LendingTree review: Marketplace allows you to compare personal loans from multiple lenders

Finding a good deal on a personal loan can be challenging, especially if you need to figure out what you qualify for based on your credit. While many lenders offer pre-qualification to help you gauge your approval odds and potential rates, going through that process with multiple lenders can be time-consuming.

With LendingTree, borrowers can get rate quotes from multiple lenders at once based on your credit profile and compare offers side by side. Before comparing personal loan options with LendingTree, here’s what you need to know.

LendingTree overview

LendingTree was launched in 1998, allowing consumers to compare mortgage lenders. Since then, the company has expanded its marketplace to personal loans, student loans, small business loans, auto loans, credit cards, insurance, banking products and more.

How to qualify for a LendingTree personal loan

LendingTree works with several partner lenders, meaning that loans are available for borrowers across the credit spectrum, and each lender has its own eligibility criteria. 

The company doesn’t disclose a minimum credit score requirement for all lenders, but some of its partners allow scores as low as 580, and one other, Upstart, goes as low as 300. Unfortunately, LendingTree also doesn’t provide any information about how much income you need to qualify or what your debt-to-income ratio should be. 

But the good news is that you don’t have to worry about a hard credit check when you use LendingTree’s marketplace. You can check your eligibility and potential offers without any commitment or damaging your credit score. 

How to apply for a LendingTree personal loan

LendingTree is a marketplace, so you won’t apply directly with the company. But you can compare and apply for personal loans through LendingTree in three steps.

1. Get pre-qualified

You’ll start with the pre-qualification process, providing some basic information about yourself in the following order:

1. The purpose of the loan.
2. How much you want to borrow.
3. When you need the funds.
4. Zip code and street address.
5. Housing status.
6. Credit score range.
7. Date of birth.
8. Employment status.
9. Gross annual income.
10. If you wish to add a co-borrower.
11. Full name.
12. Phone number and email address.

2. Compare offers

Based on your details, LendingTree will run a soft credit check, which won’t impact your credit score, and share some initial rate offers from lenders based on its inquiry.

At the top of the page, you’ll be able to see your top offer and the average offer for people who are similar to you. With each offer, you can see the loan amount, annual percentage rate (APR), repayment term and estimated monthly payment. You’ll also be able to look at fees, loan limits and other important details.

3. Apply with the lender of your choice

If you decide to proceed with an offer, you’ll click “Continue” on that offer, and LendingTree will direct you to the lender’s website to complete a full loan application. The process can vary from lender to lender, but you typically need to provide the same information as above, plus a full Social Security number and a copy of your government-issued ID.

Once you get a loan, find out if it makes sense to pay off a personal loan early.

Pros of a LendingTree personal loan

• Pre-qualify with multiple lenders: Pre-qualification can make it easier to gauge your approval odds and potential rates, but it can take a while to go through the process with multiple lenders. With LendingTree, you can go through one pre-qualification with several lenders simultaneously.
• No credit score impact: When a lender performs a hard inquiry on your credit reports, it can temporarily knock a few points off your credit score, and if your score isn’t near perfect, every point counts. With LendingTree, you can view your offers without any impact on your credit history.
• Other benefits: In addition to its comparison tool, LendingTree also offers a handful of free features, including access to your VantageScore credit score, budget tracking, cash flow analysis and more.

Cons of a LendingTree personal loan

• Not all lenders are represented: The company lists 15 lenders on its website, but it’s unclear whether it includes offers from all of them during the pre-qualification process. For example, when we went through the pre-qualification process with an 800+ credit score, LendingTree included offers from just four lenders. With that kind of credit profile, we expected to see more offers.
• Some lenders charge upfront fees: Some of LendingTree’s partner lenders charge upfront origination fees, which can be costly. Make sure you review all the terms for each lender before you submit an official application.
• Loans max out at $50,000: Depending on your reason for borrowing, you may need more than LendingTree’s maximum. Some personal loan companies, including at least one of LendingTree’s partners, offer loans of up to $200,000 if you apply directly with them.

LendingTree perks and special features

As a marketplace, LendingTree doesn’t offer loan-specific features or perks. You can, however, review the features offered by each lender as you compare your options. However, there are some perks you’ll get with LendingTree that you might not get with other marketplaces or lenders.

Savings and discounts

LendingTree doesn’t offer any discounts, but allowing you to get pre-qualified with multiple lenders at once can help you maximize your savings without spending a lot of time going through the process with each individual lender.

Credit score access

During the pre-qualification process, you’ll be asked if you want a free upgrade to LendingTree’s credit monitoring service. 

You’ll get a VantageScore based on your TransUnion credit report. While the VantageScore is less widely used than the FICO score in lending decisions, it can still give you a good idea of your overall credit health.

Money management tools

You can also sign up for LendingTree’s free money management service. Link your bank accounts, and you’ll get transaction updates, manage your cash flow, track your subscriptions, review your debt-to-income ratio, get real-time spending analysis and more.

How LendingTree could improve

LendingTree could improve its service for consumers looking to take out a personal loan in a few different ways.

Offer higher loan amounts

Offering loans over $50,000 could provide more opportunities to people who need to borrow a lot for home renovations and other major expenses.

Disclose minimum requirements

While each lender has its own eligibility criteria, LendingTree could provide minimum upfront requirements, including income and debt-to-income criteria, giving consumers more confidence in the pre-qualification process.

Be more transparent

While LendingTree partners with over a dozen lenders, it needs to be clarified whether it provides your information to all or just some of them. Disclosing which lenders it sent your details to during the pre-qualification process can help you determine whether or not to shop around a little more or just go with one of the offers you get from the marketplace.

LendingTree customer service and reviews

If you have questions during the comparison process or about one of LendingTree’s free services, you can contact the company by calling 1-800-505-7916. Customer service representatives are available Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET.

LendingTree has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and a rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot from nearly 13k reviews.

LendingTree alternatives: LendingTree vs. Credible vs. LendingClub

If you want to compare options outside of what LendingTree provides, you may consider Credible, another lending marketplace, and LendingClub, an individual lender: