Is getting a loan to pay off debt a good idea? (2024)

Is getting a loan to pay off debt a good idea?

Using a personal loan to pay off debt helps you get rid of multiple payments and go down to one payment per month — and hopefully with a much lower APR. Consider using a debt repayment calculator to determine how much sooner you could pay off your debt with a lower interest rate.

As of November 2023, the average interest rate on a personal loan with a 24-month term was 12.35%, according to data from the Federal Reserve. So, by using a personal loan to pay off your credit card debt, there could be significant savings, as the average credit card rate is currently 21.47%.

Like many financial decisions, there are pros and cons when it comes to taking out a loan to consolidate credit card debt. A loan may offer lower interest rates than your current debt and a reduced chance of missing a payment. It may even help improve your credit score in the long run.

Taking out a personal loan for credit card debt can help you solve many of these problems. You can use your personal loan to pay off your credit card debt in full. Since personal loans typically have lower interest rates than credit cards, you might even save money in interest charges over time.

Bottom line. Debt consolidation can be a handy strategy for paying off multiple debts as quickly (and as affordably) as possible. This can be especially true if the personal loan you use to consolidate your debts doesn't charge you a penalty for paying back the balance early.

Consolidating debt with a personal loan can be a good idea if you can get a new loan with favorable terms and a lower interest rate than current debt.

Debt consolidation can negatively impact your credit score. Any debt consolidation method you use will have the creditor or lender pulling your credit score, leading to a hard inquiry on your credit report. This inquiry will decrease your credit score by a few points. However, this credit score decline is temporary.

Using a personal loan to pay off debt helps you get rid of multiple payments and go down to one payment per month — and hopefully with a much lower APR. Consider using a debt repayment calculator to determine how much sooner you could pay off your debt with a lower interest rate.

High-interest credit card debt can devastate even the most thought-out financial plan. U.S. consumers carry $6,501 in credit card debt on average, according to Experian data, but if your balance is much higher—say, $20,000 or beyond—you may feel hopeless.

How can I pay off my debt if I don't have enough money?

If you can afford to pay off your debt during the promotional APR period, a balance transfer card may be your best bet. For example, with $5,000 of debt, a six-month intro APR balance transfer card would allow you to pay off your debt interest-free with $833.33/month payments.

Borrowing from one lender to pay another doesn't always make sense, but consolidating debts might result in a lower monthly payment and interest rate than your existing credit card payments. It also might be easier to pay off a debt when you have a fixed repayment schedule.

Creditors like to see that you can responsibly manage different types of debt. Paying off your only line of installment credit reduces your credit mix and may ultimately decrease your credit scores. Similarly, if you pay off a credit card debt and close the account entirely, your scores could drop.

Debt relief services may have a negative impact on your credit score, but that impact may not be as big as you think — and in some cases, it can help your credit. How these services impact your credit depends on the debt relief option you choose.

Consumers often use personal loans for debt consolidation, which involves getting a loan and using it to pay off existing debt from other sources.

You can afford to repay the loan: A debt consolidation loan will only benefit you if you can afford to repay it. You'll risk getting into a deeper debt cycle if you're not 100 percent sure you'll be able to afford the monthly payment down the road.

Why is it so hard to get a debt consolidation loan?

Lenders might not advertise it, but most of them have a minimum credit score required to get a loan. If your score is less than 670, you might be out of luck for a debt consolidation loan. Even if you're over 670, a problematic debt-to-income ratio (more on that below) or payment history could derail your loan.

If you consolidate your credit cards, you can still use them. Consolidating just means you're paying them off, so your balances will be at zero, but the cards themselves will remain open unless you take the step of closing them.

Pay off your most expensive loan first.

Then, continue paying down debts with the next highest interest rates to save on your overall cost. This is sometimes referred to as the “avalanche method” of paying down debt.

Every lender sets its own guidelines when it comes to minimum credit score requirements for debt consolidation loans. However, it's likely lenders will require a minimum score between 580 and 680.