Avant vs Best Egg

The short version

Avant and Best Egg both lend to borrowers with fair-to-good credit who need a mid-sized personal loan, and both deduct an origination fee from what you actually receive rather than charging it separately. Avant states only a cap on that fee — up to 9.99% of the loan amount, with no floor disclosed — while Best Egg publishes a 0.99%-9.99% range and raises the floor to at least 4.99% on any term of four years or more. APRs, as of September 2026, run 9.95% to 35.99% at Avant and 6.99% to 35.99% at Best Egg; Avant also publishes a minimum credit score, around 580, while Best Egg publishes none, weighing your credit score, income, and debt payments instead without a stated floor.

Loan size and states served also differ. Avant lends $2,000 to $35,000 over 24 to 60 months and isn’t available to residents of Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maine, New York, Vermont, Washington, or West Virginia. Best Egg lends $2,000 to $50,000 over 36 to 60 months and excludes only Iowa, Vermont, West Virginia, and DC (plus US territories), though it raises its $2,000 minimum in Massachusetts, Ohio, and Georgia. Best Egg also offers a secured option using fixtures attached to your home — not the house itself — that Best Egg says averages a 20% APR discount, a feature Avant doesn’t offer on the pages we checked.

Rates and fees

Avant’s published range is 9.95% to 35.99% APR, with an administration fee of up to 9.99% of the loan amount deducted from your proceeds at funding — Avant publishes only that cap, not a floor, so you won’t know your fee percentage until you have an offer. Late payments more than 10 days past due carry a $25 fee, and a returned or failed payment carries a $15 fee, with no prepayment penalty. Best Egg’s published range is 6.99% to 35.99% APR, with an origination fee of 0.99% to 9.99%, rising to at least 4.99% on any term of four years or more; the only other published fee is a $15 returned-payment charge, and Best Egg doesn’t publish a late-fee amount on the pages we checked. Neither lender charges a prepayment penalty.

Take a $10,000 loan over 36 months at the midpoint of each lender’s published APR and fee figures, to compare the two on equal footing.

Avant, 22.97% APR (midpoint of 9.95%-35.99%), using Avant’s 9.99% fee cap (Avant publishes only a cap, not a range). The fee is $999.00, so you’d receive about $9,001.00 in cash. An APR already includes the origination fee by definition, so we amortize the cash you actually receive at the APR rather than counting the fee a second time: a payment of about $348.29 a month, total payments of about $12,538.44, and a total cost of roughly $3,537.44 over the $9,001.00 you actually received. These are our own amortization figures, not a lender quote.

Best Egg, 21.49% APR (midpoint of 6.99%-35.99%), using the midpoint of its 0.99%-9.99% fee range (5.49%). The fee is $549.00, so you’d receive about $9,451.00 in cash. An APR already includes the origination fee by definition, so we amortize the cash you actually receive at the APR rather than counting the fee a second time: a payment of about $358.45 a month, total payments of about $12,904.20, and a total cost of roughly $3,453.20 over the $9,451.00 you actually received. These are our own amortization figures, not a lender quote.

On this comparison, Avant’s deeper fee cut leaves you the lower monthly payment of the two, but its higher midpoint APR costs you more in total interest than Best Egg’s midpoint over the same three years.

Who qualifies

Avant’s published minimum is a 580 credit score, but the lender’s own data shows its typical approved borrower has a FICO score in the 600-700 range and annual income above $50,000. Beyond credit score, Avant requires you to be at least 18, have a valid Social Security number, verifiable income (guidance points to at least $1,200 in monthly after-tax income), and an active checking account. Best Egg doesn’t publish a minimum credit score, minimum income, or minimum age at all — it says the term, amount, and APR it offers depend on your credit score, income, debt payment obligations, loan amount, and credit history, and federal law requires it to collect your name, address, date of birth, and identity documents. Checking your rate is a soft pull at both lenders, so you can see an estimate before it touches your credit file; a hard pull only follows a completed application.

Avant isn’t available to residents of Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maine, New York, Vermont, Washington, or West Virginia. Best Egg is unavailable only in Iowa, Vermont, West Virginia, DC, and US territories, though it raises its $2,000 minimum loan to $6,500 in Massachusetts, $5,001 in Ohio, and $3,001 in Georgia.

Speed and funding

Avant typically deposits funds via ACH as soon as the next business day, if your approval comes through by 4:30 p.m. CT on a weekday; an approval later in the day, on a weekend, or that needs manual income verification can take longer. Best Egg says about half of its customers get their money the next day, and that after successful verification the rest see funds within 1 to 3 business days, depending on their own bank’s policies.

Where each one wins

• Avant — a published minimum credit score (around 580), a number Best Egg doesn’t publish, which makes it easier to gauge your odds before you prequalify.
• Avant — a shorter minimum term (24 months) than Best Egg’s 36-month floor, for a faster payoff on a smaller loan.
• Best Egg — a lower APR floor (6.99% versus Avant’s 9.95%) as of September 2026, for borrowers with stronger credit.
• Best Egg — available in more states; it excludes only Iowa, Vermont, West Virginia, and DC, against Avant’s eight-state exclusion list.
• Best Egg — a higher loan ceiling ($50,000 versus Avant’s $35,000) for a larger need.

Bottom line

If your credit is already in Avant’s 600-700 sweet spot and you want to check a stated floor before you apply, Avant’s published 580 minimum gives you a number to test against. If you need more than $35,000, you’re not sure your credit clears a stated floor anyway, or you’re a homeowner who could use the fixture-secured option for a lower rate, Best Egg’s wider loan ceiling and secured alternative are worth comparing first. Personal-loan credit score requirements is a useful read before you prequalify with either one. Read the full Avant review and Best Egg review, then start a loan request to see what you might actually qualify for.