Explore Credit LoanThe Five Steps, In Order
From request to repayment, the whole process is five steps: complete the form, match as a soft inquiry, review the offer's five disclosed numbers, e-sign and receive funds — often next business day — and repay on autopay.
Step 1: Complete the secure request
About five minutes: identity, contact details, income figures exactly as your documents support them, and the active checking account a lender would fund. Accuracy here is speed later — every figure that matches its document skips a verification round-trip.
Step 2: Get matched as a soft inquiry
Your request is compared against network lender criteria, typically while you wait. Matching runs as a soft inquiry, so checking your options does not affect your credit score. If no lender matches today, you'll know quickly — and the eligibility guide's 90-day plan shows exactly what to improve before trying again.
Step 3: Review your offer's five numbers
An interested lender presents its offer with the federally required disclosure: APR, finance charge, amount financed, total of payments, and the payment schedule. Reproduce the payment in our calculator, check the total against your written ceiling, and decide without pressure — declining costs nothing.
Step 4: E-sign and receive funds
Accept, and signing is electronic. Funds typically arrive in your checking account as soon as the next business day, depending on signing time and your bank. Pay the bill the loan was sized for the day funds land, and lock in any prompt-pay discount you negotiated.
Step 5: Repay on autopilot
Enroll in autopay with a due date set just after your paycheck lands — several network lenders discount the rate for it. Windfalls go to principal under the no-prepayment-penalty clause our guides teach you to demand. On-time payments report to bureaus and build the file your next request will thank you for.
What to Have Ready
Four things make the process fast: a government ID, proof of income (pay stubs, benefit letters, or bank statements), your checking account and routing numbers, and your written payment ceiling.
The first three are what lenders verify; the fourth is what protects you. The eligibility guide lists exactly which documents cover which income types, and the calculator turns any offer into a ten-second math check. Borrowers who arrive with all four report the smoothest timelines in our reviews — verification measured in hours, not days.
What This Process Is Not
No fees to you, ever — we're paid by lenders, as the disclosure explains. No obligation at any step: offers can be declined or left to expire freely. No guarantees, either — matching depends on your profile and lender criteria, which is exactly why the request runs as a soft inquiry: looking is free. Loan amounts run $500–$5,000 with APRs generally 5.99%–35.99% and terms commonly 3–36 months — all estimates until a lender's written disclosure states your actual figures.
