LightStream Personal Loans Review 2024

LightStream offers personal loans up to $100,000 for a number of purposes—including the purchase of land or a tiny house, loan types not frequently offered by traditional lenders. These high loan amounts combined with a quick application and funding timeline make LightStream a great option for prospective borrowers who need a large loan with some flexibility.

Like some other online lenders, however, LightStream places some limitations on the use of loan funds. Borrowers can’t use their loans to pay for post-secondary education or to cover business expenses. Still, LightStream’s range of loan amounts, terms and annual percentage rates (APRs)—plus a minimum required credit score of just 660—make it a flexible option for many would-be borrowers.

LightStream loans are available to borrowers in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

LightStream Loan Purposes

Loan Amounts & Terms

• Loan amounts. LightStream offers personal loans from $5,000 to $100,000, depending on needs and qualifications.
• Loan terms. In general, LightStream’s personal loans are available for terms between two and seven years—or 24 and 84 months. However, home improvement, swimming pool and solar loans may have repayment terms as long as 12 years, or 144 months.

Loan Costs

• APR. LightStream offers borrowers APRs between 7.49% to 25.49% if they sign up for autopay. Borrowers who do not sign up for autopay are subject to APRs 0.50% higher. APR ranges available vary depending on loan purpose.
• Origination fees. LightStream does not charge any origination fees.
• Late fees. Borrowers are not charged late fees—although late payments will result in higher interest accrual.
• Prepayment penalty fees. LightStream does not impose prepayment penalties on borrowers who want to pay off their loans early.

Perks & Features

In addition to the 0.50% APR reduction for autopay enrollees, LightStream offers customers a few other helpful perks:

• Rate beat program. LightStream will beat a competitor’s interest rate by 0.1% for applicants who show they were approved by that competitor for a regular fixed-rate loan with the same amount, term, purpose and payment method. Terms apply.
• Loan experience guarantee. LightStream borrowers who have had their loan for fewer than 30 days and who are unhappy with their experience can get $100. To qualify, borrowers must contact LightStream and submit a questionnaire that helps LightStream better understand customer needs and improve its services. Each borrower is limited to one $100 payment per funded loan.

Personal loan applications are approved or declined based on a number of factors. All lenders have their own unique underwriting requirements, but these typically include information from an applicant’s credit profile and other factors that demonstrate the ability to repay the loan, such as income. Meeting the requirements below won’t guarantee approval, but they can help you decide if a personal loan is the right fit for you.

Credit Score Requirements

To qualify for a LightStream loan, applicants must have a minimum FICO credit score of at least 660. What’s more, a strong applicant will have several years of credit history, including multiple account types—credit cards, auto loans and mortgage debt, for example—as demonstrated by their credit profile. While a good credit score may be enough to get approved, the lowest rates require excellent credit.

Unlike many other online lenders, LightStream does not have a prequalification process. Therefore, prospective borrowers must submit a formal application and submit to a hard credit check to find out if they qualify and, if so, at what rate.

Income Requirements

To get approved, LightStream requires loan applicants to have income that is stable enough and sufficient to repay both current debt obligations and a new LightStream loan. In addition to income requirements, LightStream evaluates applicants based on their liquid assets, cash down payments on real estate, retirement savings and revolving credit card debt. Keep in mind, however, that LightStream does not consider income that is derived from the marijuana industry.

Taken along with the purpose of the loan, these factors help determine an applicant’s debt-to-income (DTI) ratio and likelihood of approval.

Co-signers and Co-applicants

LightStream does not allow co-signers, but prospective borrowers can submit a joint application. In contrast to some lenders, co-applicants do not need to live at the same address as the primary applicant.

Prospective borrowers must indicate at the beginning of the application process that they’ll be filing a joint application and provide details about both applicants in the online application. LightStream will then weigh each applicant’s credit, income and other details equally when evaluating the application.

LightStream has a 2.1-star rating on TrustPilot, but this is based on only 11 reviews published on the platform. Other online reviews reveal much higher ratings from LightStream customers—typically between four and five stars, overall.

Borrowers who report positive experiences with LightStream indicate that the application is quick and easy, with funds available in a reasonable amount of time. Likewise, many customers share that the process is transparent. Those who gave LightStream lower ratings reported issues like having to follow up with the lender for application status updates, receiving funds later than expected and a lack of responsiveness from customer support.

LightStream offers a completely online application process, but a representative may need to contact you via phone to obtain additional information. To apply for a LightStream personal loan, access the application online and provide the following:

• Loan purpose, amount and term
• Payment method
• Personal and contact information
• Employment information
• Current expenses, including monthly housing payments (e.g., rent or mortgage)

Related: How To Apply For A Personal Loan

Time to Receive Funds

LightStream borrowers can receive funds as early as the same day if the loan is approved before 2:30 p.m. EST on a banking business day. To receive same-day funding, the applicant must also: review and electronically sign the loan agreement; provide LightStream with funding preferences and relevant banking information; and complete the final verification process—all before 2:30 p.m. on the day the loan is approved.

The best personal loans offer competitive rates, flexible loan amounts and a wide range of terms. Here’s how LightStream personal loans stack up against other popular lenders:

LightStream Vs. SoFi®

LightStream and SoFi both offer unsecured personal loans between $5,000 and $100,000, depending on the loan purpose. However, LightStream beats SoFi when it comes to interest rates and available term lengths. What’s more, LightStream tends to have more permitted loan purposes than SoFi. For example, through SoFi you cannot use your personal loan for land purchases, but you can with LightStream.

If you have good to excellent credit, you may be eligible for a more affordable loan through LightStreams low rates.

Related: SoFi Personal Loans Review

LightStream Vs. Upgrade

While LightStream’s personal loans are tailored to borrowers with good credit scores, Upgrade makes financing available to those with fair or poor credit. With one of the best personal loans for bad credit, Upgrade makes a strong case if you don’t meet LightStream’s minimum score requirement of 660. However, don’t expect to see rates and loan amounts comparable to LightStream. Upgrade offers loans between $1,000 and $50,000.

Related: Upgrade Personal Loans Review

LightStream Vs. Marcus

When it comes to Marcus personal loans, its loan details are tighter than LightStream. For example, it only offers loan amounts between $3,500 to $40,000 and terms between three and six years. If you have a score of at least 710, you can typically land better terms, such as lower interest rates and larger loan limits, with LightStream.

Related: Marcus Personal Loans Review

We reviewed LightStream based on 16 data points in the categories of loan details, loan costs, eligibility and accessibility, customer experience and the application process. We rated LightStream based on the weighting assigned to each category:

• Loan cost: 35%
• Loan details: 20%
• Eligibility and accessibility: 20%
• Customer experience: 15%
• Application process: 10%

Within each category, we also considered several characteristics, including available loan amounts, repayment terms, APR ranges and applicable fees. We also looked at credit score requirements, whether the lender accepts co-signers or joint applications and the geographic availability of the lender. Finally, we evaluated LightStream’s support tools, borrower perks and features that simplify the borrowing process—like prequalification options and mobile apps.

To learn more about how Forbes Advisor rates lenders, and our editorial process, check out our Loans Rating & Review Methodology.