SoFi student loan and student loan refinancing review: Low minimum rates and multiple loan terms

SoFi is a reputable financial institution, providing students with options that make it easy to pay off loans while in school — or to defer them completely until graduation. This flexibility means SoFi can help a wide range of students achieve their goal of getting a college degree while lowering their interest costs. 

SoFi overview

Founded in 2011 as Social Finance Inc., SoFi is a financial institution with nearly 7 million members. The company has issued more than $73 billion in loans to date, including mortgages, personal loans, student loans and student loan refinancing. If you can dream up a financial service, SoFi likely offers a solution. 

SoFi offers a series of undergraduate student loan options, as well as graduate, MBA and law school loans. While SoFi has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, it is currently not BBB accredited.

SoFi private student loans

SoFi provides private student loan options to help students finance their college degrees. Here’s how to qualify and apply for a student loan through the lender.

SoFi

Blueprint Rating

Go to lender site

Via SoFi's website

Fixed APR

4.19% to 14.83%

Variable APR

5.74% to 15.86%

More details

• Rates available: Fixed and variable.
• Loan terms: 5, 7, 10 and 15 years.
• Perks: Autopay discount (0.25%), financial planning and more.
• Fees: None.
• Requirements: There’s no minimum income or credit score required, although both are considered as part of your eligibility along with the rest of your application. If you have a co-signer, they’ll need to provide these details as well.

How to qualify for a SoFi private student loan

Like almost all other private student loan providers, SoFi has its own qualification standards borrowers will need to meet. The lender does not publish the exact requirements online, but you can check your potential interest rate before applying. SoFi performs a soft credit check during the pre-qualification process, so your credit won’t be impacted.  

How to apply for a SoFi private student loan

1. Visit the SoFi website. To apply for a private student loan through SoFi, visit the lender’s student loan webpage and click the “View your rate” button.  
2. Pre-qualify for a rate. Enter your basic information on the next screen. SoFi says it performs a soft credit pull during this step, so checking your potential loan amount and interest rate won’t impact your credit. 
3. Complete a formal application. If you decide to apply for a student loan after checking your rate, you’ll finish the application and provide information about your income (or the income of a guarantor) along with documentation. This step involves a hard credit pull. 
4. Await a decision. SoFi will review your application and loan documents and notify you of its decision. If your application is approved, you’ll read and sign your loan documents. 
5. Make sure your school receives the funds. SoFi will contact your school to certify your enrollment and the amount of private financial aid needed. Then Sofi will send the funds to your school.

Pros of a SoFi private student loan

• Straightforward pricing with no fees.
• Easy online application process.
• Discounts available for autopay enrollment.

Cons of a SoFi student loan

• Some users have reported customer service difficulties.
• Eligibility requirements are not publicly displayed.

SoFi student loan refinancing

SoFi offers student loan refinancing options that may help you save money and potentially pay off your loans faster. With SoFi, you can refinance both private and federal loans, choose from multiple repayment terms and benefit from discounts for autopay enrollment.

SoFi Student Refinancing Loan

Blueprint Rating

Fixed APR

5.24% to 9.99%*

with autopay discount

Variable APR

6.24% to 9.99%*

with autopay discount

More details

• Interest rate types: Fixed and variable.
• Loan terms: 5, 7, 10, 15 or 20 years.
• Perks: Autopay discount (0.25%), member benefits (such as tailored financial planning, referral bonuses and more).
• Fees: None.
• Requirements: You need to have graduated with an associates degree or higher from an accredited Title IV college or university. You must also be employed (or have an offer of employment to start in the next 90 days) and show that you earn enough money to responsibly repay your refinanced student loan.

^{*NOTICE: The debt ceiling legislation passed on June 2, 2023, codifies into law that federal student loan borrowers will be reentering repayment. The US Department of Education or your student loan servicer, or lender if you have FFEL loans, will notify you directly when your payments will resume For more information, please go to https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20230529/BILLS-118hrPIH-fiscalresponsibility.pdf https://studentaid.gov/announcements-events/covid-19 If you are a federal student loan borrower you should take time now to prepare for your payments to restart, including the opportunity to refinance your student loan debt at a lower APR or to extend your term to achieve a lower monthly payment. Please note that once you refinance federal student loans you will no longer be eligible for current or future flexible payment options available to federal loan borrowers, including but not limited to income based repayment plans or extended repayment plans. Fixed rates range from 5.24% APR to 9.99% APR with 0.25% autopay discount. Variable rates range from 6.24% APR to 9.99% APR with a 0.25% autopay discount. Unless required to be lower to comply with applicable law, Variable Interest rates will never exceed 13.95% (the maximum rate for these loans). SoFi rate ranges are current as of 9/08/2023 and are subject to change at any time. Your actual rate will be within the range of rates listed above and will depend on the term you select, evaluation of your creditworthiness, income, presence of a co-signer and a variety of other factors. Lowest rates reserved for the most creditworthy borrowers. For the SoFi variable-rate product, the variable interest rate for a given month is derived by adding a margin to the 30-day average SOFR index, published two business days preceding such calendar month, rounded up to the nearest one hundredth of one percent (0.01% or 0.0001). APRs for variable-rate loans may increase after origination if the SOFR index increases. The SoFi 0.25% autopay interest rate reduction requires you to agree to make monthly principal and interest payments by an automatic monthly deduction from a savings or checking account. This benefit will discontinue and be lost for periods in which you do not pay by automatic deduction from a savings or checking account. The benefit lowers your interest rate but does not change the amount of your monthly payment. This benefit is suspended during periods of deferment and forbearance. Autopay is not required to receive a loan from SoFi. You may pay more interest over the life of the loan if you refinance with an extended term.}

How to qualify for a SoFi student loan refinance

Qualification standards for SoFi student loan refinancing options are straightforward, but not everyone can meet these requirements. To refinance, you must have a job offer with plans to start that job within 90 days if you’re not already employed. If you’re refinancing medical school debt, it must be for an amount greater than $10,000, and you can’t have more than four years left in your program.

How to apply for a SoFi student loan refinance

1. Visit SoFi’s website. SoFi’s application process is all online, so start by navigating to the company’s student loan refinance page. Click the button labeled “View your rate.”
2. Get pre-qualified. SoFi will ask a few questions about you and your student loans, your goals for refinancing and the amount you’d like to borrow. The company will perform a soft credit pull to estimate your interest rate and other loan terms. 
3. Finish the application. If you decide to move forward with the refinance after checking your rate, you’ll finish the loan application. SoFi will ask for documentation regarding your income and will perform a hard credit pull during this step.
4. Await a decision. SoFi will review your application and let you know whether your application is approved. 
5. Sign the paperwork. If SoFi approves your application, you’ll receive loan documents to review and sign. The company can pay off your student loans on your behalf. Then, you’ll start payments on your new SoFi refinance loan.

Pros of a SoFi student loan refinance

• Fixed- and variable-rate options.
• Completely online process.
• Discounts available.

Cons of a SoFi student loan refinance

• No co-signer release.
• Must have at least $10,000 in loans if refinancing medical school debt. 

SoFi perks and special features

SoFi is a popular lender for those looking to take out private student loans or refinance existing loans. It offers competitive rates, an easy online application process and discounts available for autopay enrollment.

Savings and discounts

Becoming a SoFi member is free, giving you access to better rates and allowing you to chat with financial experts to answer questions about your loans. You can become a member just by using one of the company’s products, whether you’ve opened a checking account, taken out a loan or started tracking your finances through the SoFi portal.

Payment terms

SoFi borrowers who take out private student loans can choose loan terms of five, seven, 10 or 15 years, while refinance borrowers have options ranging from five to 20 years. You can begin paying your loans in full while in school, pay a small portion while still enrolled or defer all payments until after graduation.

Completely online

It takes just three minutes to get a rate quote from SoFi for private student loans. This makes it easy to see what you might pay if you choose to refinance.

How SoFi could improve

SoFi offers many advantages when it comes to refinancing student loans, including competitive rates and a completely online application process. However, there are ways SoFi can make refinancing student loans even better for its customers.

Customer service

While SoFi has an A+ rating with the BBB, customers give the company an average score of 1.73 out of 5 stars. Many of the reviews point to problems with customer service while trying to troubleshoot an account issue. This can lead to frustration, especially when there are no branches to get in-person help.  

No co-signer release

Although you can apply for SoFi student loan refinancing with a co-signer, you can’t take them off the loan later. So if you need or want to apply with a co-signer, just keep this in mind before moving forward.

SoFi customer service and reviews

SoFi gives current and prospective borrowers several ways to contact customer service representatives. Because the lender does not have any brick-and-mortar locations, there is no way to talk to someone in person if you have an issue. That said, the company tries to make it easy to reach its representatives: 

• Talk with an expert via phone call during normal business hours.
• Get support with the company’s chatbot online 24/7.
• Email the company.
• Interact with the company on social media channels.

While SoFi has an A+ rating with the BBB, it also has hundreds of negative reviews on the site — especially related to customer service matters. Review website Trustpilot has a much better outlook for SoFi, with an average score of 4.7 out of 5 stars based on more than 7,400 customer reviews. SoFi also has responded to 63% of negative reviews left on the Trustpilot site.

SoFi alternatives: SoFi vs. Earnest vs. Citizens

SoFi is not the only online lender offering private student loans and refinancing options. Competitors such as Earnest and Citizens Bank provide larger loan amounts and flexible repayment terms for private student loans and student loan refinancing. 

Private student loans

	SOFI	EARNEST	CITIZENS
Fixed APR	4.19% to 14.83%	4.29% to 16.49% (undergraduate)	4.24% to 15.60%
Min. loan amount	$1,000 up to full cost of attendance (minus other financial aid received) (no maximum limit)	$1,000 up to the cost of attendance, with a lifetime maximum of $250,000	$1,000 up to the cost of attendance, with a lifetime maximum of $350,000 (depending on degree program)
Loan terms (years)	5, 7, 10 and 15 years	5, 7, 10, 12, 15 years	5, 10 and 15 years
Min. credit score	No minimum	650	No minimum
Best for	Online shoppers	Deferred payments	Multiyear loan applications

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Student loan refinancing

	SOFI	EARNEST	CITIZENS
Fixed APR	5.24% to 9.99%*	4.99% to 9.74%	6.49% to 10.99%
Min. needed to refinance	$5,000	$5,000	$10,000
Loan terms (years)	5, 7, 10, 15 or 20 years	5 to 20 years	5, 7, 10, 15, 20 years
Min. credit score	None	665	None
Best for	Easy applications	High-value loans	In-person assistance

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^{All rates include autopay discounts where noted by the lender and are accurate as of July 5, 2024.}

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)