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Debt consolidation may be a good fit if you have multiple high-interest debts, such as credit card balances, and can qualify for a lower-cost loan with repayment terms you can afford. Your credit profile, income and existing debt can all affect the options available to you.
Here's what to know about who may benefit from debt consolidation, where to find debt consolidation loans, plus how best to prep before taking one out.
Is debt consolidation a good idea?
- Who benefits from debt consolidation?
- Where to find the best debt consolidation loans
- How to prepare for a debt consolidation loan
7.99%–35.99%
Loan amountsUp to $50,000
LEARN MOREAvant Personal LoansAnnual percentage rate (APR)9.95% to 35.99%
Loan amounts$2,000 to $35,000
LEARN MOREWho benefits from debt consolidation?
Consolidating debt through a personal loan makes most sense if you fit the below:
- You have several credit card balances or other debts and want to combine them into one payment
- You're paying high interest rates, particularly on credit cards
- You have steady income and a realistic plan to make the new payments
- You have good enough credit to potentially qualify for a lower-rate personal loan
- You want to simplify repayment by having one monthly payment instead of several
- You can avoid accumulating new debt after consolidating
What to watch out for: If the new debt consolidation loan doesn't meaningfully reduce your interest rate or monthly cost, it's likely that a longer repayment period (if that's the case) would substantially increase your total interest paid, making it not a good fit.
Where to find the best debt consolidation loans
There are many online lenders that offer solid personal loan options when you want to consolidate your debt.
LightStream is good for fast funding as it can approve and fund a loan the same day you apply, as long as you sign by 2:30 p.m. ET. It also lets you choose your funding date and repayment terms.
SoFi doesn't charge late fees, nor an origination fee and you can make extra payments or pay off your loan early without penalty. Plus, SoFi membership comes with referral bonuses, rate discounts* and financial planning tools.
LightStream Personal Loans
Learn MoreLearn MoreSpotlight
Best if you need more time to pay off your loan.
LightStream's repayment terms can be as long as 240 months (for certain purposes), which gives you far more flexibility for fitting payments into your budget
See if you're pre-approved for a personal loan offer.
Credit scoreTerms24 to 240 months, depending on loan purpose.
Loan amounts$5,000 to $100,000
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)9.99% - 24.94%* APR with AutoPay. 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.
Our expert take
We like that LightStream offers competitive APRs, no late or origination fees and long loan term options. But you can't prequalify and the loan minimum may be too high if you only need to borrow a small amount.
Pros & cons
- Same-day funding available.
- Loan amounts up to $100,000.
- No origination fee or late fee.
- The minimum loan amount is $5,000.
- Prequalification not available.
- No option to pay your creditors directly.
SoFi Personal Loans
Learn MoreLearn MoreSpotlight
Best if you need a larger loan.
SoFi approves loans for as much as $100,000, with no origination or application fee.
See if you're pre-approved for a personal loan offer.
Credit scoreTerms24 to 84 months
Loan amounts$5,000 to $100,000
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)8.74% - 35.49% when you sign up for autopay
Our expert take
We like that SoFi has high loan caps and doesn't charge any origination fee, so borrowers get the full amount funded. The credit requirements can be stringent, however, and interest rates for weaker applicants are on the higher side.
Pros & cons
- Loans approved for up to $100,000
- No origination fee or late fee
- Next-day funding available
- Accepts co-borrowers
- Minimum loan amount is $5,000
- High APR for fair/low credit
More details
Fixed rates from 8.74% APR to 35.49% APR. APR reflect the 0.25% autopay interest rate discount and a 0.25% SoFi Plus interest rate discount. SoFi Platform personal loans are made either by SoFi Bank, N.A. or, Cross River Bank, a New Jersey State Chartered Commercial Bank, operating from its Delaware branch, Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender. SoFi may receive compensation if you take out a loan originated by Cross River Bank. These rate ranges are current as of 02/23/26 and are subject to change without notice. Not all rates and amounts available in all states. See SoFi Personal Loan eligibility details at https://www.sofi.com/eligibility-criteria/#eligibility-personal. Not all applicants qualify for the lowest rate. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on a variety of factors, including evaluation of your credit worthiness, income, and other factors.
Although the better your credit, the more likely you are to get a lower interest rate on your debt consolidation loan, if you do have bad credit or no credit and need to combine multiple debts, consider Achieve or Upstart.
Achieve approves debt consolidation loans for borrowers with a FICO® Score of 560 and Upstart's underwriting model looks at hundreds of data points beyond your credit score, including education, work history, income and savings patterns.
Achieve® Personal Loans
Learn MoreLearn MoreSpotlight
Great for borrowers with bad credit.
Achieve considers applicants with credit scores starting at 560.
See if you're pre-approved for a personal loan offer.
Credit scoreN/A
Terms24, 36, 48 or 60 months
Loan amounts$5,000 to $50,000
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)6.25% to 35.99% (including origination fees from 1.99% to 9.99%)
Our expert take
If you don't have excellent credit, Achieve is a good option — it accepts borrowers with bad credit, as well as applicants with co-borrowers or co-signers, which can help improve the odds of approval and favorable rates. If you don't need a large loan, however, Achieve's $5,000 loan minimum may mean you need to look elsewhere.
Pros & cons
- Works with borrowers with 560 FICO Score.
- Allows co-borrowers.
- Rate discount available for direct creditor pay-off.
- Charges an origination fee.
- Cannot use collateral
- Loans are not available in all states
Upstart Personal Loans
Learn MoreLearn MoreSpotlight
Designed for applicants with low or no credit score.
Upstart considers applicants with FICO Scores of 300 (the lowest possible) and those with insufficient credit history.
See if you're pre-approved for a personal loan offer.
Credit scoreTerms36 and 60 months
Loan amounts$1,000 to $75,000
Annual Percentage Rate (APR)6.30% - 35.99%
Our expert take
We like that Upstart considers factors besides credit score, including education, income and employment history. However, co-signers aren't accepted.
Pros & cons
- Accept applicants with bad or no credit
- Minimum APR is lower than many competitors'
- Approves personal loans up to $75,000
- Most loans are funded the next business day
- Origination fee of 0% to 10%
- Doesn't allow co-signers or co-borrowers
How to prepare for a debt consolidation loan
Before committing to a new personal loan, Anna N'Jie-Konte, a CFP at Poder Wealth Advisors, recommends getting a clear picture of your actual monthly expenses. Don't consolidate your debt without first fixing the habits that led to the debt in the first place, she suggests.
You can do this with a budgeting app that tracks where your money is going, so the loan terms you choose actually match your real cash flow and other financial goals, not just what feels manageable in the moment.
If you're new to budgeting, Rocket Money has a free version that automatically categorizes each transaction, allows you to customize budgets, plus it offers subscription management and bill tracking. The app also provides monthly snapshots of your total spending and income.
PocketGuard is a great budgeting tool if you're prone to overspending because it notifies you if you're approaching or exceeding your limit in any spending category. You can also create up to five custom "rules" to monitor specific categories, accounts or merchants.
Rocket Money
Learn MoreCost
The basic plan is free. Rocket Money Premium is $7 to $14 a month with a 7-day free trial. Bill negotiation services cost 35% to 60% of the first-year savings, if the negotiation is successful.
Standout features
Easily cancel unwanted subscriptions, track your spending and credit score, automate savings and get help lowering bills. Rocket Money Premium includes additional services like net-worth tracking, credit reports and a subscription cancellation concierge service
Security
Rocket Money accesses transaction data via an encrypted token, uses Plaid API so user credentials are never stored, provides bank-level 256-bit encryption and hosts servers on Amazon Web Services
Availability
Offered online and on both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
Terms apply.
Pros
- Allows you to easily view and cancel unwanted subscriptions
- Offers a free version
- A+ from Better Business Bureau
Cons
- Nonrefundable bill negotiation fee can be up to 60% of savings
- Premium pricing varies
PocketGuard
Learn MoreInformation about PocketGuard has been collected independently by CNBC Select and has not been reviewed or provided by PocketGuard prior to publication.Cost
7 day free trial. PocketGuard Premium is $12.99 per month or $74.99 ($6.25/month) annually. Lifetime membership available at a reduced rate.
Standout features
"In My Pocket" uses your income, recurring expenses and savings goals to determine how much you have for everyday spending.
Categorizes your expenses
Yes, but users can customize
Links to accounts
Yes, users can connect accounts through Plaid and Finicity or manually add cash accounts
Availability
Offered in both the App Store (for iOS) and on Google Play (for Android)
Security features
PocketGuard utilizes bank-level encryption, PINs and biometrics like Touch ID and Face ID.
Terms apply.
Pros
- Includes payment tracker and bill-negotiation service
- Lifetime membership option for additional savings
- A+ from Better Business Bureau
Cons
- Limited free tier, with users encouraged to upgrade to Premium for full functionality.
- Transactions may be categorized incorrectly
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Meet our experts
At CNBC Select, we work with experts who have specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. For this story, we interviewed Anna N'Jie-Konte, a certified financial planner and founder / CEO of Poder Wealth Advisors.
Why trust CNBC Select?
At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every debt consolidation article is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of loan products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.
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The best debt consolidation loansBest debt consolidation loans for bad creditThe best 0% APR credit cardsDebt consolidation loan vs. 0% APR credit card: Which is better?*To be eligible for an additional 0.25% interest rate reduction on a Personal Loan, you must, within 31 days of loan funding, either (1) meet SoFi Plus eligibility criteria, (2) receive an Eligible Direct Deposit into a SoFi Checking or Savings account, or (3) receive at least $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits into a SoFi Checking or Savings account. You must continue to meet at least one of the above eligibility criteria every 31 days to maintain the discount. See the SoFi Plus terms for details on SoFi Plus subscription. For more details on Eligible Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits, please see https://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet. Once you become eligible during the initial period, the discount will be removed or reinstated depending on whether the criteria have been met. Each time your loan is re-amortized, your monthly payment amount will change based upon the interest rate that was in place. SoFi reserves the right to modify or terminate this offer at any time for unenrolled participants. You are not required to meet these criteria to be approved for a loan.
Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Select editorial staff’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any third party.Latest
