Oportun Personal Loan Review 2024
Oportun personal loans allow you to borrow up to $10,000 to cover bills, pay for unexpected expenses, consolidate debt, or meet other needs. If you live in California, you also have the option to use your car as collateral for a secured loan.
You might consider getting a personal loan with Oportun if you have no credit or bad credit. This Oportun personal loan review offers a closer look at how they work and what you might pay should you decide to get one.
Oportun At-a-Glance
- Unsecured personal loans ranging from $300 to $10,000
- Secured loans available to California residents
- Loan terms range from 24 to 48 months in most states
- No application fees or prepayment penalties
- Origination fees may apply in some states
- Loans are not available in every state
Compare Lenders and Find the Best Personal Loan Rates
Finding the right lender could help you save hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The rate you receive on your personal loan depends on many factors, including your credit score and income.
The smartest way to know if you’re getting the best loan rate is to compare offers from competing lenders.
Pros and Cons of the Oportun Personal Loan
Oportun loans have some advantages and disadvantages. Here’s how they both measure up.
Pros
- Oportun makes borrowing accessible to people with poor or no credit
- Once approved, you can get loan funding quickly and choose from different repayment terms to find one that fits your budget
- There’s no penalty for paying your loan off early if you can do so
- If you live in California and own a vehicle, you could qualify for a larger loan amount
- Checking your rates won’t hurt your credit scores
Cons
- Oportun charges an origination fee, which can make your loan more expensive
- Interest rates are higher since these loans are designed for people with less-than-stellar credit
- The maximum loan is $10,000, which might not work for you if you need to borrow a larger amount
- Using a car as collateral for a loan could result in losing your vehicle if you default
- A hard credit check is performed for approval
Compare to Others
Oportun is one of several lenders that offer loans for people with less-than-perfect credit. Comparing loan options can make it easier to decide which one might be best for you, depending on your needs and budget. Here are three alternative lenders.
NetCredit
NetCredit offers personal loans up to $10,000 and personal lines of credit up to $4,500. Repayment terms for loans range from six to 60 months, and you can check your rates online without affecting your credit scores. Like Oportun, NetCredit is designed for people with fair or poor credit and have been turned down for loans by other lenders.
If approved, you can get funds as soon as the next business day and, in some cases, before. Paying your loan off early won’t trigger a prepayment penalty fee, and on-time payments can help you build a positive credit history. While loan interest rates can be higher with this lender, they’re fixed, making your payments predictable.
Read our full NetCredit review.
Upgrade
Upgrade allows you to borrow up to $50,000 in unsecured personal loan funding without prepayment fees. You can use Upgrade loans to pay for home renovations, cover medical bills, consolidate debt, or meet other needs. It’s easy to check your rates online without impacting your credit.
You can choose from a 36-month or 60-month repayment term. There’s a one-time origination fee, which is deducted from the loan proceeds. Your loan rates can depend on your loan term, loan amount, and credit history.
Read our full Upgrade review.
OneMain Financial
OneMain Financial lends to borrowers who need money for everyday expenses and emergencies. You can borrow $1,500 to $20,000, and perfect credit is not a requirement. You can apply for a loan online or at a local OneMain Financial office near you.
Loan terms range from 24 to 60 months, and new loans have an origination fee. The amount you’ll pay for this fee can depend on where you live. Rates are fixed, and like Oportun, they’re on the higher side, but that’s typical of most loan options for people with no credit.
Who Is an Oportun Personal Loan For?
An Oportun personal loan might work well for someone who needs to borrow $10,000 or less and may not be able to get approved for loans elsewhere because of their credit history. Loans are flexible, and you can use them for various purposes. And you can choose your preferred repayment term to ensure your payments are workable for your budget.
If you have good or excellent credit, choose another personal loan option to get the lowest rates. Before selecting an Oportun loan or any other personal loan, it’s essential to understand what you’ll pay in interest and fees to borrow.
Top Features of the Oportun Personal Loan
Oportun personal loans have features that might appeal more to some borrowers than others. Understanding what makes these loans unique can help you weigh their merits when considering all borrowing options.
Oportun Loans Are Flexible
Oportun loans are designed to meet a variety of needs. If you need a small loan to cover the bills until your next payday or your car breaks down and needs an expensive repair, Oportun personal loans could help you close those financial gaps.
Funding Speed Is Fast
Speed is of the essence when you’ve got a financial emergency. Oportun makes it possible to get loan funds deposited into your bank account as soon as the next business day once you’re approved. That’s an advantage when you need money quickly.
No Collateral Is Needed
Oportun primarily offers unsecured loans, meaning you don’t need to put up any collateral to qualify. Some bad credit loans or credit builder loans might require you to use a bank account or another asset as collateral.
Additionally, you can get a secured loan if you own a car and live in California. As long as you own your vehicle, you can use it to get a larger loan than the standard $10,000 maximum personal loan.
Rates Are Fixed
Oportun loans feature fixed interest rates, so you have predictability with your monthly payments. That could make budgeting your loan payoff easier.
As far as the rates themselves go, they’re higher than what you might pay elsewhere. But if you have bad or no credit, qualifying for the lowest rates is usually difficult.
No Application or Prepayment Penalties
There’s no fee to apply for an Oportun loan, though you might pay an origination fee, depending on your state. If you decide to pay your loan off early, you won’t be penalized with a prepayment penalty.
How to Apply
Checking your rates is the first step if you’d like to apply for an Oportun personal loan. You’ll need to tell Oportun:
- What state you live in
- Your estimated credit score
Once you’ve done that, you’ll see how much you might pay for a loan monthly based on the loan amount and interest rate you’re assigned. You can also compare loan repayment terms to see how that might affect the monthly payment.
If you’re confident that you’d like to get an Oportun loan, you can take the next step and apply online. Oportun will need some basic information, including your:
- Name
- Date of birth
- Address
- Phone number
- Email address
- Social Security number
- Annual income
- Estimated housing payment
Oportun will perform a hard credit check, which could trim a few points off your credit scores. If approved, Oportun will send you the loan terms to review. If you’re satisfied with the offer, you can accept the loan. At that point, you’ll need to give Oportun your bank account and routing number to receive the loan funds.
Rating the Features
A closer look at the features can give you a better understanding of where a particular lender excels and where it may fall short.
Here’s how the features of Oportun personal loans measure up.
User Experience
Oportun offers a user-friendly website, and it’s easy to check your rates or apply for a loan online. You’ll need to complete the full application to see the final loan terms, but if you have questions, you can chat with a representative online. Based on ratings from the Better Business Bureau and Trustpilot, Oportun customers seem satisfied with their experience overall.
Fees
You won’t pay an application fee to apply for a loan with Oportun, and if approved, you won’t be charged a prepayment penalty for paying it off early. However, Oportun does charge origination fees, which can add to your overall cost of borrowing.
The amount you pay can depend on how much you borrow and what state you live in. Other personal loan lenders don’t charge origination fees, which is good to know if you’d like to avoid any added costs.
Rates
Oportun offers fixed-rate loans, so your interest rate cannot increase or decrease over the loan term. Are Oportun loan rates the lowest? Not exactly.
Compared to loans for people with excellent credit, you’ll pay more interest for an Oportun loan. However, Oportun’s rates are comparable to other lenders that lend to people with no or bad credit.
Variety
As mentioned, you can choose from unsecured or secured loans, but only if you live in California. If you’d like to get a secured loan, you’ll need to have a vehicle that you own to use as collateral.
Aside from loans, Oportun offers a savings feature through its mobile, which is a plus if you want to grow your money. The Oportun Visa Credit Card is something else you might consider if you’re looking for a tool to build credit.
Customer Support
If you need help or have questions about your Oportun account, you’ve got a few ways to contact customer support.
You can send a secure email message, call customer service, or use live chat to connect with an agent. Phone support is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. PT and on weekends from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT. You can also text the Oportun chat support bot if you prefer.
If you’d prefer to talk to someone in person, Oportun has branch locations across the U.S. You can check the website’s online search tool to find the nearest Oportun location.
Access
You can access your Oportun loan account online or through the Oportun mobile app. The app is free to download in the Google Play and App Stores.
The app makes it easy to stay on top of loan payments, check your balance, and review statements in terms of usability and function. The app has a 4.7 rating in the App Store and a 4.2 rating in the Google Play Store.
Bottom Line
Once approved, Oportun personal loans can put $10,000 in your bank account as quickly as the next business day.
If you need money to cover an emergency, get caught on bills, or meet another expense, Oportun is one lender you might consider.
If, after reading our review, you think it might be a good fit, then you can take the next step and get a rate quote online. And if you’d like to shop around for other options, you can compare the best personal loan rates.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
No, Oportun does not make loans in every state. You can choose your state when checking rates, but Oportun doesn’t offer loans there if it’s not listed.
Secured loans require collateral to get approved for funding, while unsecured loans do not. For example, if you’d like to get a secured loan with Oportun in California, you’ll need to use your car title as collateral.
An Oportun loan probably isn’t the best fit if you have excellent credit since you could likely get lower interest rates elsewhere. However, if you have poor credit or are trying to build your credit history, an Oportun loan could help you.
