Who is the upgrade best for?
4Prices for upgrading personal loans range from $1,000 to $50,000 and are best for borrowers who need to get a small loan. While upgrades can help borrowers with fair credit ratings get approved, applicants with higher scores are more likely to avoid the company’s highest APR. Upgrade personal loans are usually unsecured, but companies may offer secured loans to eligible applicants to help qualify or get lower interest rates.
When considering an upgrade, keep in mind that the company has no loans in Iowa, West Virginia, or Washington, D.C. discount.
Upgrade Personal Loan Purposes
Update Personal Loan Details
Loan Amount and Conditions
- loan amount. Personal upgrade loan amounts vary from $1,000 to $50,000 depending on the applicant’s credit profile. However, most loan amounts are capped at $25,000 or less. Borrowers in Georgia must borrow at least $3,005 and borrowers in Massachusetts must borrow at least $6,400.
- loan terms. Upgrades offer loan terms from 2 to 7 years or 24 to 84 months.
Credit cost
- April. APRs for upgraded personal loans range from 5.94% to 35.97%. The interest rate is fixed and therefore does not increase over the life of the loan. A borrower’s APR depends on their creditworthiness, borrowing history, loan term and other factors. To get the lowest interest rate available, eligible borrowers must also sign up for automatic payments and pay off another outstanding debt directly.
- Origination fee. All upgrade personal loans come with an administration fee of 2.9% to 8% of the loan amount. This fee is deducted from the loan proceeds.
- Overdue fines. Borrowers who are more than 15 days past due will be charged a late fee of up to $10 per late payment.
Prepaid fines. There are no prepayment penalties when upgrading, which means borrowers can pay early without increasing the overall cost of the loan. - Property transfer fee. A one-time transfer fee may apply to personal loans secured by the vehicle. The state application fee is charged by the appropriate local Department of Motor Vehicles, and no funds will be received for the upgrade.
- Fund fees are insufficient. Likewise, upgrade borrowers will be charged a non-refundable $10 fee if the payment is processed improperly.
Note: According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the upgraded name and logo have been used for credit fraud. There is no upfront fee for an upgrade in exchange for a loan. Therefore, if a company claiming to be an upgrade charges such fees, it should be reported as a scam. These fraudulent upfront fees contrast with Upgrade’s standard origination fee, which is always deducted from the total loan disbursement.
Advantages and Features
- Autopay discount. The upgrade provides borrowers with an interest rebate for signing up for automatic payments. The company does not disclose the exact amount of this discount on its website, but it is said to be 0.5% of the APR.
- Payment flexibility. With the upgrade, borrowers can change their payment details to better fit their budget.
- Credit monitoring and educational tools. In addition to personal loans, credit cards, and checking accounts, Upgrade offers a credit monitoring program called Credit Health. With this free service, borrowers can monitor their VantageScore 3.0 credit scores, simulate their scores based on different scenarios, and get suggestions for improving their scores, among other useful tools.
- The Apartment Upgrade mobile app is available on Android and iOS devices. Borrowers can manage their loans by viewing account balances, making payments, and updating personal information from the app’s dashboard. Users can also access credit health tools through an easy-to-use mobile app.
How to Qualify for an Upgraded Personal Loan
Personal loan applications are approved or rejected based on a number of factors. All lenders have their own unique underwriting requirements, but these requirements typically include information from the applicant’s credit profile and other factors that demonstrate ability to repay the loan, such as: B. Income. Meeting the requirements below does not guarantee approval, but they can help you decide if a personal loan is right for you.
Credit requirements
The upgrade requires a minimum credit rating of 580. This makes upgrading a good option for borrowers with good or bad credit who need access to a small amount of credit. Still, the most competitive prices are reserved for the most reputable applicants.
Income requirements
Like its creditworthiness requirements, Upgrade does not publish its debt-to-income (DTI) requirements. However, the upgrade reportedly puts a lot of weight on free cash flow, with eligible borrowers having at least $1,000 a month in free cash flow and around 40% DTI.
Co-signer and co-applicant
The upgrade allows co-applicants who meet the minimum credit requirements, but not co-signers. This can help borrowers with poor credit qualify for larger loans or more competitive APRs. Fortunately, upgrading makes it easy to see which plan you qualify for as a single or joint claimant. Simply select “Join Application” when prompted during the online prequalification process.
How to Apply for an Upgrade Personal Loan
Applying for a personal loan usually involves pre-qualifying the interest rate, submitting a formal application and waiting for loan approval. Please follow the steps below to apply for an upgrade personal loan:
- Check your tariffs. Like many competitors, Upgrade offers an online prequalification process that doesn’t affect your credit score. To verify the APR you would like to receive, please provide how much you would like to borrow, the purpose of the loan and personal information. You will also be asked whether you plan to apply individually or jointly.
- Submit a formal request. When you are ready to apply for a loan, submit a formal application online. In addition to providing some form of government-issued identification, this includes submitting documents such as recent pay stubs and bank statements. Once you have submitted all required documents, you can check the status of your application by logging into your upgraded account online. You will also receive status updates via email.
- Accept the offer. If you receive a loan offer that suits your needs, you can accept and submit your bank details. The upgrade will process a separate soft credit request at this time, but it will not appear on your credit report.
- Wait for the money When your loan is funded, Upgrade will complete a hard credit request to verify your creditworthiness. This will show up on your credit report and may cause your score to drop temporarily. Upgraded personal loans are generally available within four business days of approval, but the exact time frame depends on the financial institution receiving the funds.
- Start paying. The first personal loan payment is due within 30 days of disbursement of funds. This payment is made automatically from the bank account provided during the application process, but this information can be changed through the online account dashboard. Payments are due on the same day of each month, but with an upgrade, you can choose a payment date that fits your budget.
It’s time to make money
According to Upgrade, customers can get loan funds as soon as a day after the required verification. While the availability of funds ultimately depends on each customer’s bank processing time, customers can expect to receive funds within four business days of credit approval. Loan funds sent directly to third-party creditors can take up to two weeks to clear, but this time depends on each creditor.
Customer reviews
In general, Upgrade has received positive customer reviews for its simple application process and accessibility – even for applicants with less credit. For example, Upgrade’s rating on Trustpilot is 4.6 stars, and many customers report that the company’s customer service team can easily apply for loans and get money quickly. The BBB’s review of Upgrade is also positive, with the company giving the company an A+ rating of 4.73 stars out of 5.
Negative escalation loan reviews typically focus on issues related to longer customer service wait times and longer loan approval times. Customers also complained about high APRs and exorbitant entry fees.
How Upgrade Personal Loans Stack Up
The best personal loans offer competitive rates, flexible loan amounts, and a variety of terms. Here’s how upgraded personal loans compare to other popular lenders:
Upgrading with SoFi
SoFi personal loans start at $5,000 and go up to $100,000, depending on the purpose of the loan – much higher than loans offered through upgrades. APRs start at about 6% with Autopay, which is similar to the starting rate offered by Upgrade, but SoFi tops out at about 20% with Autopay. Loans from SoFi are also attractive because, unlike upgrades, lenders do not charge any allocation fees.
Upgrade and Luminous Flux
LightStream personal loans range from $5,000 to $100,000, with annual interest rates starting below 3%, with automatic payments for certain loan purposes. This makes LightStream loans more flexible – and affordable – for the most qualified borrowers who need large loans at competitive rates.
Like upgrades, loan terms start at only two years, but LightStream offers longer terms of up to 12 years, depending on loan size, purpose, and creditworthiness. Additionally, LightStream charges no deployment fees, further reducing overall loan costs, especially compared to upgrades. \
Upgrade with Marcus
As with upgrades, Marcus offers small personal loans ranging from $3,500 to $40,000. Rates start at about 7% — slightly above the Upgrade’s minimum APR — but end up around 20%, well below the Upgrade’s maximum rate. Additionally, Marcus does not charge any origin fees or late fees. One problem with these lower rates is that Marcus has a higher minimum recommended credit score of 660.
Method
We reviewed the upgrade using 16 data points in categories such as loan details, loan cost, eligibility and accessibility, customer experience and application process. We rate upgrades based on the weights assigned to each category:
- Credit cost: 35%
- Loan Details: 20%
- Eligibility and Accessibility: 20%
- Customer Experience: 15%
- Application process: 10%
Within each category, we also considered several characteristics, including available loan amount, repayment term, APR range, and applicable fees. We also looked at credit requirements, whether lenders accept co-signers or joint applications, and lenders’ geographic availability. Finally, we evaluated Upgrade’s support tools, borrower benefits, and features that simplify the borrowing process, such as prequalification options and mobile apps.
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