These top student loan refinance companies can save you hundreds of dollars in interest each month

Select ’ s editorial team works independently to review fiscal products and write articles we think our readers will find useful. We earn a commission from affiliate partners on many offers, but not all offers on Select are from consort partners. Editor ‘s note : The APRs listed in this article are up-to-date as of the fourth dimension of issue. They may fluctuate ( up or down ) as the Fed rate changes. Select will update as changes are made populace. While a college degree normally guarantees better career opportunities, it besides comes with a high price tag. Over 43 million Americans have scholar lend debt, and it can take years ( sometimes decades ) to pay off. And the higher your interest rate, the longer it can take to make a dent in your principal balance.

Refinancing, however, allows borrowers the probability to get a lower interest rate on their loans, reduce their monthly payments and save money in the long race. When you refinance your scholar loans, you basically trade in your existing lend ( s ) for one newfangled loan through a private lender, such as a bank. average pastime rates vary wide, depending on the type of scholar loanword you have. With federal scholar loans, your concern rate is fixed, meaning the rate does n’t change from what it was when you took out the loanword. In the case of secret student loans, your rate is determined by your lender, your credit score and whether you have a fixed or variable star APR. interest rates on federal student loans ( which about 92 % of borrowers have ) scope from 2.75 % to 5.30 %, at the clock this article was written. Interest rates on individual scholar loans are broadly higher, the average presently ranging from 3.34 % to 12.99 % fixed and 1.04 % to 11.98 % variable. With the hesitate on federal student lend payments and concern extended through at least Sept. 30, 2021 as separate of the government ‘s pandemic relief programs, now is n’t the best time to be refinancing your federal loans. But those with individual loans, however, may want to consider it if they are paying a high concern rate. To help guide you, Select analyzed and compared private scholar lend fund from national banks, credit unions and on-line lenders to rank your best options. In this roundup, we found lenders that offer a wide choice of loan terms and interest rates to choose from. They charge no application or initiation fees, have zero prepayment penalties and have flexible refund terms, economic asperity requital options and autopay interest rate reductions. When rate our top five, we considered the assortment of loans offered, their advertised interest rates and eligibility requirements, any fees, pace discounts offered and customer serve reviews. The scholar loan refinance companies we selected for our ranking all offer some of the lowest and most competitive refinance rates available, and applying on-line is a immediate and easy serve. ( See our methodology for more data on how we chose the best scholar loan refinance companies. )

Best student loan refinance companies

Student loan refinance FAQs

Best overall

SoFi Student Loan Refinancing

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• Cost

  No initiation fees to refinance

• Eligible loans

  Federal, private, graduate and undergraduate loans, Parent PLUS loans, aesculapian and dental residency loans

• Loan types

  variable and repair

• Variable rates (APR)

  From 2.24 % ; from 2.37 % for medical/dental residents ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount rate )

• Fixed rates (APR)

  From 2.99 % ; from 3.12 % for medical/dental residents ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount )

• Loan terms

  5, 7, 10, 15, 20 years

• Loan amounts

  From $ 5,000 ; over $ 10,000 for medical/dental residency loans

• Minimum credit score

  N/A

• Minimum income

  N/A

• Allow for a co-signer

  Yes

See our methodology, terms apply .

Pros

• No application or origination fees to refinance
• 0.25% autopay discount already applied
• Soft credit pull when you prequalify
• No prepayment penalties
• Protections include: Unemployment protection (forbearance offered in 3-month increments, capped at 12 months), Covid forbearance of payments for a minimum of 90 days if experiencing financial hardship, loan deferment if going back to school, SoFi honors first 6 months of pre-existing grace period on loans looking to be refinanced
• Offers $100 monthly payments during residency
• SoFi has its own Career Advisory Group to help members look for new employment
• Access to live customer support 7 days a week
• SoFi members get career coaching, financial advice from planners, plus more for free
• Unique member benefits like receive a 0.125% interest rate discount on any additional SoFi lending product
• Offers up to $310 bonus referral program

Cons

• No co-signer release option available
• Loan size minimum of $5,000; over $10,000 for medical/dental residency loans

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Best for having a co-signer

CommonBond Student Loan Refinancing

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• Cost

  No origin fees to refinance

• Eligible loans

  Federal, secret, calibrate and undergraduate loans, previously consolidate loans, corporate-sponsored scholar loans and external scholar loans

• Loan types

  variable and situate

• Variable rates (APR)

  4.44 % – 8.09 % APR ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount )

• Fixed rates (APR)

  4.49 % – 7.74 % APR ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount )

• Loan terms

  5, 10, 15, 20 years

• Loan amounts

  Up to $ 500,000

• Minimum credit score

  not disclosed

• Minimum income

  not disclosed

• Allow for a co-signer

  Yes

See our methodology, terms apply .

Pros

• No origination fees to refinance
• 0.25% autopay discount already applied
• Soft credit pull when you prequalify
• No prepayment penalties
• Protections include: Up to 24 months of financial hardship forbearance over the life of your loan, academic deferment and grace period deferment
• Has co-signer release option after 24 consecutive, on-time monthly payments of the loan’s principal and interest
• Offers a Hybrid Loan: Interest rate is fixed for first five years and for the remainder of the loan (last five years), interest rate is variable
• Social incentive: When you refinance, CommonBond covers the cost of a child’s education in the developing world through partnership with Pencils of Promise

Cons

• Late payment fee of 5% of the unpaid amount of the payment due or $10.00, whichever is less
• Return check fee of $5.00, subject to state law restrictions

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Best for fair credit score

Earnest Student Loan Refinancing

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• Cost

  No origin fees to refinance

• Eligible loans

  Federal, individual, graduate and undergraduate loans

• Loan types

  variable and fixed

• Variable rates (APR)

  Starting at 1.99 % ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount )

• Fixed rates (APR)

  Starting at 2.98 % ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount )

• Loan terms

  flexible terms anywhere between 5-20 years

• Loan amounts

  A minimum of $ 5,000, up to $ 500,000 ( residents of California must request to refinance $ 10,000 or more )

• Minimum credit score

  650

• Minimum income

  No income necessity

• Allow for a co-signer

  No

See our methodology, terms apply .

Pros

• No origination fees to refinance, as well as no late fees or disbursement fees
• 0.25% autopay discount already applied
• Soft credit pull when you prequalify
• No prepayment penalties
• Protections include: 9-month grace period
• Applicants with fair credit can qualify
• Loan customization includes choosing preferred payment amount based on your budget, selecting biweekly or monthly payments, increasing payment and/or adjusting payment date at any time
• Allows qualified borrowers to skip one payment every 12 months and make it up later

Cons

• Variable rates not available in AK, IL, MN, NH, OH, TN and TX
• No co-signer release option available
• Loan size minimum of $5,000 (residents of California must request to refinance $10,000 or more)

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Best for parent loan refinancing

Education Loan Finance Student Loan Refinancing

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• Cost

  No origin fees to refinance

• Eligible loans

  Federal, private, calibrate and undergraduate loans, Parent PLUS loans

• Loan types

  variable and fixed

• Variable rates (APR)

  From 2.39 % ( rates include an autopay discount rate )

• Fixed rates (APR)

  From 2.79 % ( rates include an autopay discount )

• Loan terms

  From 5 to 20 years for scholar loan refinance ; 5, 7 or 10 years for parent lend refinance

• Loan amounts

  From $ 15,000

• Minimum credit score

  N/A

• Minimum income

  N/A

• Allow for a co-signer

  Yes

See our methodology, terms apply .

Pros

• No application fees, origination fees to refinance, loan guarantee fee
• Autopay discount already applied
• Soft credit pull when you prequalify
• No prepayment penalties
• Protections include: Deferment where they align your repayment start date to the expiration of the grace period on the federal student loans that you are refinancing, financial hardship or medical difficulty forbearance for up to 12 months
• Offers parent loan refinancing: Allows you to combine both private and Parent PLUS loans
• Borrowers are assigned a Personal Loan Advisor to guide them
• Website claims that customers report saving an average of $272 every month and should see an average of $13,940 in total savings
• Offers bonus referral program

Cons

• No grace period offered
• No co-signer release option available
• Late charge fee is the lesser of 5% of the past due amount or $50
• Returned check or insufficient funds charge of $30
• Loan size minimum of $15,000

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Best for medical school loan refinancing

Laurel Road Student Loan Refinancing

Learn More On Laurel Road ‘s dependable locate

• Cost

  No initiation fees to refinance

• Eligible loans

  Federal, secret, graduate and undergraduate loans, Parent PLUS loans, aesculapian and dental residency/fellowship loans, plus special pricing and reduce rates for health-care professionals ( physicians, dentists, optometrists and doctor assistants )

• Loan types

  variable star and fixed

• Variable rates (APR)

  From 1.89 % ; from 2.28 % for resident rates ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay rebate )

• Fixed rates (APR)

  From 2.80 % ; from 3.08 % for nonmigratory rates ( rates include a 0.25 % autopay discount )

• Loan terms

  5, 7, 10, 15, 20 years ( but besides offers any term below 20 years, subject to underwriting criteria )

• Loan amounts

  For bachelor ‘s degrees and higher, minimum $ 5,000 ; for eligible consociate degrees in the health-care sphere, up to $ 50,000 in loans for non-ParentPlus refinance loans

• Minimum credit score

  N/A

• Minimum income

  N/A

• Allow for a co-signer

  Yes

See our methodology, terms apply .

Pros

• No origination fees to refinance
• 0.25% autopay discount already applied
• Soft credit pull when you prequalify
• No prepayment penalties
• Protections include: Financial hardship (such as job loss) forbearance for one or more 3-month time periods (have to wait minimum 12 months in between periods), Covid forbearance of 3 monthly payments (and option to request longer), natural disaster forbearance of up to 2 monthly payments, deferment for medical students up to 6 months after their residency and fellowships (total loan term including residency, fellowship and grace period must not exceed 20 years)
• Medical students pay only $100 per month while in residency program or fellowship
• Graduates with associate degrees in the health-care field can refinance
• Offers up to $400 bonus referral program

Cons

• No co-signer release option available
• Late fee may be assessed if any part of a payment is not received within 15 days of the due date: will not exceed 5% of the late payment or $28, whichever is less
• May be charged $20 for any payment (including a check or an electronic payment) that is returned unpaid due to non-sufficient funds or a closed account
• Loan size minimum of $5,000

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Student loan refinance FAQs

What is student loan refinancing?

When you refinance your student loans, you trade in your current loanword ( s ) for one new lend through a secret lender. If you have more than one student loanword, once you refinance, your payments are then grouped together so you make only one monthly payment to one lender, alternatively of owing multiple monthly payments to assorted lenders. On top of getting a lower interest rate and streamlined payments, refinancing besides lets you alter the requital design on your refinance student loanword. Terms vary by lender, but borrowers can choose how aggressive they want to be in their debt bribe, whether it ‘s five, 10 or 20 years .

How is my student loan refinancing rate determined?

The concern rates lenders advertise for scholar lend refinance may not be the pace you receive. Lenders determine your APR based on a handful of factors, including your accredit score, your income, your debt-to-income ( DTI ) ratio, your savings, whether you choose a variable or fixed rate and the duration of your lend ‘s term .

How does refinancing affect my credit?

When you refinance your scholar loanword, lenders will pull your report to determine if you ‘re a bad borrower, which is considered a hard inquiry. This may lower your credit rating seduce by five or so points, but it ‘s probable to go back up as you continue to make on-time monthly payments on your new refinance loan. many lenders a good as loan marketplaces offer prequalification tools where you can cursorily input your personal information and see pace quotes from lenders without actually applying and affecting your credit. You ‘ll be able to get an mind of your interest rate, refund term and any fees. Choose the lender that offers you an sake pace well lower than the one you presently pay .

Should I refinance my student loans?

The decision of whether to refinance your student loans is a big one to make. A major argue to refinance is so that you ‘ll save money. Many of the student loanword lenders advertise big savings on their websites. For case, in 2020 the average savings for customers at Education Loan Finance was $ 272 per calendar month — and $ 13,940 in sum average savings in interest costs over the life of the loanword. That ‘s a pretty significant savings. Before applying for refinance, patronize around for the best rates to see what you prequalify for. You can besides use loan marketplaces like Credible to compare lenders. You besides want to make sure you ‘re in good fiscal standing before you start applying for a refinance. To get the best rates, you ‘ll want to meet the follow requirements :

• Good credit score
• Stable income
• Currently paying a high interest rate — anything at or above 10% — where you would be likely to save money through refinancing

You should besides ask yourself the follow questions :

• Would you like to to pay off your loans faster if you could shorten your repayment term?
• Would you like to make your loan payments more manageable if you could extend your repayment term?

federal scholar loan borrowers looking to refinance should be mindful that doing indeed with a private lender means you lose any protections you previously had with your union loans, like income-driven repayment, possible scholar lend forgiveness and any current or future Covid-19 easing measures ( such as the payment and pastime pace pause ). Some private lenders ( like the ones we mention on this list ) offer their own kinds of payment protections, such as postponement or forbearance, therefore create certain you know your options before taking out a refinance lend .

Is now a good time to refinance student loans?

broadly, scholar loanword borrowers who are paying a high concern rate on their federal or private scholar loans may want to consider refinance. however, with the current suspension of federal scholar lend payments and pastime through at least Sept. 2021, most fiscal experts do n’t recommend refinancing your federal student loans at this time. It may be a good idea to refinance any individual student loans if your pastime rate is high. With federal loanword rates the lowest in over a ten, private lenders are besides lowering their april. These companies set their own interest rates, but they ‘re influenced by the Fed ‘s prime rate. Rate cuts frankincense typically translate into a decrease in the rates that secret lenders offer. APRs on refinance scholar loans presently range from 2.59 % to 7.63 % fixed and 1.99 % to 6.86 % varying. If you took out a private scholar lend years ago when concern rates were higher than they presently are today, you should consider refinancing, specially if your recognition score is better than when you applied for your stopping point loanword. This room, you ‘re likely to score a lower rate and save money in the long run .

Our methodology

To determine which student lend refinance companies are the best for borrowers, Select analyzed and compared private student loan support from national banks, credit unions and on-line lenders. We narrowed down our rank by merely considering those that offer low student loanword refinancing rates and prequalification tools that do n’t hurt your credit. While the companies we chose in this article systematically rank as having some of the more competitive pastime rates for refinance, we besides compared each company on the be features :

• Broad availability: All of the companies on our list refinance both federal and private student loans, and they each offer a variable and fixed interest rate to choose from.
• Flexible loan terms: Each company provides a variety of financing options that you can customize based on your monthly budget and how long you need to pay back your student loan.
• No origination or signup fee: None of the companies on our list charge borrowers an upfront “origination fee” for refinancing your loan.
• No early payoff penalties: The companies on our list do not charge borrowers for paying off loans early.
• Streamlined application process: We made sure companies offered a fast online application process.
• Co-signer options: Each company on our list allows for a co-signer if the direct borrower does not qualify for refinancing on their own.
• Autopay discounts: All of the companies listed already calculate autopay discounts into their advertised rates.
• Private student loan protections: Though you lose federal student loan benefits when you refinance, each company on our list offers some type of their own financial hardship protection for borrowers.
• Loan sizes: The above companies refinance loans in an array of sizes, from $5,000 to $500,000. Each company advertises its respective loan sizes, and completing a preapproval process can give you an idea of what your interest rate and monthly payment would be.
• Credit requirements/eligibility: We took into consideration the minimum credit scores and income levels required if this information was available.
• Customer support: Every company on our list provides customer service available via telephone, email or secure online messaging. We also opted for lenders with an online resource hub or advice center to help you educate yourself about the student loan refinancing process.

After reviewing the above features, we sorted our recommendations by best for overall refinance needs, having a co-signer, applying with a fair accredit score, refinancing rear loans and checkup school loans. notice that the rates and tip structures for private student loanword refinancing are not guaranteed constantly ; they are discipline to change without notice and they often fluctuate in accord with the Fed rate. Choosing a fixed-rate APR when you refinance will guarantee that your interest rate and monthly requital will remain consistent throughout the entire term of the lend.

Your refinance pace depends on your credit score, income, debt-to-income ( DTI ) proportion, savings, payment history and overall fiscal health. To refinance your student lend ( s ), lenders will conduct a heavily credit inquiry and request a wide application, which could require proof of income, identity verification, proof of address and more. Editorial Note: Opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Select editorial staff ’ sulfur alone, and have not been reviewed, approved or differently endorsed by any third party .

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