Best Long-Term Personal Loans in 2026
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| Lender | User rating | APR | Term | Amount | Min. credit score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
6.99% to 21.19% | 24 to 240 months |
$4k – $1M |
Not specified |
Read more about how we made our picks for the best long-term personal loans.
Long-term personal loans at a glance
Best for: Long home improvement loans – LightStream
- APR
- 6.99% to 21.19%
- Could have up to 240 months to pay back your home improvement loan
- Might get money the same day that you apply
- LightStream may beat a competitor’s rate if you get a better offer elsewhere
- Can’t check rates without dinging your credit
- Need at least good credit to qualify
- Can’t change your due date if you need extra time
Home improvement projects can be expensive, and a longer loan term can help you fit a large loan into your budget. With LightStream, you can borrow up to $1,000,000 and have up to 240 months to pay it back.
General personal loans from LightStream come with shorter terms (84 months max). That’s still longer than many lenders. However, LightStream doesn’t offer prequalification. That means you’ll have to take a hard credit hit to see if you’re eligible.
LightStream doesn’t specify its exact credit score requirements, but you must have good to excellent credit to qualify. Most of the applicants that LightStream approves have the following in common:
- At least five years of on-time payments under a variety of accounts (credit cards, auto loans, etc.)
- Stable income and the ability to pay their current debt obligations
- Savings, whether in a bank account, an investment account or a retirement account
What is a long-term personal loan?
A loan term (or loan repayment term) is the length of time you have to pay back what you borrowed.
Long-term loans are personal loans with longer repayment terms — usually 60 months (five years) or longer. Personal loans come as a lump sum with fixed interest rates. Your monthly installments stay the same for the life of your loan.
Long-term personal loans can carry higher interest rates than shorter loan terms. The longer it takes you to pay back what you borrowed, the more time you have to default on your loan. This increases the risk for the lender, so they charge higher rates to compensate.
Lenders that offer long-term loans often let you borrow more money (sometimes $100,000 or more). Many borrowers turn to long-term loans for high-dollar transactions, such as debt consolidation, home improvement and medical bills.
- The longer it takes to pay off your loan, the more overall interest you’ll probably pay.
- Long-term loans usually have lower monthly payments — not because they are cheaper, but because you have more time to pay off your balance.
- Lenders that offer longer loan terms often let you borrow more money, too.
Choosing the best loan term
Choosing a loan term is a balancing act. You’ll likely pay less overall interest on a shorter loan term. But shorter loan terms usually come with higher monthly payments.
To illustrate, imagine you took out a $15,000 loan with an 18.00% interest rate. Here’s how different loan terms will impact your monthly payments and total interest.
| 36-month term | 60-month term | 84-month term | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly payment | $542.29 | $380.90 | $315.27 |
| Overall interest | $4,522.29 | $7,854.08 | $11,482.48 |
| Total loan cost | $19,522.29 | $22,854.08 | $26,482.48 |
Use our personal loan calculator to find a middle ground between an affordable monthly payment and the total cost of borrowing.
Long-term personal loans can come with higher rates, so they might be best for borrowers with at least good credit scores. That doesn’t mean you can’t get a long-term loan with bad credit. Just be sure loan payments fit in your monthly budget before signing on the dotted line.
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How to compare long-term personal loans
Your loan term is the length of time you have to pay off your loan. But that’s not the only metric that you should compare. The definitions below can help you make better sense of your loan offers.
APR
Your APR measures the total cost of your loan, including interest and fees. The higher this percentage, the more expensive the loan. You’ll usually need a credit score of at least 740 to get the best personal loan rates.
Fees
An origination fee is a portion of your loan the lender will keep for itself. Some lenders charge these to all borrowers. Others only apply them if you have bad credit.
Loan amounts
Personal loans come as a lump sum. In other words, you can’t borrow twice from the same loan. Make sure that the amount of money you’re applying for will cover what you need.
Customer service
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) maintains a consumer complaint database. Check it to see if others have had issues with the lender before applying. Also review the lender’s customer service hours and whether it has a functional mobile app.
How we chose the best long-term personal loans
We reviewed more than 40 lenders and loan marketplaces to determine the overall best seven long-term personal loans. To make our list, lenders must offer loans with at least 60-month repayment terms and have competitive APRs.
From there, we assessed each lender or marketplace across four categories: eligibility and access; cost to borrow; loan terms and options; repayment support and tools.
According to our systematic rating and review process, the best long-term personal loans come from BHG Financial, Discover, LightStream, PenFed, SoFi, Upgrade and Upstart.
Our categories
We assess how easy it is for people to qualify and apply. This includes state availability, soft-credit prequalification, membership requirements, funding speed and whether borrowers with less-than-excellent credit can get a loan.
We evaluate how affordable the loans are based on minimum and maximum APRs, loan fees and rate discounts. Lenders with unclear or potentially predatory costs receive lower scores.
We consider repayment term flexibility, loan amount ranges and whether options like secured loans, joint loans or direct-to-creditor payments are offered — plus whether the lender clearly communicates these options.
We evaluate borrower experience after funding: customer service access, hardship or forbearance programs, payment flexibility and digital tools like mobile apps or credit monitoring.
Our process
We gather data directly from lenders through their websites, disclosures and direct communication with company representatives. Our editorial team verifies and updates information regularly. We value transparency and award less favorable scores when lenders obscure or omit details.
Our editorial team applies the same scoring model and standards to every lender. Lenders cannot pay to influence our ratings. Read more about our editorial guidelines.
Why trust LendingTree’s methodology?
Our writers and editors dig through the facts, contact lenders directly and even go through the application process ourselves if it helps better explain what you can expect. As a Certified Financial Education Instructor℠, I’m committed to breaking down complex financial details so people can make confident, informed decisions with their money.
Jessica’s experience in editing and financial education helps shape LendingTree articles that are clear, accurate and truly useful to readers. Her certification means our recommendations are built on a foundation of consumer-first financial knowledge — not just numbers.
Frequently asked questions
Lenders set their own guidelines, so there’s no true definition of “longest term.” However, out of the lenders on this list, LightStream has the longest loan term at 240 months . This extended term is only available on home improvement loans. For a general personal loan, check out .
Not all lenders offer long-term personal loans, but start by contacting banks, credit unions and online lenders. You could also find long-term loans through our marketplace. But even if an institution does offer long-term loans, you’ll still need to meet its eligibility requirements to borrow.
A long-term personal loan isn’t necessarily a bad idea. Personal loans are a financial tool that, when used wisely, provide relief for millions of Americans every year. Still, only borrow what you can afford to repay. Compare lenders to ensure you’re getting the best terms, and remember that you’ll pay more in interest with a longer loan term.