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Upstart Reviews

8

bestfor-icon Homeowners planning major projects:

lauren
Written by Lauren Le-Hair

About Upstart | Read More

7.8

LS Score

7.2

Credibility

8.0

Support

9.1

Accessibility

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Opening Hours Opening Hours drop-down-btn
Monday to Sunday 6:00 AM to 5:00 PM PST
Contact Information Contact Information drop-down-btn
  • Support@upstart.com
  • (855) 438-8778
  • Headquarters: 2950 S. Delaware Street #300, San Mateo, CA 94403
Social Media Social Media drop-down-btn
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Upstart Personal Loans Review

Upstart is one of the pioneers of automated personal loans. Its AI and machine learning software used to approve or deny loans is cutting edge, with more than 90% of Upstart-powered loans being fully automated with no human intervention required. By looking beyond traditional underwriting criteria, Upstart evaluates applicants on non-traditional variables like education and employment to help individuals secure fair interest rates. 

Upstart Personal Loans Highlight

300

Min Credit Score

6.20-35.99%

APR. Fixed Rate

$1K-$75K

Loan Amount

3 or 5 years

Repayment terms

Yes

Soft Credit Pull

Marketplace

Lender Type

Yes

Other Fees

0% to 15%

Origination Fee

None

Prepayment Fee

24 hours

Funding Time

Pros & Cons

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  • con-icon A simple, streamlined application process
  • con-icon Accessible to thin credit profiles
  • con-icon Upstart considers broader factors other than just credit rating
  • con-icon No prepayment penalties
  • con-icon Fast funding turnarounds
  • con-icon Expensive origination fees of up to 15%
  • con-icon High maximum APR of up to 35.99% for lower credit tiers
  • con-icon Highly limited repayment terms”

Loan Purpose

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  • Credit Card Refinance
  • Debt Consolidation
  • Home Improvement
  • Major Purchase
  • Medical Expenses
  • Relocation
  • Car Bike Loans
  • Vacation
  • Wedding

Loan Type

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  • Secured Personal Loans
  • Unsecured Personal Loans
  • Fixed-Rate Personal Loans
View rates

Upstart Personal Loans Terms & Requirements

Loan Requirements

  • A minimum credit score of 300 is required, though applicants with no credit history or thin files can also qualify.

  • A minimum regular annual income of $12,000 is required, which can include full-time employment, an accepted job offer starting within 6 months, regular part-time work, or retirement/disability benefits.

  • No recent bankruptcies or unpaid public records within the last 3 years.

  • No current delinquent accounts or loans currently in active default.

  • Fewer than six credit report inquiries within the past six months, excluding any inquiries related to mortgages, student loans, or vehicle loans.

  • Must have a valid U.S. residential address, a personal checking account with a routing number, and a verifiable Social Security number.

Loan Terms

  • Fixed APR rates range from 6.20% to 35.99%, subject to state restrictions and individual underwriting profiles.

  • Personal loan amounts range from $1,000 to $75,000, with higher state-specific minimums applying in Massachusetts ($7,000), Georgia ($3,100), and Hawaii ($2,100).

  • Repayment options are strictly structured as either 3-year or 5-year terms (36 or 60 months).

How to Apply

Applying for an Upstart personal loan online is completely digital and highly streamlined. The entire process is built to work seamlessly on both desktop and mobile devices, allowing you to move from a basic quote to full approval with minimal friction. There is a quick, step-by-step process to checking your personalized rates and receiving your funding.

Here is the updated, accurate text for your description field. The steps have been revised to accurately reflect Upstart’s current digital workflow, fixing factual errors like “savings history” and clarifying exactly when the credit check transitions from a soft to a hard pull.

The periods are placed directly after the words to ensure a clean layout.

  1. Check Your Rate: Start by inputting your basic personal, financial, and employment information, along with your educational history, to see your rate options in under 5 minutes. This process triggers a soft credit check, allowing you to view potential offers with absolutely no impact on your credit score.

  2. Review and Select an Offer: If eligible, you will be presented with conditional loan offers showing your total loan amount, fixed APR, estimated monthly payment, and repayment term options (3 or 5 years). Review your choices and select the specific loan structure that works best for your financial needs.

  3. Verify Your Information: Once you choose an offer and proceed with a full application, a hard credit inquiry will be conducted, which can impact your credit score. Upstart will verify your application details and may request that you quickly upload supporting documents, such as a valid photo ID, bank statements, or proof of income.

  4. Finalize Your Loan: After your information is successfully verified and approved, you will confirm your repayment preferences, select a monthly payment date, and thoroughly review the final loan agreement. You can then formally complete the process by signing the documents online with an electronic signature.

Get Your Funds: Once your loan agreement is fully executed, the funding process moves quickly. If you accept and finalize your loan before 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, Upstart will typically transfer the funds to your bank account as fast as the next business day.

Qualification Requirements

 

Minimum credit score and credit history

Credit score must be above 300

No bankruptcy in the prior 12 months
Debt-to-income ratio 45% or lower in Connecticut, Maryland, New York, and Vermont. 50% or lower in other states.
Citizenship Available for US citizens only
Age Minimum age of 18 (19 in Alabama and Nebraska)
Job Status Must have a full-time job or be able to provide proof of a full-time position starting within six months
Bank Account A valid personal checking account at a U.S. financial institution with a routing number is required during onboarding.

 

Required Information

To start the process of getting a personal loan from Upstart, you need to provide the following items:

  • Full name and date of birth.
  • Valid U.S. residential address (P.O. boxes are not accepted).
  • Social Security Number (SSN).
  • Active phone number and email address.
  • Monthly or annual gross income details (plus any supporting documents like pay stubs or W-2 forms if requested).
  • Employment status and history (or formal documentation of an upcoming job offer).
  • Educational background, including your highest level of education completed, the school attended, and your field of study.
  • Personal bank account details, including routing and account numbers for fund delivery.

Application Steps & Time Frames

Checking your initial rate takes less than 5 minutes and features a completely digital workflow. If you accept and finalize your loan agreement before 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, your funds will typically be transferred to your bank account as fast as the next business day. Keep in mind that when your funds become fully available to clear depends entirely on your individual bank’s transaction processing times and policies.

State Availability

Available - Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming

Not Available - Iowa, West Virginia

lauren
Written by Lauren Le-Hair linkedin-icon

As an experienced content writer, Lauren's passion for the finance sector is only exceeded by her love of writing. With years of experience writing for financial websites, she has honed her expertise and developed a deep understanding of the industry. Lauren specializes in delivering top-quality, specialized content with an expert tone of voice and a unique flair, leveraging her extensive knowledge and expertise. In addition, she holds a First Class Bachelor's degree from Staffordshire University.

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FAQ’s

What types of financing options can I find on the Upstart platform?

Through Upstart's digital marketplace, users can access several consumer financial products provided by their lending network. This includes unsecured personal loans for debt consolidation or major purchases, auto refinancing plans, and specialized home equity lines of credit (HELOCs).

How does Upstart determine an applicant's creditworthiness?

Upstart uses advanced AI software to assess financial capability. Instead of relying strictly on traditional credit scores, the platform’s machine learning model securely analyzes a variety of consumer variables, including verified income, employment status, and educational history to form a complete financial profile.

Will reviewing my initial loan offers hurt my credit score?

No. Checking your pre-qualification rate options on the platform initiates a soft credit check, which lets you view personalized interest rates and financing terms with absolutely no impact on your credit score. A traditional hard inquiry is only executed if you choose an offer and proceed to finalize a formal application.

Customer Support

You can contact Upstart’s customer support team seven days a week via phone, email, or social media. For application or general lending inquiries, their customer care lines are available Monday through Sunday from 6:00 AM to 5:00 PM PT (9:00 AM to 8:00 PM ET). However, your first port of call should be their comprehensive online Help Center and FAQ database, which answer many commonly asked questions regarding verification documents and account dashboard setups.

When reaching out to Upstart via email, the team is highly responsive, helpful, and professional. Having regular access to a live customer care team helps make navigating the automated verification and underwriting process a much more straightforward experience.

Privacy & Security

As an AI-powered lending platform, Upstart takes data privacy and regulatory compliance seriously, utilizing rigorous security measures to protect consumer information.

Here is a breakdown of how your data is handled and secured:

  • Data Sharing Practices: In line with standard digital lending practices, Upstart collects personal and financial data to evaluate creditworthiness and verify borrower profiles. This information is shared only with necessary, authorized parties—such as partner financial institutions, credit bureaus, and trustees—to process applications and service active accounts.

  • No Selling of Data: Upstart explicitly does not sell your personal or financial information to third-party companies for marketing or advertising purposes.

  • Airtight Safeguards: The platform implements robust electronic, administrative, and physical safeguards. This includes end-to-end data encryption both in transit and at rest, mandatory multi-factor authentication for data access, and continuous network firewall monitoring to prevent unauthorized access.

In Conclusion

Upstart stands out as a true disruptor in the consumer finance space, leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning to make borrowing fairer and more accessible. By looking beyond the narrow lens of traditional credit scores and incorporating holistic variables like your income, employment history, and education, the platform effectively expands financing opportunities to a broader demographic, including those with limited credit files. Whether you are looking to consolidate high-interest debt with an unsecured personal loan, refinance a vehicle, or tap into equity with a home line of credit, the platform’s massive marketplace of over 100 partner banks and credit unions provides highly versatile funding options.

The speed and digital transparency of the system are its greatest strengths, allowing users to check their rate options in under five minutes with zero initial credit impact, with approved personal loan funds sent as fast as the next business day. However, borrowers should remain mindful that the fixed interest rates can scale up to 35.99% APR for lower credit tiers, and individual partner lenders can apply origination fees scaling up to 15%. Ultimately, if you are looking for an efficient, digital-first marketplace that rewards your future financial potential rather than just your past credit history, Upstart offers an innovative and highly competitive lending solution.

Brand Disclaimer

Upstart is an artificial intelligence marketplace platform; it is not a direct lender. All consumer loans and lines of credit available through the platform are originated by Upstart’s extensive network of partner banks, financial institutions, and credit unions. Final credit amounts, interest rates, fixed or variable APR structures, and available terms vary significantly depending on the specific product track selected, your state of residence, and individual underwriting criteria. Checking initial rates utilizes a soft credit check that has no impact on your credit rating; a hard credit pull is only conducted when completing a formal application, which can affect your credit file. Product options and minimum limits are subject to change without notice and are governed by state law.