10 alternatives to Lendly ranked by APR, loan amount, and approval ease — many with significantly lower rates.
Why look for Lendly alternatives? Lendly's APR of ~199–225% makes it one of the most expensive loan options on the market. If you qualify for any of the options below, you'll almost certainly pay less in total interest. use our loan calculator to compare the difference.
| Lender | Lendly | OppLoans | EarnIn | Dave | MoneyLion | Brigit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loan Amount | $500–$2K | $500–$4K | Up to $750 | Up to $500 | $500–$1K | Up to $250 |
| APR / Cost | ~199–225% | 59–160% | 0% (tips) | $1/mo fee | 5.99–29.99% | $9.99/mo |
| Credit Check | Hard pull | Soft pull | None | None | Soft pull | None |
| Employment Req. | Yes — payroll | Flexible | Yes | Yes | Flexible | Yes |
| Funding Speed | 24 hrs | 1 day | Instant | Instant | Same day | Instant |
| Reports to Bureaus | 1 bureau | 3 bureaus | ✗ | ✗ | 3 bureaus | ✗ |
| Bad Credit OK | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Ranked by overall value: APR, access, credit-building, and speed.
Our ranking weighs five factors that matter most to borrowers considering high-cost installment products: APR (35% weight), approval rate for bad credit (20%), funding speed (15%), credit reporting to all three bureaus (15%), and customer satisfaction signals from BBB and Trustpilot data (15%). Lenders that fail in any one category by a large margin lose their overall ranking even if they perform well in others. The list reflects what the average bad-credit borrower would actually benefit from — not what generates the highest affiliate commission.
Every lender included serves the bad-credit segment specifically. We exclude prime lenders like SoFi or LightStream because their FICO floor (typically 660+) effectively bars most Lendly applicants. We also exclude pure payday lenders, since their structural problems — 14-day balloon repayments and rollover traps — make them strictly worse than any installment-based alternative.
Several alternatives on our list (Dave, EarnIn, Brigit, MoneyLion) are technically cash advance apps rather than traditional installment lenders. These products advance you a small portion of your earned but unpaid wages, then collect the amount on your next payday automatically. They differ from Lendly in three important ways.
First, the typical advance limit is $100-$500 — far below Lendly's $2,000 ceiling. If you need a larger amount, cash advance apps cannot help. Second, repayment is in one lump sum on your next payday, not stretched over 9-18 months. This is fine if your need is genuinely a short paycheck gap, but creates the same dollar pressure as a payday loan if it is actually a larger emergency. Third, the cost structure is different — most cash advance apps charge a flat fee or "tip" rather than calculating APR, but the effective APR when annualized can range from 20% to over 100% depending on the advance size and fee.
If your situation is a true paycheck gap of $100-$500 and you can repay on your next payday without strain, a cash advance app saves dramatically over a Lendly installment loan. If you need more than that, or need more than 30 days to repay, installment options like OppLoans, Avant, or Upstart are the better category fit.
Most borrowers considering Lendly are not aware that Payday Alternative Loans (PALs) exist through federally chartered credit unions. The PAL program is regulated by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) and caps APR at 28% — roughly 8 times cheaper than Lendly. PAL loans range from $200 to $2,000 with terms up to 12 months, and they are specifically designed for borrowers with damaged credit who would otherwise turn to payday or high-APR installment lenders.
The catch is that PAL loans require credit union membership, and many credit unions impose a 30-day membership minimum before you can apply for the loan. If you are not already a member of a credit union, this can create a delay that defeats the purpose of an emergency loan. The fix: join a credit union now even if you have no immediate need, so the option is available when an emergency arises. Many credit unions accept members based on geography, employer affiliation, or family relationships, and membership often requires only a $5-$25 initial deposit.
EarnIn and Dave have the highest approval rates because their underwriting is built around bank account history rather than credit scores. If you have any active checking account with regular paycheck deposits, you almost certainly qualify for at least the entry-level advance amount.
OppLoans, Possible Finance, Upstart, and Avant all report to Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. If credit building is your priority alongside getting the funds, these four are your best options on the alternatives list.
Yes, but be strategic. Cash advance apps use soft inquiries and do not affect credit. Installment lenders like OppLoans, Avant, and Upstart use hard pulls — applying to four lenders simultaneously will drop your FICO by 20-40 points temporarily. Apply to one installment lender at a time, starting with the lowest-APR option you might qualify for.
The right alternative to Lendly depends primarily on three factors: the loan amount you actually need, your repayment timeline tolerance, and whether credit building is a priority alongside getting the funds. Use this framework to narrow the field before comparing specific lenders.
For amounts under $500 with short repayment tolerance (under 2 months): pay-advance apps like EarnIn, Dave, and Brigit are typically the cheapest option. The flat fees structure works out to a much lower effective cost than installment loans when the repayment window is short. The CFPB blog has covered the regulatory ambiguity of these products extensively — they operate under different legal frameworks than traditional lenders.
For amounts $500-$2,000 with credit building priority: OppLoans and Possible Finance are the strongest options. Both report to all three credit bureaus, both have stronger credit-building outcomes than Lendly, and both come in at lower APRs.
For amounts above $2,000: Lendly's $2,000 ceiling rules it out entirely. Larger amounts typically require either a credit union signature loan (best price but credit score requirements), a Upstart or Avant installment loan (medium price, more flexible credit requirements), or a secured loan against a vehicle or other collateral (lowest price but most risk if you cannot repay).
For credit union access: Federally chartered credit unions offer Payday Alternative Loans (PALs) at 28% APR maximum under NCUA regulations. The 30-day membership requirement is the main barrier — join a credit union now even if you have no immediate need.
For a representative $1,000 loan repaid over 6 months, the total cost ranges dramatically across the alternatives we cover. Credit union PAL loans cost approximately $90 in total interest. Possible Finance costs approximately $180. OppLoans costs approximately $400-$480 depending on individual rate. Upstart costs approximately $200-$420. Lendly costs approximately $660 for the same scenario.
The gap between the most expensive and least expensive alternative on the same loan is over $550. For a borrower already in financial stress, $550 is the difference between recovery and digging the hole deeper. Always check our interactive loan cost calculator with your specific amount and timeline before committing to any product on this list.