About our free loan-matching service

Our mission is to make small-dollar borrowing less confusing and less stressful by giving people one simple place to request offers, compare real numbers and decide without pressure.

A surprise $1,200 transmission bill or a $900 vet visit rarely arrives at a convenient time. When it does, most people do not have hours to fill out separate applications at a dozen lenders, each with its own rules and fine print. We built our service so a single request can reach several lenders at once, and so the guides on this site explain costs in dollars rather than jargon.

We focus on amounts between $500 and $5,000 because that range covers most everyday emergencies and planned expenses: a furnace part, a set of tires, a deposit on a new apartment, a dental crown or a stack of credit card balances someone wants to simplify. Keeping the range narrow lets us write guides that fit those situations closely.

We are a connector, not a lender. We never fund loans, approve applications, set interest rates or make credit decisions. Lenders in our network make every one of those choices independently.

When you complete the request form, we pass the details you provide to participating lenders and lending partners. Any lender that may be able to help can then show you its own offer, with its own APR, term, fees and conditions. You review the offer on the lender's terms and decide whether to accept it. If none of the offers feels right, you can simply walk away.

• We do not hold or move your money at any point.
• We do not service loans, collect payments or set due dates.
• We cannot change a lender's decision or renegotiate its terms.
• We do not promise that any lender will approve a request.

We help U.S. adults who need a modest amount for a specific cost and want to see several options quickly, including people with fair or rebuilding credit, since some lenders in our network consider a wide range of profiles.

Typical requests come from people dealing with situations like these:

• A parent covering an unexpected $800 pediatric urgent-care bill and new car-seat costs.
• A renter paying $2,000 for a security deposit and moving truck before the old deposit comes back.
• A commuter facing a $1,100 brake and rotor job that cannot wait until next month.
• A homeowner who needs $3,500 to replace a failed water heater.
• Someone hoping to roll three card balances into one fixed monthly payment.

Lenders set their own eligibility rules, so availability, amounts and terms vary by state and by applicant. Our eligibility guide explains the factors lenders commonly review.

Our service is free for borrowers. Lenders and partners in our network compensate us, typically when we refer a request to them or when a borrower takes a further step with that lender.

We think you deserve to know exactly where our revenue comes from. Because lenders pay us, compensation can influence which lenders participate in our network and the order in which some offers or links appear. It never changes the APR or fees a lender offers you, and you never pay us a fee, a membership charge or a cut of your loan. The full details are in our advertiser and lending disclosure.

Every number on this site is an estimate. APRs from lenders in our network range from about 6.99% to 35.99%, with terms of roughly 6 to 36 months. Your actual offer depends on the lender.

Our guides are written to help you make a decision, not to push you toward borrowing. We use plain numbers, label every figure as an estimate and point out cheaper alternatives when they exist.

Writers on our team cover household costs, consumer credit and budgeting. Every article follows the same checklist before it is published:

1. Costs are shown in dollars, such as a monthly payment and total repayment, not only as percentages.
2. Rates, fees and timelines are described as estimates that depend on the lender.
3. Alternatives like payment plans, credit union options or simply waiting are discussed where they fit.
4. Claims are reviewed for accuracy, and pages are revised when lender practices or rules change.
5. Compensation from lenders does not decide what a guide recommends.

For example, our worked sample of a $2,000 loan over 12 months at 24% APR shows a payment of about $189.12 per month and $269.44 in interest, so readers can see the real cost before they request anything. You can run your own numbers in the personal loan calculator.

Four values guide every decision we make: honesty about costs, respect for your time, care with your data and no pressure to accept any offer.

• Honesty: we explain that approval is never certain and that lenders decide.
• Respect: the form asks only what lenders typically need to review a request.
• Care: we protect the information you share and describe how it is used in our privacy policy.
• Choice: you are under no obligation to accept an offer, and declining costs nothing.

If a loan is not the right answer for your situation, we would rather you know that before you borrow. Several of our guides explain when a hardship plan with a hospital, a 0% promotional offer or a small loan from a credit union may cost less than a personal loan.

Questions about our service, a page on this site or your information can go to our team by email or phone, and we usually reply within one to two business days.

You can reach us at [email protected] or (888) 291-9226, or write to 9224 Harbor Boulevard, Suite 321, Trenton, NJ 08608. Questions about an existing loan, such as a payment date or payoff amount, should go to the lender that funded it. Our contact page lists what we can and cannot help with.