Axos Bank Personal Loans: 2023 Review

Axos Bank is an online bank that offers personal loans for borrowers with excellent credit (credit score of 720 or higher). You can apply for a loan on Axos’ website and receive funding in one to three business days after approval.

Axos lets you pre-qualify and use its loan to refinance an existing personal loan, but it charges an origination fee and there are no co-signed or joint loan options.

» MORE: Best bank loans

Table of Contents

Axos personal loans at a glance

Where Axos personal loans stand out and fall short

How to qualify for an Axos personal loan

How to apply for an Axos personal loan

How Axos personal loans compare

How we rate Axos personal loans

Axos personal loans at a glance

Where Axos personal loans stand out

Soft credit check: Axos lets borrowers pre-qualify for a personal loan with a soft credit check. This means you can view your potential loan terms, including what interest rate you may receive, without affecting your credit score. Though many online lenders offer this feature, not all banks do.

Fund loans within three days: According to Axos, approved borrowers should receive their loan funds within one to three days. Though other lenders may go a step further and guarantee same- or next-day funding, Axos’ funding timeline is likely still fast enough to meet most borrowers’ needs.

Refinance options: Borrowers can use an Axos loan to refinance an existing personal loan from Axos or another lender. If you qualify for a lower rate, refinancing can help you save money and pay off the debt faster.

» MORE: Best personal loans for excellent credit

Where Axos personal loans fall short

Charges origination fee: The lender charges an origination fee of 1% to 2% of the loan amount. Origination fees are rare among banks and are typically subtracted from the loan amount you receive.

» COMPARE: Best personal loans with no origination fee

No autopay discount: Unlike some other lenders, Axos Bank doesn't offer a rate discount for setting up automatic payments. These discounts lower the amount of interest borrowers pay on a loan and also incentivize them to choose autopay and avoid late fees.

No co-sign or joint loan option: Axos borrowers cannot add a co-signer or co-borrower to their application. These options can help borrowers qualify and receive a lower rate or higher loan amount.

» MORE: Lenders that offer co-signed personal loans

How to qualify for an Axos personal loan

To apply for an Axos personal loan, you must be:

• 18 years or older.

• Have a Social Security number.

• Provide a driver's license or state-issued ID.

• Provide proof of income.

Here are Axos’ minimum requirements to qualify for a loan:

• Minimum credit score: 700.

• Maximum debt-to-income ratio: 50%.

• Minimum length of credit history: Three years.

• Minimum number of accounts on credit history: Five accounts.

Here are details about Axos’ average borrower, according to the lender:

• Average credit score: 779.

• Average gross annual income: $110,000.

Before you apply

• Check your credit. You can get your free credit report on NerdWallet or at AnnualCreditReport.com. Doing so will help you spot and fix any errors before you apply.

• Calculate your monthly payments. Use a personal loan calculator to determine what APR and repayment term you’d need to get a loan with affordable monthly payments.

• Make a plan to repay the loan. Review your budget to see how the loan’s monthly payments impact your cash flow. If you have to cut other expenses in order to repay the loan, it’s better to know that before you borrow.

• Gather your documents. Axos requests proof of income, which can be a W-2 or paystub, as well as photo identification, like a driver’s license or passport. Having these documents handy can speed the application process.

How to apply for an Axos personal loan

1. Pre-qualify on Axos’ website. You’ll be asked how much you want to borrow, what the funds are for, and the desired repayment term, as well as some personal information like your name, birthdate and address. Then, the lender will ask for information about your income, employment, and whether you own your home before you can preview loan offers. There’s no hard credit pull at this stage.

2. Preview loan offers and accept the one that fits your budget. Once you accept a loan offer, you’ll submit a formal personal loan application. This could require more documents, like W-2s, pay stubs and bank statements, to confirm the information you gave during pre-qualification. Axos will also do a hard credit check when you apply, so your credit score could temporarily dip.

3. Make a plan to repay the loan. Axos reports payments to Experian, so on-time payments will help build your credit score, but missed payments will hurt it. Setting up automatic payments and keeping an eye on your budget are two ways to manage your loan payments.

Compare Axos to other lenders

Personal loan lenders offer varying rates, loan amounts and special features, so it pays to weigh your options. The best personal loan is usually the one with the lowest APR.

LightStream is an online bank that also accept borrowers with good to excellent credit (690 credit score or higher).

Axos vs. LightStream

LightStream offers no fees and larger loan amounts than Axos. In addition, it boasts a wide range of repayment terms and a rate discount for autopay. LightStream can fund most loans in one business day.

» MORE: Read our review of LightStream

How we rate Axos personal loans

NerdWallet writers rate lenders against a rubric that changes each year based on how personal loan products evolve. Here’s what we prioritized this year:

• Category definitionsCategory definitions

  Affordability An affordable loan has low rates and fees compared to other similar loans and may offer rate discounts. Transparency A transparent lender makes information about the loan easy to find on its website, including rates, terms and loan amounts. Transparency also means allowing users to pre-qualify online to preview potential loan offers and reporting payment information with the major credit bureaus. Loan flexibility A flexible loan is one that lets users customize terms and payments. That means offering a wide range of repayment term options, allowing the borrower to change their payment date, offering loans in most states and funding it quickly. Customer experience A good customer experience can include a fully online application process, financial education on the lender’s website and a customer service team that’s available most of the time and can be reached multiple ways.