Prosper Personal Loans Review (2026)

Our take on Prosper

Prosper is the only major peer-to-peer lender offering personal loans and has a Credible rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars. Prosper ranks well due to a combination of factors — a three-step online application process, flexible payment options, funding as fast as the next business day, and options for borrowers with fair credit.

Unfortunately, Prosper charges four types of fees (origination fees, check payment fees, late fees, and insufficient funds fees) and is not a fit for people with poor credit.

Who (or what) is Prosper best for?

• Peer-to-peer lending: Prosper is the nation’s first SEC-approved peer-to-peer lending platform. This means Individual investors — not banks — fund Prosper loans, which may make it easier to qualify or secure a lower rate.
• Straightforward digital application process: Prosper offers a three-step online application that Trustpilot reviewers describe as a “breeze.” You can also use the mobile app to estimate your APR without sharing your phone number or email address. 

Who (or what) is Prosper not best for?

• Bad credit borrowers: Borrowers applying through the Credible marketplace need a minimum score of 660, but Prosper's published requirements are conflicting, with the site listing both 600 and 640 as the minimum required score. If you don’t meet the requirements, you can apply with a co-applicant or consider lenders offering personal loans for fair credit or bad credit. 
• Avoiding upfront fees: The origination fee on Prosper loans is 1% to 9.99% of the loan amount, depending on your Prosper rating. Fees above 5% of the loan amount may be refundable if you pay the loan off early. Fees are deducted from loan proceeds. Some other lenders offer personal loans with no origination fee, especially if you have good credit.

Pros and cons

Details on the pros

• Fair credit eligible: Investors consider more than just your credit score when evaluating your loan application, but your score still needs to be in the fair credit range — 660 if you're applying through the Credible marketplace. 
• Next-day funding for some borrowers: Funds may be available the next business day after final loan approval, depending on your bank's processing speed. 
• Flexible repayment terms: You can choose to repay your loan over 2, 3, 4, or 5 years. However, if you want a longer repayment term — some lenders offer up to 7 years — you’ll need to look at a lender like LendingClub or Upgrade.
• Allows co-applicants: Prosper allows you to apply with a co-applicant who shares access to the loan funds and responsibility for repayment. You can improve your chances of approval and qualify for lower rates if your co-applicant has stable employment and good or excellent credit. 
• Flexible payment options: You can change your payment due date, set up automatic payments, or make extra payments online or via mobile app.
• Dedicated phone support: Prosper offers dedicated phone support, which not all online lenders provide. 

Details on the cons

• Origination fee: Origination fees on Prosper loans range from 1% to 9.99% of the loan amount. Fees are deducted from the funds you receive. 
• Late payment fee: You'll owe a late payment fee equal to the greater of $15 or 5% of the unpaid amount if you're 15 or more calendar days past due on your monthly payment. 
• No secured loans: Prosper's lending platform doesn't offer secured loans, or loans backed by collateral such as a home or vehicle. Secured loans tend to be easier to qualify for, although they are riskier because you could lose the collateral if you can't pay. 

How to qualify for a Prosper personal loan

Prosper determines your eligibility by evaluating a combination of factors. At a minimum, you’ll need:

• A credit score of 660 or higher if you're applying through Credible, 640 if you're applying as an individual applicant directly through Prosper, or 600 if you're applying with a co-borrower 
• No bankruptcies in the last 12 months
• At least one active account on your credit report

If you already have an outstanding Prosper loan and are applying for a second, the original loan must be at least six months old and in good standing.

Prosper doesn’t have a minimum income requirement (other than that you earn an income) and doesn’t disclose a specific maximum debt-to-income ratio. However, both will impact your eligibility and rate. (DTI is the percentage of your income you put toward debt repayment each month.) 

Prosper personal loan purposes

You can use a Prosper personal loan for a wide variety of purposes, including:

Prosper fees and penalties

• Origination fee: Origination fees on Prosper personal loans range from 1% to 9.99% of the loan amount. If you prepay the loan, you’re eligible for a refund of any fee amount above 5% of the original principal. 
• Check payment fee: You'll pay a fee equal to the lesser of $5 or 5% of the payment amount if you pay by check. 
• Late fee: If your payment isn't made within 15 calendar days after the due date, you'll owe late fees equal to the greater of $15 or 5% of your past due payment. 
• Insufficient funds fee: You'll owe a $15 fee for each returned check or failed ACH payment if there are insufficient funds in your account. 

Prosper vs other lenders

Prosper company details and history

Prosper was founded in 2005 and became the first SEC-approved peer-to-peer lending platform to connect borrowers with individual investors. Since then, Prosper has issued over $28 billion in personal loans to 2 million people. 

Prosper is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and offers personal loans to residents of all U.S. states except Iowa, North Dakota, and West Virginia. The fintech company also offers the Prosper Card, an unsecured credit card designed for people with spotty credit histories. 

Contact information

If you need to get in touch with Prosper customer support, you can use any of the contact methods in the table below. 

You can manage your account both online and via the Prosper mobile app. Unfortunately, the company doesn’t offer live chat support like some other lenders, and weekend support hours aren’t available for personal loan applicants or existing customers. 

Methodology

Credible evaluated 32 lenders across 1,216 data points to choose the best lender overall plus top picks for different borrowers and use cases. Across lenders, we collected data on customer experience and service options, minimum and maximum fixed interest rates, minimum and maximum loan amounts, funding times, loan terms, fees, discounts, third-party reviews, and more.

We assigned a numerical value to each attribute based on how that feature compared with the same feature for every other lender in the set. Attributes were grouped into categories, scores were compiled, and categories were weighted according to their relative importance — for instance, rates and fees were weighted highest since loan cost is among the most important factors in determining loan value.

• Rates and fees: 18.75%
• Eligibility and options for bad and no credit: 17.5%
• Availability: 12.5%
• Loan amounts and terms: 10%
• Customer satisfaction: 10%
• Customer service: 10%
• Efficiency and fund delivery: 10%
• Discounts: 7.5%
• Credible proprietary data: 3.75%

We also considered each of our partner lenders' statistics over a 12-month period — including average funding times, average credit scores for approved applicants, and average rates. Learn more about how Credible rates lenders by exploring our full personal loans lender rating methodology.