Earnest Reviews

Flexible Repayment Terms: Earnest offers a variety of repayment term lengths, including 5, 7, 10, 12, 15, and 20 years, allowing borrowers to choose the term that best fits their needs.

Competitive Interest Rates: Earnest provides competitive interest rates, with options ranging from 5.62% to 16.85% for variable rates and 3.69% to 16.49% for fixed rates (with autopay).

No Origination or Prepayment Fees: Earnest does not charge any origination fees, prepayment fees, or late fees, making it a cost-effective option for borrowers.

Skip-a-Payment Option: Borrowers can skip one payment per year if they have made at least six months of consecutive on-time payments and their loan is in good standing.

Auto Pay Interest Rate Reduction: Earnest offers an interest rate reduction for borrowers who set up and maintain automatic ACH withdrawals.

Customer Support: Earnest has a top-notch level of customer support, available through phone, online chat, email, or social media.

Seeing people, not numbers: Earnnest looks at the whole person, not just their financial profile.

Customizable payments: Users can choose their monthly payment.

No prepayment penalty: Users are not punished for paying off their loan early.

Quick application process: The application is easy to understand.

Use of technology: Earnnest uses technology to build personalized loans.

Customer service: Earnnest has a Client Happiness team to help with any questions about the loan.

Privacy: Earnnest treats user data with utmost care.

Flexible repayment options: Earnnest offers a variety of repayment plans.

Grace period: Earnnest offers a nine-month grace period.

Option to skip a payment: Users can skip one payment every 12 months.

No origination or late fees: Earnnest does not charge any fees, including late fees.

Minimum Credit Score Requirement: Earnest requires a minimum credit score of 650 to qualify for a loan.

Limited Availability for International Students: While Earnest allows international students to apply without a U.S.-based cosigner, its lending decisions are based on cross-border credit data, which may limit access for some international students.

Potential for Higher Costs with Deferred Payments: Deferred payments can result in higher overall costs due to accrued interest and capitalized interest at the end of the deferment period.