Best Dental Loans in 2024

A loan that includes two people is called a joint loan. Joint loans can be easier to qualify for and be a streamlined way to share the cost of shared expenses with another person. In Achieve’s case, a joint loan can also snag you a rate discount.

Achieve’s loans start at $5,000, so they won’t work if you only need a little bit of dental financing. Achieve also charges an origination fee on every loan. You won’t have to pay this out of pocket. Instead, Achieve will take 1.99% - 6.99% off the top of your loan before sending it to you.

If you have questions during the Achieve application process, you (or your co-borrower) can contact your assigned loan consultant for help.

Other than a credit score of at least 620, Achieve will typically ask you to provide the following documents and information:

• Proof of income
• Social Security number
• Government-issued ID
• Employment status

Best Egg’s Secured Loan + Homeowner’s Discount is a unique dental loan that uses your home’s permanent fixtures as collateral. Examples of collateral include built-in cabinets, lighting and vanities.

But keep in mind that secured loans (or collateral loans) are risky. If you don’t pay, your lender will repossess your collateral. Also, you must earn at least $100,000 a year and have a credit score of at least 700 to qualify for Best Egg’s minimum APR.

Best Egg uses your home’s permanent fixtures as collateral, but it doesn’t need to appraise the value of those fixtures. Instead, Best Egg will review your credit history and home equity to see if you qualify.

You must also meet the requirements below to qualify for a Best Egg loan:

Citizenship: Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident living in the U.S.
Administrative: Have a personal checking account, email address and physical address
Residency: Not live in the District of Columbia, Iowa, Vermont, West Virginia or U.S. territories
Credit score: 580

It can be hard to find a dental loan if you only need a filling or two. Most personal loans start at $1,000. With First Tech Credit Union, you can borrow as little as $500. And since it’s a credit union loan, you’ll still get lower-than-average rates, even if you qualify with rocky credit.

You can check rates before becoming a member, but you have to join to accept your loan. First Tech makes it easy by paying your first years’ dues if you need to join a partner organization. Still, it’s an extra step in the process.

To join First Tech (a requirement to get a loan), you must:

• Work for a partnering employer
• Be related to a current First Tech member
• Live in Lane County, Ore.
• Become a member of the Computer History Museum or Financial Fitness Association (First Tech will pay for your first year of membership, and you don’t have to maintain membership to keep your First Tech account)

Prosper offers peer-to-peer loans, and these types of loans are easier to qualify for. Peer-to-peer works a little like GoFundMe. Individual investors will fund your loan instead of Prosper itself.

There are some drawbacks to peer-to-peer, one being speed. When Prosper approves you, investors have 14 days to provide at least 70% of your requested loan amount. If your loan fails to reach this benchmark, Prosper will cancel your loan request.

To get a loan with Prosper, you must meet the following eligibility requirements:

• Age: Be 18 or older
• Citizenship: Be a U.S. citizen
• Administrative: Have a U.S. bank account and Social Security number
• Residency: Not live in Iowa or West Virginia
• Credit score: 560

The last thing you want to do when you’re in pain is upload a ton of documents. Rocket Loans makes it easy by verifying your income, identity and bank information electronically when you apply. To boost your chances of getting a same-day loan, be sure to apply by 1 p.m. ET on a business day.

However, Rocket Loans doesn’t have the lowest starting rate, which means it isn’t the cheapest if you have excellent credit. Rocket Loans also doesn’t have a mobile app that you can use to manage your personal loan.

To qualify for Rocket Loans, you’ll need to meet the following requirements:

• Citizenship: Must be a U.S. citizen
• Income: Minimum annual income of $24,000
• Residency: Can’t live in Iowa, Nevada or West Virginia
• Credit score: 620

When a lender advertises same-day loans, you have to apply by a certain time of day, usually midafternoon. SoFi’s cut-off time is 7 p.m. EST (as long as you apply on a business day). As an added bonus, SoFi’s free financial planning can help you strategize the best way to pay off your new emergency loan.

Note that SoFi lets its borrowers pay an optional origination fee to get a lower rate. Compare offers that do and don’t include this fee to see which is a better deal.

You must meet the requirements below in order to get a loan from SoFi:

• Age: Be the age of majority in your state (typically 18)
• Citizenship: Be a U.S. citizen, an eligible permanent resident or a non-permanent resident (a DACA recipient or asylum-seeker, for instance)
• Employment: Have a job or job offer with a start date within 90 days, or have regular income from another source
• Credit score: 680

You usually need at least fair credit to qualify for dental financing. Online lending platform Upstart accepts credit scores as low as 300. You might even be eligible with no credit, but you must be enrolled in or have graduated from an associate’s degree program or higher.

It’s a good thing that Upstart has easier requirements. You can’t add a second person to your loan to boost your approval odds. Bad credit loans don’t come cheap, either. You could have a rate of up to 35.99% and pay an origination fee from 0.00% - 12.00%.

Upstart has transparent eligibility requirements, including:

• Age: Be 18 or older
• Administrative: Have a U.S. address, personal banking account, email address and Social Security number
• Employment: Have a job or job offer that starts within six months, or have regular income
• Credit-related factors: Debt-to-income (DTI) ratio no higher than 50% (45% in Connecticut, Maryland, New York and Vermont), no bankruptcies within the last year, fewer than six inquiries on your credit report in the last six months and no current delinquencies
• Credit score: 300 (unless you’re an eligible college student or graduate, in which case Upstart could approve you with no credit)