2023 Avant Personal Loan Review
NMLS#1136
Read more about how we rated Avant.Avant is an online lender that offers loan and credit card products. You can use an unsecured Avant personal loan for a variety of purposes, including emergencies, debt consolidation and home improvement.
- Low minimum credit score required: Borrowers with a credit score of over 580 may be eligible for loan approval, though other factors are considered during the application process as well. Terms may be less favorable for borrowers with worse credit.
- Possible “administration” fees: Avant deducts an origination fee from some of its loans. Up to 4.75% of loan funding may be withheld from the principal deposit.
- Flexible loan terms: Avant offers loan durations as short as 12 to 60 months, which is shorter than many competitors. Its longest loan is 60 months — more time to pay back a bigger loan.
- Prequalification available: Avant allows you to see conditional loan terms, interest rates and funding amounts without a hard credit pull.
- Best for borrowers shopping for a rate: Because of prequalification, you can determine whether Avant offers competitive terms given your financial situation and credit history.
Avant pros and cons
Because it offers a wide range of potential APRs, Avant’s specific pros and cons may depend on your credit score. Borrowers with excellent credit probably wouldn’t have to pay a high APR, for example.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Offers access to borrowers with lower credit scores You can prequalify to receive conditional loan terms Avant offers smaller and shorter loans than other lenders | High potential maximum APR (35.95%) Charges origination fees for some borrowers Avant loans aren’t available nationwide |
Avant has a wide range of possible APRs, so borrowers with better credit may fall close to the minimum of 9.95%, but borrowers with worse credit may need to pay a rate closer to the 35.95% maximum, on top of the origination fee. That’s fairly standard across the industry, but Avant has a broader range than many lenders.
Fortunately, you can prequalify to see what rate you might get. Avant does have potentially high rates — especially when you include the origination fee — but that’s true for many lenders that offer loans for borrowers with lower credit scores.
In 2019, Avant agreed to settle charges from the Federal Trade Commission, including unauthorized charges on customer accounts and unlawfully requiring automatic payments. The company was ordered to repay $3.85 million to customers as part of the settlement.
Avant requirements
Avant doesn’t specify much of its eligibility criteria beyond its minimum credit score, even though it does verify your income and employment, asks for your monthly mortgage or rent payment and may consider other factors beyond your credit score. You must also have a bank account to qualify for an Avant personal loan.
Note, however, that Avant loans are not available in every state — if you live in Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, New York, Vermont or West Virginia, you won’t be able to get one.
If Avant’s loan options won’t work for your borrowing needs, be sure to shop around for the best personal loan that helps you meet your financial goals and can offer you good rates, terms and amounts.
See New Mexico consumer brochure for common terms and definitions and regulations around rates and fees.
How to get a loan with Avant
Avant has a quick and easy application process online:
Prequalify
Avant asks for quite a bit of information during the prequalification process: you’ll provide your name, address, email, date of birth, Social Security number, type of residence, housing costs, income type and amount, loan purpose, how much funding you’d like and your credit quality.
Receive loan terms
Avant provides conditional loan terms within minutes in some cases. Once you receive those, you may need to provide supporting documentation before formally applying for the loan. Avant will run a hard credit check to pull your credit score and credit report if you choose to move forward.
Approval and funding
If you prequalify, you’ll likely be able to get approved for a loan — and if you agree to its terms, you can receive funding from Avant by the next business day. If you have an administration fee, the bank deposit would be a few percentage points smaller than the size of the loan.
If you can’t prequalify for an Avant loan, there are some ways to improve your credit score and chances of approval.
How Avant compares to other personal loan companies
Even if you believe Avant aligns with what you’re looking for in a personal loan, it never hurts to shop around and compare lenders. Here’s how Avant stacks up against similar personal loan lenders.
| Lender | Avant | Best Egg | Prosper |
|---|---|---|---|
| LendingTree’s rating | 3.5/5 | 4.3/5 (Read review) | 4.3/5 (Read review) |
| Minimum credit score | 580 | 600 | 560 |
| APRs | 9.95% - 35.95% | 8.99% - 35.99% | 6.99% - 35.99% |
| Loan amount | $2,000 to $35,000 | $2,000 to $50,000 | $2,000 to $50,000 |
| Repayment term | 12 to 60 months | 36 to 60 months | 24 to 60 months |
| Origination fee | Up to 4.75% | 0.99% - 8.99% | 1.00% - 7.99% |
| Funding timeline | Receive funds as soon as the next day | Receive funds as soon as the next day | Receive funds as soon as the next day |
| Bottom line | Avant has the shortest loan terms available | Best Egg can have high origination fees | Prosper has the lowest potential APR |
How we rated Avant
To come up with our star rating for personal loan companies, LendingTree considered 22 data points across three categories:
- Accessibility: We paid attention to whether lenders offered loans to nontraditional borrowers, as well as those without excellent credit scores. We also checked if lenders offered soft credit pulls, and whether they were transparent about eligibility criteria other than credit scores.
- Rates and terms: We wanted to know if lender rates, terms, amounts and fees were not only transparent, but also competitive.
- Repayment experience: We based this category on lenders’ reputations, customer support availability and unique benefits.
The data points reflect every step of the process to shop and apply for, borrow and repay personal loans. A five-star lender, for instance, has flexible eligibility requirements, offers you the chance to prequalify without commitment and supports you in zeroing your balance.
Data points, culled from the lenders themselves, determine the overall rating. We score lenders consistently, sometimes awarding partial points, so that you can make apples-to-apples comparisons when shopping around.
LendingTree isn’t paid for conducting these reviews, and lenders don’t have control over their content. With our reviews and ratings, we aim to give our users the objective and exhaustive information they need to make the best possible decisions.
Frequently asked questions
The exact size of your loan may depend on eligibility factors and what you intend to use the loan for, but the maximum overall loan amount is $35,000.
Avant requires proof of income, which can include fixed income like Social Security or a pension, and doesn’t necessarily require employment. You will need to provide documentation to corroborate your stated income.
You can receive conditional loan offers while only taking a soft credit check, but if you choose to move forward with the loan, Avant will do a hard credit check as part of the approval process.