Earnest

Earnest, launched in 2014, is an online lender based in San Francisco, CA. A subsidiary of Navient, Earnest has refinanced over $18.7 billion in student loans for over 264,000 customers.

Program Variety

Student loan refinancing and parent PLUS refinancing are available for loan amounts of $5,000 and above in most states. California residents must refinance at least $10,000, while New Mexico residents must refinance at least $10,001. Refinancing loan terms vary from 5 to 20 years.

Private student loans, including undergraduate, graduate, and parent, are available from $1,000. Loan terms range from 5 to 15 years.

Products Available

Earnest offers a number of student loan financing products, including:

• Student loan refinancing
• Parent loan refinancing
• Undergraduate student loans
• Graduate student loans, including MBA, med school, and law school loans
• Parent student loans
• International student loans
• DACA student loans

Program Costs

Earnest's APRs vary depending on a variety of factors. All APRs listed below include a 0.25% autopay discount. The lowest rates are only available with a qualified co-signer.

Student loan refinancing rates start at 5.19% APR for fixed-rate and 5.99% APR for variable-rate loans.

For new undergraduate student loans taken out through Earnest, fixed APRs start at 4.42%, while variable-rate APRs start at 5.62%. For new graduate student loans, fixed APRs also start at 4.42%, while variable-rate APRs start a bit higher at 5.89%.

There are no application fees, origination fees, late fees, or prepayment penalties.

Industry Reputation

Earnest is a relatively young company, being founded in 2013 and launched in 2014. It was acquired by Navient (formerly Sallie Mae) in 2017, giving it the backing of a massive student loan company.

The company has generally positive feedback from employees, who rate it 3.6/5 on Glassdoor.

Benefits

• Earnest will match competitors' rates on an approved offer for private student loans, wtih some stipulations
• Co-signers are encouraged and can significantly lower APRs
• Qualifying borrowers can request to skip a payment once a year if they need a temporary break from payments
• More flexibility in payment options than most lenders

Complaints

Earnest is accredited by the Better Business Bureau with an A+ rating, though their profile shows a small number of reviews (15) with a 1.67/5 rating.

The company has a 4.7/5 rating on Trustpilot, with over 6,200 reviews.

State Coverage

Earnest provides loans in all U.S. states except for Nevada. The company's variable rate loans are not available in Alaska, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Ohio, Tennessee, or Texas.