Cheap loans.
The loans shown on this comparison table are low-interest loans with a rate of 31.9% or less.
While those of you who are lucky enough to have access to rates of interest below 10% may think that 31.9% is still quite high, with some lenders pricing at 5000% or more, products priced at 31.9% and below are a pretty good representation of the cheaper end of the market.
What not to do
Firstly - DO NOT apply for a cheap loan if you don’t meet all of the lender’s minimum acceptance criteria, as you will almost certainly be declined. Generally speaking, making multiple applications and consistently getting declined will harm your credit file, making it increasingly difficult to get accepted each time and making it even harder to get accepted for the best rates when applying in the future. If you know you don’t have good credit, then rather than applying for a low-interest loan, check out our comparison table for bad credit loans.
Types of cheap loan
There are a number of different providers of cheap loans that you can see in our comparison table below. Each of these providers will fall into the category of either a bank loan, supermarket loan or peer to peer loan.
Bank loans
Bank loans range from between £500 and £25,000, with rates as low as 4.4% and repayment periods ranging from one to seven years. Every bank loan featured here is an instalment loan with no security required, however, some lenders in this bracket may ask for you to be a homeowner in order to be eligible for their lowest rates. We’ve included bank loans in the comparison table below but also have a page dedicated specifically to bank loans here.
Supermarket loans
The majority of high street supermarkets now have banking licenses and are offering unsecured instalment, low-interest loans to customers with good credit profiles. Loan amounts range from £1000 to £25,000, interest rates range from single figures up into the mid teens and repayment periods range from one to five years. We’ve also included supermarket loans in the comparison table below and have a dedicated comparison page for supermarket loans.
Peer to Peer loans
Peer to peer lenders connect savers with potential borrowers, offering competitive rates of interest to both. Loan amounts, repayment period and interest rates are all pitched at similar levels to banks loans and supermarket loans. Again I’ve included peer to peer lenders below and we have a page dedicated to peer to peer lenders here.
Acceptance criteria
Each lender will have their own specific criteria however I’d take it for granted that when applying for a cheap loan you’ll need to be over 18, have a spotless credit history, receive regular income from employment; have lived in the UK for at least 3 years and have a bank account with Direct Debit facility.
Final word
Cheap loans are reserved for those with a spotless credit profile. If you're looking for a loan and your credit history isn't squeaky clean then I'd strongly recommend checking out our bad credit comparison table.