How Do Medical Loans Work?
- Medical loans let you borrow money, especially for health care expenses.
- A medical loan can be good for planned or high-cost care.
- A medical loan is usually not so good for bills you’ve already received.
- Check if there’s a payment plan that’s cheaper than a medical loan (or see if you can negotiate one).
What’s a medical loan and how does it work?
Medical loans are personal loans for medical expenses. Like other personal loans, they are tied to a lender or bank, not a medical provider. You borrow a fixed amount of money and repay with interest in equal monthly payments.
Medical loans aren’t the only way to pay for medical bills. They’re worth considering if you can’t afford to pay for treatment up front, but only if your provider doesn’t offer payment plans or financial assistance. Unlike provider payment plans, medical loans usually start charging interest right away.
How much do medical loans cost?
As a type of personal loan, medical loans typically come with lower rates than credit cards, making them a cheaper option.
Here are average personal loan APRs by credit score, based on LendingTree data:
| Credit tier | Average APR |
|---|---|
| Excellent (800 and above) | 15.75% |
| Very good (740-799) | 17.89% |
| Good (670-739) | 23.27% |
| Fair (580-669) | 27.79% |
| Poor (under 580) | 30.25% |
Your medical loan’s annual percentage rate (APR) measures the loan’s interest rate and fees, or how much it will cost to borrow money for your loan.
Personal loans sometimes come with a one-time origination fee, often from 1% to 10%, which is included in your APR.
If you want to know how much your loan could cost, plug the average APR for your credit score into the LendingTree personal loan calculator below. If you don’t know your credit score, you can check it for free at LendingTree Spring or similar sites.
How to get a medical loan
Medical loans work the same way personal loans do. Any adult can apply. Here are the steps:
- Check your rates. Once you know how much money you need, check rates with top medical loan lenders and at the bank or credit union you use now. You can prequalify for loan offers by filling out a form to learn what the lender will offer. Be sure to compare those offers: A 2024 LendingTree study found that just by shopping around, someone with fair or good credit could save an average of $1,859, while those with excellent credit saved $2,234.
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Formally apply. When you’re ready to choose an offer, you’ll formally apply for the loan and receive a hard credit check
. You’ll usually need to prove your income with pay stubs, W2s or tax returns.A hard credit check looks at your credit history. Unlike a soft credit check, it can temporarily ding your credit score
- Get your money and pay off your medical bills. If you’re approved, you’ll sign the loan contract, and your lender will send you money, usually by direct deposit. You’ll then use the money to pay for your medical services.
- Repay your loan. You’ll pay off your loan in set, fixed monthly payments to your lender over a chosen period of time called the loan term.
Most people face medical debt at some point. A LendingTree survey in 2025 found that more than 55% of Americans have taken on medical debt, and 27% of those polled were still paying it back.
Will I qualify?
While there’s no universal minimum credit score needed to get a personal loan, it’s harder to get one when you have bad credit, a lot of debt or a history of bankruptcies and delinquencies.
That being said, you can also find medical loans for bad credit. The main drawback is that they usually have much higher rates, making your loan more expensive.
How long does it take to get a medical loan?
Getting a medical loan or other personal loan usually takes from just a few hours to five business days. The exact time to get your loan funds can vary, with online lenders often a little faster than others.
To boost your odds of getting your medical loan fast, look into quick loans or emergency loans that advertise one- or two-day funding. Have your personal loan checklist with you, and gather your documents ahead of time.
Will applying hurt my credit?
When you formally apply for a medical loan, the lender does a hard credit inquiry to make sure everything’s in order. The hard credit pull will cause a temporary hit to your credit score, but usually by just five points or less.
On-time payments should help your score bounce back quickly.
What happens if I can’t pay?
Medical loans are typically unsecured personal loans, meaning your credit is on the line if you miss payments.
Late or missed payments can hurt your credit, so make sure you can afford the loan before you sign any paperwork. If you stop making payments and your loan goes into default, your lender could send it to collections and eventually sue you for unpaid debt.
Pros and cons of medical loans
Pros
- Generally cheaper than credit cards
- Fixed rates with predictable payments
- Can help you afford medical care if you can’t cover treatment on your own
Cons
- May be more expensive than a repayment plan from your medical provider
- Must manage payments to a lender
- Missing payments will hurt your credit
Medical loan alternatives
The most common medical loan alternatives are provider payment plans, financial assistance and credit cards. Here’s what you need to know about each.
| What is it? | When is it better than a medical loan? | |
|---|---|---|
| Provider payment plans | Making no-interest or low-interest payments directly to your medical provider. | Almost always. If you can get a cheaper payment plan from your doctor, don’t bother with a medical loan. |
| Financial assistance/charity care | Hospital-provided discounts for low-income families. | Almost always. Getting the same care for less money could help you avoid spending years in debt. |
| Credit cards | Consumer plastic, which usually comes with higher rates than medical loans. | If you can get a 0% intro APR credit card and pay off all your charges before the introductory period ends. |
Medical loan tips: Read this before you put it on a credit card
Medical bills are confusing, which can make it hard to fight for yourself and get the care you need affordably. Here are a few rules of thumb when it comes to medical debt:
- If you don’t have the money to fully cover treatment, ask your medical provider about payment plans and financial assistance (also called “charity care”).
- Medical bills are different from other kinds of debt because medical debt can sometimes be negotiated. In some cases, medical debt may not appear on your credit report for at least a year, and medical debts under $500 might not be reported at all.
- Medical loans are usually cheaper than carrying a balance on a high-interest credit card, making them a more cost-effective way to pay for medical services when no aid or payment plan is available.
Usually, the cheapest and best ways to pay for medical debt are, in order:
- Cash or card that you can immediately pay off with money in your bank account
- Financial assistance or charity care
- A no- or low-interest payment plan from the provider
- A medical loan
- A high-interest loan or credit card that you can’t pay off immediately
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