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Earnest Student Loans Review
ConsumersAdvocate.org Rating: 4.1 / 5 (Excellent)
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Earnest is an online lender based in San Francisco. The company has been around since 2013 and offers personal loans and student loan and parent PLUS loan refinancing. More recently, it's branched out into private student loans. It was acquired by the student loan servicer, Navient, in October 2017.
How is Earnest Student Loan rated?
Breakdown
4.0/5
Loan Details
4.3/5
Eligibility Criteria
4.0/5
Customer Experience
4.3/5
Additional Benefits
Overall Rating: 4.1 / 5 (Excellent)
Earnest private student loans are worth considering for undergraduate and graduate students who have exhausted their federal student loan options. You'll probably need a cosigner to be approved, unless you're working a considerable amount in addition to being a full-time student. There are four repayment plans, and Earnest will give you an interest rate reduction if you apply for auto-pay, but there are no opportunities for deferment or forbearance, so it may not be a great choice if you're concerned about your ability to keep up with the payments.
Earnest Student Loan Loan Specifics
Loan Details - 4 / 5
Earnest offers fixed and variable private student loans, ranging from $1,000 in most states up to 100% of your school's certified cost of attendance. Undergraduate and graduate students can apply for loans, but unfortunately, parents cannot take out private student loans on behalf of their child. There are four repayment plans to choose from, three of which offer a nine-month grace period, which is three months longer than what many other private student loan companies offer. While there are deferment and forbearance options available to students who refinance loans with Earnest, the company doesn't appear to extend those same protections to students who take out new private student loans. Your loan term will vary depending on how much you borrow, but you won't have to worry about prepayment, late payment, origination or disbursement fees driving up your balance.
| Loan Types | Undergraduate Graduate |
| Minimum Loan Amount | $1,000 |
| Maximum Loan Amount | 100% of school's certified cost of attendance |
| Loan Term | Loan term depends on how much you borrow and the repayment plan you choose. |
| Interest Rates | Fixed Variable |
| Repayment Options | Deferred Fixed Immediate Interest-Only |
| Grace Period | |
| Deferment or Forbearance | |
| Cosigner Release |
Fixed APR Range
Undergrad Fixed: 4.29% - 9.74% APR (with Autopay)
Grad Fixed: 4.29% - 14.30% APR (with Autopay)
Variable APR Range
Undergrad Variable: 5.89% - 9.74% APR (with Autopay)
Grad Variable: 5.89% - 15.87% APR (with Autopay)
Earnest Student Loan Qualifications
Eligibility Criteria - 4.3 / 5
You must be enrolled full-time in a qualifying university and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident to qualify for an Earnest private student loan. While the company doesn't mandate a cosigner, many students will need one because they may not have three years of credit history or an income of $35,000 or more per year, both of which are requirements to be approved for a private student loan with Earnest.
Eligibility criteria can be found anytime at earnest.com/eligibility.
| Cosigner Required | |
| Course Load | Full-time |
| Citizenship Requirement | U.S. Citizen Permanent Legal Resident |
Earnest Student Loan Customer Experience
Customer Experience - 4 / 5
Earnest offers online quotes to students interested in securing a private student loan, and, like many private student loan companies, it offers a 0.25% interest rate reduction to students who enroll in auto-pay. The company's website does contain a blog with useful articles to help students understand their student loans and there are some student loan refinancing calculators, but there are no calculators to help students understand the costs of their new Earnest private student loan.
| Student Loan Calculator | |
| Online Quotes |
Discounts
You receive a 0.25% interest rate reduction when you enroll in auto-pay.
Earnest Student Loan Company Reputation
Additional Benefits - 4.3 / 5
Earnest has been around since 2013, and its personal loan and student loan refinancing services have received largely positive reviews, earning a 9.3 from Trustpilot. However, some customers have cited some worrisome changes since the company was bought by Navient in October 2017. Private student loans are a new offering for the company, so there aren't many reviews about this service yet.
| Lender Type | Online Lender |
| Year Founded | 2013 |
| BBB Rating | A+ |
| Number of BBB Positive Reviews | 4 |
| Number of BBB Negative Reviews | 17 |
| Trust Pilot Rating | 9.3 out of 5 |
| Date Collected | 2019-05-02 |
Company's Disclosure
Actual rate and available repayment terms will vary based on your income. Fixed rates range from 4.54% APR to 9.99% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Variable rates range from 6.14% APR to 9.99% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Earnest variable interest rate student loan refinance loans are based on a publicly available index, the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The variable rate is based on the rate published on the 25th day, or the next business day, of the preceding calendar month, rounded to the nearest hundredth of a percent. The rate will not increase more than once per month. The maximum rate for your loan is 8.95% if your loan term is 10 years or less. For loan terms of more than 10 years to 15 years, the interest rate will never exceed 9.95%. For loan terms over 15 years, the interest rate will never exceed 11.95%. Please note, we are not able to offer variable rate loans in AK, IL, MN, NH, OH, TN, and TX. Our lowest rates are only available for our most credit qualified borrowers and contain our .25% auto pay discount from a checking or savings account.
Company Profile
| Full Name | Earnest Student Loans |
| Company Website | |
| Headquarters | 535 Mission St., Suite 1663, San Francisco, CA, 94105 |
Footnotes
Auto Pay Discount Disclosure: You can take advantage of the Auto Pay interest rate reduction by setting up and maintaining active and automatic ACH withdrawal of your loan payment. The interest rate reduction for Auto Pay will be available only while your loan is enrolled in Auto Pay. Interest rate incentives for utilizing Auto Pay may not be combined with certain private student loan repayment programs that also offer an interest rate reduction. For multi-party loans, only one party may enroll in Auto Pay.
Earnest loans are serviced by Earnest Operations LLC, 535 Mission St., Suite 1663 San Francisco, CA 94105, NMLS #1204917, with support from Higher Education Loan Authority of the State of Missouri (MOHELA) (NMLS# 1442770). One American Bank, FinWise Bank, and Earnest LLC and its subsidiaries, including Earnest Operations LLC, are not sponsored by agencies of the United States of America.
Earnest loans are serviced by Earnest Operations LLC, 535 Mission St., Suite 1663 San Francisco, CA 94105, NMLS #1204917, with support from Higher Education Loan Authority of the State of Missouri (MOHELA) (NMLS# 1442770). One American Bank, FinWise Bank, and Earnest LLC and its subsidiaries, including Earnest Operations LLC, are not sponsored by agencies of the United States of America.
Our Partner
1 Review
- Variable APR starting at 5.89%*
- Provides customized private loan options for students
- Enjoy no early prepayment penalties
- Skip a payment once per year (once repayment period restarted)**
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