Best Student Loan Refinancing for Low Incomes in May 2025

Student loan debt weighs heavily on many college graduates. According to Pew Research Center's 2024 data, 1 in 4 graduates with student debt are struggling to make ends meet or are barely scraping by. In comparison, about 10% of grads without student loans report the same financial stress.

Since most recent graduates don't start their careers at the top of the pay scale, those with lower incomes often face the biggest challenges. Student loan refinancing can be a smart way to lower monthly payments, reduce interest rates, and regain control of your finances. 

Whether juggling bills or just trying to stretch each paycheck, finding the right refinance lender can make a world of difference. RISLA is one of the standouts for low-income earners, with its income-based repayment option. However, there are other student loan refinance lenders offering flexible terms, competitive rates, and support for those with limited incomes.

Private student loan refinance rates

What is considered low income?

Low income can vary based on your location and household size. As of January 2025, the Department of Education says a low-income earner is someone whose family's taxable income for the preceding year didn't exceed more than 150% of the poverty level amount. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, that level is $15,650 for one person and increases by $5,500 for each person living in your household.

This standard covers the 48 contiguous states. Washington, D.C., Alaska, and Hawaii have their own guidelines.

Best student loan refinance lenders for low income earners

Student loan refinancing is securing a new loan and using the money from that loan to pay off existing federal or private student debt. Only private lenders offer refinancing — therefore, this option is best for borrowers with private loans because refinancing federal student debt means giving up borrower benefits like access to loan forgiveness.

Why you can trust us

The Credible editorial team is independent and unbiased. Partners do not influence our editorial content. To help you find the best student loan for your situation, we conduct thorough research and analyze more than 1,700 of lender data points. Using data-driven methodologies, we score criteria that are important to you. This allows us to objectively rank student loan lenders and products. To learn more, read our methodology below.

Methodology

To determine the best student loan refinance lenders for low-income earners, Credible collected more than 1,000 points of data on 16 companies and evaluated them on several different categories: repayment options, eligibility, interest rates, loan terms, and customer support. We assigned a score out of five stars to each lender based on our findings. Below are the weightings assigned to the general categories for the best student loan companies — which comprise individual criteria that are also weighted:

• Repayment options: 25%
• Eligibility: 25%
• Interest rates: 20%
• Loan terms: 20%
• Customer support: 10%

While the best lender for you will depend on your unique needs and financial circumstances, these findings should help answer your questions and assist you in your search for the best student loan.

Learn more about our methodology.

Student loans based on income

Besides federal income-driven repayment plans, RISLA is one of the only private student loan refinance lenders that offers a repayment plan based on your income. To qualify, you (and your cosigner, if you have one) must show financial hardship. The lender compares your income and family size to your state's poverty rates. Provided you meet their qualifications, you'll get a lower monthly payment for one year. Depending on your financial situation after that first year, you can reapply, or your payments will increase.

Federal income-driven repayment plans allow you to extend your repayment term to a maximum of 25 years, and after that, any remaining loan balance is forgiven.

Pros and cons of refinancing student loans

Pros

If you can find the right lender for your situation, there are significant benefits to refinancing student loans. These include:

• Lower your monthly payments: Refinancing your loans can lower your monthly payment if you extend your repayment term. A lower monthly payment provides more wiggle room in your budget.
• Reduce your interest rate for long-term savings: You can potentially get a lower interest rate when you refinance, which makes your cost of borrowing cheaper. This can also help you pay off your loan faster.
• Make repayment more manageable: When you refinance, you combine multiple loans into one new loan. This makes it easier to keep track of payments since you only have a single student loan and one monthly payment.
• Faster loan payoff: A lower rate or a shorter loan term can help you pay off your debt more quickly.

Cons

There can be some downsides to refinancing as well. Some disadvantages include:

• Lose federal borrower benefits: If you have federal student loans, you can access income-driven repayment plans, loan deferment and forbearance, and loan forgiveness. You give up these benefits if you refinance federal loans. Most low-income borrowers are better off using an income-driven plan to keep payments at a set percentage of their income and eventually qualify for loan forgiveness.
• Potentially higher overall costs with longer repayment term: If you extend your payment term when refinancing, you'll pay more interest and be in debt for longer, making accomplishing other financial goals more challenging.
• Limited hardship flexibility: Private lenders may not offer as much flexibility for financial hardship or unemployment.
• Strict eligibility requirements: Private lenders require good credit and stable income; not everyone qualifies for better terms.

Student loan refinance requirements

“Refinancing any loan can be hard for low-income earners,” explains Domenick D'Andrea, a financial adviser and co-founder of DanDarah Wealth Management. “Most lenders have minimum income requirements, but this number will vary depending on the lender.” These minimums create challenges if your income is too low.

Each private lender has its eligibility requirements that you must meet. This can present a challenge for those without high earnings since many lenders have a minimum income requirement.

Minimum income

However, some lenders approve borrowers with lower incomes. ELFI requires a minimum income of $35,000, and EdvestinU's minimum is just $30,000 if you're borrowing less than $100,000. Not all lenders disclose their requirements online, so contact any lenders you're interested in before officially applying.

D'Andrea says lenders will also look at your employment history to make sure your income is stable, which could be a problem if you've only recently found work or work as a freelancer.

Remember that, while you can get approved for student loan refinancing with a low income, you may be approved for a lower amount than you would with a higher income. In 2024, the average loan amount for refinancing was highest for borrowers with incomes of $120,000 or more, according to Credible marketplace data.

These are the average loan amounts by income in 2024:

Debt-to-income ratio

Lenders not only look at how much you earn, but at your debt relative to your income. “Debt-to-income ratio tells the lender if you have the money to pay the loan — that's the critical piece that many people forget,” says Jack Wang, a wealth adviser specializing in student loan repayment with Innovative Advisory Group.

Lenders take all your debt into account. This includes student loans, but also factors like credit card debt. So, refinancing is even more challenging if you have a lot of other debt.

Credit history

Income is one key component that private lenders look at when deciding if you can refinance. Credit is another.

“Credit score tells the lender if you pay your bills on time,” Wang says. Unfortunately, if you have more limited income, it can be easier to fall behind on payments and find yourself with a low credit score, which also makes qualifying harder.

D'Andrea notes that you usually need a good credit score to refinance. Typically, this means a FICO credit score of at least 670. However, it's important to shop around if you have imperfect credit, as some lenders are more willing to provide loans than others.

“All of these are guidelines and vary lender to lender, so do your research and find the lender that best matches your need,” says D'Andrea.

Strategies to qualify for refinancing with a low income

There are strategies for refinancing even with a limited income. Some options include:

• Use a cosigner to get approved or get better terms: Private student loan lenders often allow you to add a cosigner to your application. This is a person who agrees to share responsibility for your debt. If you can find someone with a higher income and solid credit to cosign, you may get approved by more lenders at better rates.
• Improve your credit score: Since lenders look at both credit and income, a better score makes you a less risky borrower. Lenders may be more willing to overlook your low income if you have excellent credit.
• Reduce other debts: Paying down other debts helps you to lower your debt-to-income ratio, which makes qualifying easier.
• Consider taking on freelance work or a part-time job: Increasing your monthly income in creative ways can help you meet a lender's minimum income requirement.

Tips for managing student loans on a low income

If you have a limited income, there are ways to manage your student loans that don't involve refinancing. These include:

• Budget to allocate funds toward repayment: Create a detailed budget to save money. Prioritize student loan payoff in your budget by making cuts to things like entertainment or eating out.
• Explore income-driven repayment plans: If you have federal loans, look into income-driven repayment options. You can limit monthly payments to no more than 5% to 20% of your discretionary income, which could mean payments as low as $0.
• Communicate with your lender about financial challenges: Lenders prefer to work with you on your student loan payment issues rather than have you default, so ask your lender what your options are.