One Application to Search the Top Lenders. Apply Now.
Upstart is a California based lender that opened up in 2012. They have an interesting take on the lending model, rewarding those with higher education, even if they have no credit history. Of course, that’s not the only criteria. Read our Upstart review to see if they’d be a good fit for you.
Upstart Quick Info
| APR Range | 8.69% - 29.99% |
| Loan Amounts | $1,000 - $50,000 |
| Origination Fee | 0% - 6% |
| Loan Duration | 3 - 5 Years |
| Time to Fund | Typically 1 day, up to 3 for education loans |
| Soft Credit Check? | Yes |
Who Is the Typical Upstart Borrower?
- They may not have a FICO score or credit history. Upstart works with people with no FICO score. If you do have one the minimum is 620.
- They have a regular source of income. For a normal personal loan, Upstart requires a job or an offer letter from an employer.
- They want to build their tech skills. Upstart works with a dozen or so tech boot camps. There are loans to cover tuition, even without proof of income, for those with a college degree.
Get Your Personalized Rate From the Top Lenders
Upstart Review
The borrower Upstart seems to be looking for seems to be more tech savvy, fitting into the whole startup culture (we’re guessing that’s where the name came from). Instead of just looking at your credit history and FICO score they also factor in job history, your career field and your level of education. Their demographic tends to be younger with a lot of earning potential.
According to their website “Upstart is the first lending platform to leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning to price credit and automate the borrowing process”. They operate on the peer-to-peer lending model, meaning investors are the ones actually lending the money.
As we mentioned earlier Upstart also offers educational loans to the following coding bootcamps:
- Coder Camps
- Code Fellows
- Coding Dojo
- Dev Bootcamp
- Dev League
- Dev Mountain
- Fullstack Academy
- gSchool
- Hack Reactor
- Hackbright Academy
- Iron Yard
- Launch Academy – Learn on Campus Only
- Metis (Kaplan)
- MakerSquare
- The Iron Yard
- RefactorU
- Turing
The interest rates for Upstart are competitive and the funding is generally next day (with the exception of educational loans). They are definitely going for a very particular niche, and while it doesn’t exclude others it does seem a bit off-putting. But if you fit into the young tech professional demographic Upstart might be a good place to start looking for a loan.
Upstart Reviews From Around the Web
| Better Business Bureau |  3.85/5 - 4 Reviews |
| Credit Karma |  5/5 - 659 Reviews |
| Nerd Wallet |  4/5 |
Upstart Fees and Penalties
- Origination fee: 0% – 6.00%
- Prepayment fee: None
- Late fee: 15$ or 5% of past due amount
- Declined payment fee: $15
Business Contact and Profile for Upstart
| Name: | Upstart Network |
| Phone: | (855) 438-8778 |
| Address: | 2 Circle Star Way San Carlos, CA 94070-6200 |
| Website: | Upstart.com |
| Business Started: | 2012 |
| Type of Business: | Financials Services |
| Principal: | Mr. Dave Girouard, CEO |
| BBB Accreditation: | This business is accredited with the BBB and has an A+. |