How Much Can You Borrow With a Personal Loan?

There are many different lenders that offer personal loans, including traditional lenders, such as banks, credit unions and peer-to-peer online lenders. The minimum and maximum borrowing limits are set by each lender and the amount of your personal loan limit depends on your creditworthiness.

MoneyLion offers a service to help you find personal loan offers. Based on the information you provide, you can get matched with offers for up to $100,000 from our top providers. You can compare rates, terms, and fees from different lenders and choose the best offer for you.

How Do Banks Decide How Much Money To Loan You?

Generally, the best loan terms are given to borrowers who have an excellent credit score and can prove they have the income to make all payments on time.

Although each lender has different criteria for how they approve loan applications, they're looking at the same factors when you apply to borrow money:

• How much you want to borrow

• Your credit history

• Your debt-to-income ratio

Your debt-to-income ratio is a percentage that measures how much debt you're in compared to how much money you make each month. If you're debt-to-income ratio is over 36%, it can be difficult to get approved for a larger loan.

Likewise, if your credit history shows that you have a history of making late payments, the lender might only approve you for a small loan at a larger interest rate, or reject your application outright.

How To Qualify for a Larger Loan

If you're not getting approved for the amount of you money you need, you can:

• Reduce your debt. If you can lower your debt-to income ratio by paying off a significant amount of your debt, you can qualify for better loan terms.

• Increase your income. Making more money will also help lower your debt-to-income ratio. You could do this by getting a side-gig.

• Raise your credit score. The best way to get a higher credit score is to make all of your payments on time. But there are other levers you can pull like reducing your credit utilization (how much of your available credit you've used).

Alternatives to a Personal Loan

If you're not being offered the terms you need, consider other financing options:

• Zero percent APR credit card promos. You can finance an expense and save money on interest by applying for a credit card with an intro APR promotion. Some promotions last up to 24 months.

• Home equity loan. This is a secured loan that uses your home for collateral.

The Bottom Line

Each lender has different terms they will offer. The most money you can get from a personal loan is $100,000. However, higher loan amounts are reserved for borrowers who have excellent credit scores.

Make sure you shop around and make sure you're getting the best loan terms possible. Prioritize lenders that offer pre-qualification. This allows you to find out exactly what the lender will approve you for without getting a hard pull on your credit. Hard pulls can make your credit go down around 20 points.

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