low annual income requirement

 Low maximum loan amount

 Not available to bad-credit borrowers

 $39 late payment fee

Happy Money logo

Happy Money: Best for personalized service

APR range11.72% to 24.67%
Loan amounts$5,000 - $40,000
Loan terms24 to 60 months
Origination fee1.50% - 6.25%
Minimum credit score640
ProsCons

 Specializes in credit card consolidation

 Live chat

 Customer-friendly desktop interface

 Possible origination fee

 High minimum loan amount

 High minimum APR

Laurel Road logo

Laurel Road: Best for midsize credit card consolidation loan

APR range9.49% to 24.25% (with autopay)
Loan amounts$5,000 - $45,000
Loan terms36 to 60 months
Origination feeNo origination fee
Minimum credit scoreNot specified
ProsCons

 Low maximum APR

 No origination fee

 Can include a cosigner

 Fewer loan terms available

 Doesn’t disclose minimum credit score

 Customer service unavailable on weekends

LightStream logo

LightStream: Best for long-term credit card consolidation loan

APR range9.49% to 25.49% (with autopay)
Loan amounts$5,000 - $100,000
Loan terms24 to 84 months
Origination feeNo origination fee
Minimum credit scoreNot specified
ProsCons

 Wide range of loan terms available

 Offers large loans

 Low maximum APR

 Minimum credit score not specified

 No prequalification

 Mobile app is poorly rated

Prosper logo

Prosper: Best for peer-to-peer lending

APR range6.99% to 35.99%
Loan amounts$2,000 - $50,000
Loan terms24 to 60 months
Origination fee1.00% - 7.99%
Minimum credit score560
ProsCons

 Smaller loan size

 Lower minimum APR

 Joint loans available

 Charges an origination fee

 Terms are not as flexible

 Long timeline for loan approval decision

SoFi logo

SoFi: Best for credit card consolidation loan with no fees

APR range8.99% to 25.81% (with autopay and direct deposit discounts)
Loan amounts$5,000 - $100,000
Loan terms24 to 84 months
Origination fee0.00% to 6.00% (not required)
Minimum credit score680
ProsCons

 No extra fees

 Flexible loan terms

 Large loans available

 Need at least good credit to qualify

 Higher minimum APR

 Can be hard to qualify

Upstart logo

Upstart: Best for bad-credit borrowers

APR range6.40% to 35.99%
Loan amounts$1,000 - $50,000
Loan terms36 and 60 months
Origination fee0.00% - 12.00%
Minimum credit score300
ProsCons

 Can qualify with no credit or bad credit

 Competitive APRs for those with excellent credit

 Low minimum loan amount

 Fewer options for repayment terms

 Potential for high origination fee

 Maximum APR is high

 

What is a credit card consolidation loan?

Credit card consolidation is the process of taking out a personal loan to pay off existing credit card debt. Depending on your credit score, income and level of existing debt, your credit card consolidation loan may come with a lower rate than what you’re currently paying on your credit cards.

Once you’ve gotten a credit card consolidation loan, you could either pay off your credit cards yourself, or have your new creditor pay them directly. Although you won’t be eliminating your debt, consolidation will help you avoid juggling multiple credit card payments. Instead, you’ll be responsible for one single personal loan payment.

How to get a credit card consolidation loan

The process for getting a credit card consolidation loan is similar to getting any other personal loan:

1. Determine your needs

Before consolidating your credit card debt, you’ll need to know what credit card APRs you’re paying. This will help you determine whether the personal loan offers you receive are competitive for your personal situation.

To figure out what loan amount you should apply for, you’ll also need to add up all of your current card balances. Make sure that the math makes sense before committing — once your credit cards are consolidated, the process can’t be reversed.

2. Research lenders

Don’t necessarily choose a loan from the first lender you find. When making a big financial decision like taking out a consolidation loan, you’ll want to see what’s out there first. For instance, some lenders specialize in bad-credit loans, while others cater to those with excellent credit. Researching lenders can help ensure that you get the consolidation loan with the best terms, based on your financial situation.

3. Prequalify

Prequalification doesn’t hurt your credit score and is an important step in the consolidation process. By prequalifying, you can see what lenders can offer you in terms of funding amount, monthly payment and interest rate. Prequalify for several lenders and see how they stack up.

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4. Apply for a loan

Once you’ve decided which lender you’d like to work with, you’ll have to apply for the personal loan. This process will involve a hard credit check and a detailed review of your credit history and financial situation. You’ll likely have to include several documents confirming your identity and information.

5. Pay off your debt

Once you’ve been approved, your lender may help you pay off your credit card issuers — but some might not. You may have to pay the debts yourself once you receive the loan funds in your bank account. Then, you’ll begin to pay off the new consolidation loan on a monthly basis.

Pros and cons of using a personal loan to pay off credit cards

ProsCons

 Could save money on interest by reducing APR

 Sets a new payment schedule, which can reduce size of monthly payment

 Simplifies debt payments into a single monthly payment

 Could drive you deeper into debt if you can’t repay the new loan

 Might not reduce overall amount of interest payments on the debt

 May include origination fees on the new consolidation loan

Should I consolidate credit card debt?

Everyone’s financial situation is unique, and your decision whether to consolidate credit card debt will ultimately come down to whether the terms of your new loan would be better than the debt payments you’re already making.

 When it makes sense to consolidate credit card debt

  • If it lowers your monthly debt payment, making it more manageable to pay on time
  • If you can find a better APR on a personal loan than what you’re paying on credit cards
  • If you’re having a difficult time deciding which debt payments to pay off first or how quickly

 When it doesn’t sense to consolidate credit card debt

  • If you can’t find a personal loan with a lower APR than the rates you’re paying on your credit card debt
  • If you don’t want to take another hard credit check or you’ve opened several new accounts recently
  • If you don’t think you can make the new monthly payment consistently

Does credit card consolidation affect your credit score?

Taking out any new loan will cause your credit score to fall during the application process, but unless you’ve been opening a lot of new loans or credit cards lately, the drop from that hard credit check probably won’t be significant.

If you make regular debt payments on time, your credit score will gradually rise, but missing payments or becoming delinquent on the loan will hurt it. Credit card consolidation loans can be a helpful part of the credit repair process, especially if you’ve been juggling several debt payments, but only if you can make your new payment each month.

Your credit score could also change, depending on how you handle your credit cards after consolidating the debt. For example, if you close your credit cards after paying them off, your total credit line would fall and your credit utilization ratio could be negatively impacted. On the other hand, taking out a personal loan could improve your credit mix slightly if you haven’t used that type of credit before.

Alternatives to credit card consolidation

If you’re stuck in credit card debt and looking for a way out, there are options for debt management aside from a consolidation loan:

 Talk to your credit card issuer

Sometimes your credit card company may be willing to help work out a payment plan to let you repay your debts, especially if you’ve fallen behind due to an extenuating circumstance, like a severe financial emergency or unexpected job loss. They want to make sure you’ll be able to pay the debt in full, so they might agree to smaller payments over a longer timeframe.

 Debt management plan via credit counseling

Credit counselors provide services to debtors, including contacting creditors to help negotiate, crafting debt management plans and providing budgeting advice. These accredited professionals often work for nonprofit companies that help people get out of debt and set them up for financial success. Their advice could be helpful if you’re in credit card debt.

 Debt snowball or debt avalanche method

There are many theories on the best way to pay off debt fast. Two common methods are the debt snowball or debt avalanche. With the snowball method, you’ll focus on paying off the smallest debts first to build momentum and work your way toward bigger debts; with the avalanche method, you’ll pay your highest interest debt first, regardless of size. Under either plan, you’ll also make minimum payments on all other debts.

 Balance transfer credit card with 0% APR offer

Some credit card issuers offer cards designed to help pay off credit card debt. With a balance transfer card, you can move some — or even all — of your credit card debts to a new card. If it has a 0% APR introductory period (which often lasts over a year), you can make payments with interest paused. But beware: If you don’t successfully pay off the card by the end of that period, you could wind up deeper in debt.

How we chose the best credit card consolidation loans

We reviewed more than 28 lenders to determine the overall best seven credit card consolidation loans. To make our list, lenders must offer joint loans with competitive annual percentage rates (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.

Frequently asked questions

You shouldn’t have to pay out of pocket to take out a personal loan — that could be a sign of predatory lending. However, depending on the lender, you may need to pay an origination fee, which is deducted from your loan amount. You’ll also pay interest over the life of your loan, but this is included in your monthly payment.

It depends. A balance transfer credit card can be a great tool if it comes with 0% interest and you know you can pay off your debt during the introductory period. If you need more than a year to pay your debt, a personal loan may make more sense since loan terms commonly reach five years (or longer).

This is largely a personal choice. If you only have two credit cards with a combined total balance of $500, it probably doesn’t make sense to consolidate. But those who owe a significant amount spread across multiple cards may find that a credit card consolidation loan can make it easier to create a budget to pay off debt and may provide a lower APR.