A personal loan is a fixed-amount, fixed-payment installment loan from a bank, credit union, or online lender. Because it is unsecured (no collateral) and repaid on a set schedule, it is most often used to consolidate higher-rate debt, cover a large one-time expense, or finance something a borrower would rather not put on a credit card.
The two factors that actually move the cost of a personal loan are the annual percentage rate (APR) you qualify for and whether the lender charges any upfront fees (commonly an origination fee, taken out of the loan proceeds). Everything else - term length, monthly payment, total interest - flows from those two numbers.
When comparing options, focus on the APR after fees, the repayment term, the monthly payment, and any prepayment penalties. Use this page to weigh those terms side by side before applying, since each application can trigger a hard credit inquiry.
