Many or all of the companies featured compensate us. Compensation and research may determine where and how companies appear. Learn more

Compare Credible vs. Earnest Student Loan Refinance

What’s the difference between Credible Student Loan Refinance and Earnest Student Loan Refinance? See how our editors compare the two companies below.
Last Updated: March 28, 2024
Credible
4.5 / 5 - Excellent
#1 in Student Loan Refinance
Earnest
4.7 / 5 - Excellent
#3 in Student Loan Refinance
vs

Key Facts

  • Compare personalized prequalified rates from multiple lenders
  • No impact on your credit score to compare rates
  • No origination fees or prepayment penalties
  • Free customizable rate & monthly payment comparison tool
  • Rates based in part on your earning potential
  • Loan amounts between $5,000 and $500,000
  • Customizable payments, including skipping one payment per year
  • Zero fees of any kind

OVERALL RATINGS

 CredibleEarnest
Loan Specifications4.4/54.8/5
Eligibility Requirements4.4/54.5/5
Customer Experience4.4/54.5/5
Reputation5.0/54.8/5

Credible Loan Specifics

 CredibleEarnest
Loan Types
Undergraduate
Graduate
Parent
Federal
Private
Undergraduate
Graduate
Parent
Federal
Private
Terms
5
7
8
10
15
20
25
5
10
15
20
Rates
Fixed
Variable
Fixed
Variable
Fixed APR Range
5.48% - 10.98% APR
5.19% - 9.74% APR (includes 0.25% autopay discount)
Variable APR Range
5.28% - 12.41% APR
5.72% - 9.74% APR (includes 0.25% autopay discount)

*

Clients must reside in the District of Columbia or one of the 49 states Earnest operates in (all but Nevada). Earnest does not offer variable rate loans in AK, IL, MN, NH, OH, TN, and TX.

Credible Qualifications

 CredibleEarnest
Minimum Credit Score
650
650

Credible Customer Experience


Credible Company Reputation

 CredibleEarnest
Lender Type
Marketplace
Online Lender
Year Founded
2012
2013
 CredibleEarnest
BBB Rating
A+
A+
Number of BBB Positive Reviews
0
2
Number of BBB Negative Reviews
2
4
Trustpilot Rating
4.7 out of 5
4.7 out of 5
Date Collected
2023-05-31
2023-10-06

Disclaimer

Company's Disclosure

NMLS# DISCLOSURE Credible Operations, Inc. NMLS# 1681276, “Credible.” Not available in all states. www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org.

Mortgage Address DISCLOSURE 320 Blackwell Street Suite200 Durham, NC 27701 Credible Operations, Inc. NMLS# 1681276, “Credible.” Not available in all states.

Prequalified Rates DISCLOSURE: Prequalified rates are based on the information you provide and a soft credit inquiry. Receiving prequalified rates does not guarantee that the Lender will extend you an offer of credit. You are not yet approved for a loan or a specific rate. All credit decisions, including loan approval, if any, are determined by Lenders, in their sole discretion. Rates and terms are subject to change without notice. Rates from Lenders may differ from prequalified rates due to factors which may include, but are not limited to: (i) changes in your personal credit circumstances; (ii) additional information in your hard credit pull and/or additional information you provide (or are unable to provide) to the Lender during the underwriting process; and/or (iii) changes in APRs (e.g., an increase in the rate index between the time of pre-qualification and the time of application or loan closing. (Or, if the loan option is a variable rate loan, then the interest rate index used to set the APR is subject to increases or decreases at any time). Lenders reserve the right to change or withdraw the prequalified rates at any time.

Won’t impact your credit score DISCLOSURE Requesting prequalified rates on Credible is free and doesn't affect your credit score. However, applying for or closing a loan will involve a hard credit pull that impacts your credit score and closing a loan will result in costs to you.
Actual rate and available repayment terms will vary based on your income. Fixed rates range from 5.44% APR to 9.99% APR (excludes 0.25% Auto Pay discount). Variable rates range from 5.97% 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
Credible Student Loan Refinance
Earnest Student Loan Refinance
Company Website
Headquarters
320 Blackwell St., Durham, NC, 27701
535 Mission St., Suite 1663, San Francisco, CA, 94105

Final Verdict

Earnest Student Loan Refinance has a higher overall rating than Credible Student Loan Refinance. Earnest scores better than Credible across: Loan Specifications, Eligibility Requirements, and Customer Experience. However, Credible scores better on Reputation.


Customer Comments & Reviews

marjolenen
9/17/2020
Earnest Student Loan Refinance review
I refinanced my private student loans through Earnest and my interest rate dropped from 8.5% to 3.5%. Earnest also offers a referral program: You can earn a $200 bonus when you refinance your student loan via Earnest! Just go to earnest.com/invite/marjolene and get your $200 after you complete the refinancing process. Hope this helps!


ccooper159
6/18/2020
Earnest Student Loan Refinance review
I used Earnest to refinance my loans to a lower rate. Great company. I would use them again. You can chat online to answer questions. You can customize your payment. Pay monthly or every 2 weeks. Apply extra payment to next month or towards the principal. The response from the team is always fast and helpful.


S
Steve A
8/29/2019
Credible Student Loan Refinance review
How would my daughter go about refinancing her student loan. Steve Andrews


Esvin S
8/11/2017
Earnest Student Loan Refinance review
(Earnest - College Debt Consolidation) The application process is easy. Although mine took a bit longer than expected so make sure to call them to check on your application status if you suspect it is taking longer than usual (a couple days to a week to respond with approval/denial/requesting more information. Also, definitely use my referral code https://www.earnest.com/invite/esvin to get an easy $200 off when your loan is approved. Here is another link of Earnest's info: https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/loans/student-loans/earnest-student-loan-refinance-flexibility/ - Thank you in advance -