You need a credit score between 580 and 680 to get a debt consolidation loan that offers reasonable rates with most lenders. The higher your credit score is, the lower your APR is likely to be - and the main purpose of a debt consolidation loan is to get a lower APR for your debt.
You can use WalletHub's free personal loan pre-qualification tool to see your debt consolidation loan options with your current credit score. That will make it easier to decide whether getting a debt consolidation loan is worthwhile. You can also see the minimum credit score required by the biggest personal loan providers below.
Credit Score Needed for a Debt Consolidation Loan by Lender
| Lender | Credit Score Needed |
| 680 | |
| 660 | |
| 660 | |
| 660 | |
| 660 | |
| 640 | |
| 640 | |
| 620 | |
| 600 | |
| 580 | |
| 580 | |
| 560 | |
| 300 |
Note: The credit scores in the table above are from either the lender or multiple third-party sources.
The best candidates to get a debt consolidation loan are naturally people with good or excellent credit. They can qualify for rates as low as 4.99% in some cases. That said, it is possible to get a debt consolidation loan with fair or bad credit, and it can make a lot of sense if your existing debts are things like payday loans, which charge extremely high fees and interest.
The most expensive personal loan APRs tend to be around 36%. If you assume that you will only qualify for a lender's maximum APR, and that will still save you a significant amount of money, then it's worth considering a debt consolidation loan even if you have a relatively low credit score.
This answer was first published on 07/29/21 and it was last updated on 03/01/24. For the most current information about a financial product, you should always check and confirm accuracy with the offering financial institution. Editorial and user-generated content is not provided, reviewed or endorsed by any company.
