LightStream Personal Loans Review: Leading the Pack on Several Fronts

Borrowers with good credit will appreciate the many benefits of LightStream personal loans. Not only does it make the unusual promise to beat any qualifying offer, LightStream personal loans also come with a $100 loan experience guarantee. We'll cover the pros and cons in our full LightStream personal loans review.

This personal loan is a good fit for: Borrowers with strong credit in search of extremely low interest rates.

Top perks

Low-rate guarantee: If you can provide evidence a competing lender offered a lower loan interest rate on the same terms, LightStream will beat it by 0.10 percentage points. On top of that, LightStream's published APRs are some of the lowest we've found.

Fast funding: The loan application process can be completed online with timely responses during business hours. Approved borrowers can receive funds the same day. That's one of the quickest turnaround times in the business.

A customer experience guarantee: If you've received a loan but are not satisfied with your experience, LightStream wants to hear from you. It will offer you the chance to complete a questionnaire and receive $100 for your trouble.

Flexibility: LightStream has very few restrictions on how borrowed funds can be used. Consumers can obtain loans for most purposes, including paying medical expenses, financing home renovations, buying a car, or debt consolidation. You can't borrow to fund higher education (pre-K-12) tuition, or refinance existing LightStream loans. Loans are only available to individuals, not businesses.

No fees or prepayment penalties: You will pay no fees with LightStream, even if you want to repay your loan early. Keep the lack of fees in mind as you compare loans, as many lenders charge origination fees that can be in the hundreds or thousands of dollars. Another lender may offer a lower interest rate, but a LightStream loan could ultimately cost less because there are no pesky fees involved.

Large loan amounts: LightStream offers between $5,000 and $100,000 in financing to qualified borrowers. In addition, loan terms can run from two years to 12 years, depending on the loan type.

0.50% AutoPay discount: This is one of the larger autopay rate discounts on offer. To be perfectly clear, LightStream's published APR range and the rates borrowers are quoted assuming you'll be using AutoPay.

What could be improved

Strict qualification requirements: The lender is very restrictive in its approval process. It could offer loans to a wider pool of would-be borrowers, even if it had to do so at higher rates -- but it chooses not to.

No prequalification: Most personal loan companies will let borrowers check their rates without a hard credit pull (no impact on their credit score), but LightStream doesn't. This can be a major differentiator, especially for borrowers who prefer to shop around with a few lenders before applying.

You'll generally need the following to qualify for a LightStream loan:

• Good or excellent credit score: You'll need several years of credit history and your credit report should include a mix of different types of accounts.
• Substantial assets: Borrowers generally need to have some liquid assets such as retirement savings or real estate with equity.
• Limited debt: Your revolving debt, including credit card debt, must be at a manageable level. In other words, your income and current debt load must justify the new loan.
• Proof of income: Your source of income must be stable and you must make enough to show you can repay the loan.
• A strong payment history: You should have no delinquencies on your credit record.

LightStream's application process

LightStream's entire application process can be completed online in four steps:

1. Select the type of application and loan purpose
2. Provide your personal information
3. Answer a few security questions to confirm your identity
4. Review your information and submit your application

If you apply during business hours, you should receive a swift response. LightStream may ask you to submit additional documents and provide information on funding. If it approves your application, you'll need to e-sign a loan agreement.

Once you've finished these steps, you can get funding as soon as the same day.

LightStream is only an option if you want to borrow at least $5,000 and if you have good or excellent credit. If you want to borrow less or you're unable to qualify for a loan, here are some options for different lenders.

• If you need to borrow only a small sum: Upstart finances loan amounts as low as $1,000, perfect if you don't need to borrow much.
• If you don't have a long credit history or your credit score isn't high enough: Avant provides funding to borrowers with bad credit, albeit at high rates.

• You have the credentials to qualify and want both low interest rates and excellent customer service guaranteed.
• You want to receive funding very quickly.
• You need to borrow a larger sum, as LightStream provides loans of up to $100,000.

If LightStream doesn't sound like a fit for you, we'd suggest exploring your options among the best personal loans available now.