Santander Bank Personal Loan Review
7.99% – 24.99%
36 to 84 months
$5,000 to $50,000
Not specified
LendingTree rating: 3.2/5
Accessibility: 2/5
Rates and terms: 4.1/5
Repayment experience: 3.8/5
Santander Bank personal loans are competitive with some of the top personal loan lenders, but its reach is mainly limited to New England. Here’s what you need to know before applying for a Santander personal loan:
- Same-day funding possible: Santander offers quick loans. You could get your money as soon as the day you apply, which is fast compared to competitors’ personal loan funding timelines.
- No upfront fee: Unlike many personal loan lenders, Santander Bank doesn’t charge an upfront origination fee. These fees can add hundreds or thousands to the cost of your loan.
- Rate discount: You can get a 0.25% discount on your annual percentage rate (APR) by signing up for autopay.
- Not available in all states: Santander Bank only offers personal loans in 28 states and Washington, D.C., so you won’t be able to get a loan through Santander if you live elsewhere.
- No public information on minimum credit score or income: Santander Bank doesn’t shed much light on its eligibility requirements, so it’s hard to know if you’ll get a loan without submitting an application.
- Best for Santander customers: Santander Bank loans can help you save with competitive rates and no upfront fees, but you need to be a current or former customer or have an offer code to get a loan.
Santander Bank pros and cons
Santander Bank loans can be a relatively cheap way to borrow money, but they’re not available to everyone. Here’s what you need to know.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Low rates No upfront fees 0.25% rate discount with autopay Money as soon as the same day | Only available in some states Not clear what credit and income you’ll need to qualify Have to borrow at least $5,000 |
Santander offers low starting rates, no upfront fees and a rate discount that can help you save on your personal loan. Plus, you can get your money as soon as the day you apply. For the best chance of fast funding, apply early in the day.
On the downside, Santander Bank does not offer personal loans in every state. Santander also requires that you take out at least $5,000, so look elsewhere for a small personal loan.
Santander Bank requirements
Santander Bank doesn’t share much information about what you need to qualify for a loan. Here’s what we know:
| Minimum age | 18 |
| Residency | Must live in one of the following locations: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia or Washington |
| Required information |
|
If Santander Bank’s loan options won’t work for your borrowing needs, shop around for a lender that helps you meet your financial goals and can offer you the best-fitting rates, terms and amounts
How to get a loan with Santander Bank
To get a Santander Bank personal loan, you’ll need to go through the following application process.
Fill out an application
Go to the Santander website and click “Check my rate” to access the application. You’ll have to verify that you’re a current or former Santander customer or enter a 10-digit offer code to begin the application.
Once in the application, you’ll enter your last name, Social Security number, ZIP code and date of birth so the company can locate your account. You may also have to provide other information, such as your employment status, income and whether you own or rent a home.
Since Santander allows you to prequalify for a loan, the initial application process won’t impact your credit score.
Review your options
If you’re preapproved for a loan with Santander, you can choose from a handful of options with different terms and monthly payments. If you decide to move forward, Santander will verify your information and do a hard credit pull.
A hard credit pull is a credit background check that can cause your credit score to temporarily drop by a few points. Most legitimate personal loan lenders require a hard credit pull to finalize your loan application.
Sign your agreement
If you pass the hard credit check and verify your information, Santander Bank may officially approve your personal loan request.
Next, you’ll have to sign a loan agreement. Then you’ll wait for your funds to be deposited into your bank account. You may get your money that day, but not all customers do.
If you aren’t approved for a Santander loan, there are steps you can take to increase your odds of approval.
How Santander Bank compares to other personal loan companies
Even if you believe Santander Bank aligns with what you’re looking for in a personal loan, it never hurts to shop around and compare other lenders. Here’s how Santander Bank stacks up against similar personal loan lenders.
| Santander Bank | Upstart | Upgrade | |
|---|---|---|---|
| LendingTree’s rating | 3.2/5 | 4.5/5 | 4.6/5 |
| Minimum credit score | Not specified | 300 | 580 |
| APRs | 7.99% – 24.99% (with autopay) | 6.70% – 35.99% | 7.99% to 35.99% (with discounts) |
| Loan amount | $5,000 to $50,000 | $1,000 to $50,000 | $1,000 to $50,000 |
| Repayment term | 36 to 84 months | 36 or 60 months | 24 to 84 months |
| Origination fee | No origination fee | 0.00% - 12.00% | 1.85% - 9.99% |
| Funding timeline | As soon as the same day | As soon as one business day | As soon as one business day |
| Bottom line | Santander Bank offers fast funding, low rates and doesn’t charge origination fees, but loans aren’t available everywhere. | While Upstart may charge you an origination fee, it does offer smaller loans and loans for bad credit. Upstart is also available in all states. | Upgrade charges origination fees, but it does provide quick funding and you may qualify with fair credit. It also allows joint applications. |
How we rate our lenders
To come up with our star rating for personal loan companies, LendingTree considered 22 data points across three categories:
- Accessibility: We paid attention to whether lenders offered loans to nontraditional borrowers, as well as those without excellent credit scores. We also checked if lenders offered soft credit pulls, and whether they were transparent about eligibility criteria other than credit scores.
- Rates and terms: We wanted to know if lender rates, terms, amounts and fees were not only transparent but competitive.
- Repayment experience: We based this category on lenders’ reputations, customer support availability and unique benefits.
The data points reflect every step of the process to shop and apply for, borrow and repay personal loans. A five-star lender, for instance, has flexible eligibility requirements, offers you the chance to prequalify without commitment and supports you in zeroing your balance.
The 22 data points, culled from the lenders themselves, determine the overall rating. We score lenders consistently, sometimes awarding partial points, so that you can make apples-to-apples comparisons when shopping around.
LendingTree isn’t paid for conducting these reviews, and lenders don’t have control over their content. With our reviews and ratings, we aim to give our users the objective and exhaustive information they need to make the best possible decisions.
Frequently asked questions
Santander Bank does not share its credit score requirements, but Santander does state that it considers your credit score and your debt-to-income ratio, or how much debt you have compared to your income.
If you apply for a personal loan with Santander Bank, you may need to verify your income. You can do this by providing documents such as pay stubs or W-2s.
Santander Bank needs to verify this information to evaluate your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio and determine whether you can repay a personal loan. Generally, you want to keep your DTI ratio below 35%; otherwise, lenders may think you won’t be able to afford loan payments and could decline your personal loan application.
Like many personal loan lenders, Santander Bank offers flexibility when it comes to how borrowers can use their funds. Here are some of Santander Bank’s approved loan uses:
- Debt consolidation
- Home improvement projects
- Moving costs
- Medical expenses
- Weddings
- Travel plans