OppLoans offers loans to those with bad credit. Although their APRs are still very high, they aren't as bad as traditional payday or title loans, and they typically offer longer loan terms.

Whether you like it or not, there will likely be a time where you’ll be in a bind and really need a loan. Either your car breaks down, you’re late on your rent, or an unexpected medical bill lands in your lap. It happens. But for those with difficult credit, getting a loan is anything but easy.

That’s where OppLoans comes in. While you should definitely carefully evaluate whether or not you want to take on a loan with an extremely high interest rate, sometimes there’s just no other choice.

Let’s take a closer look at what OppLoans has to offer and if it’s really a good idea to take on one of their loans.

How does OppLoans work?

OppLoans are similar to payday loans in that you can (usually) get a loan the day after applying for one. That should be a tip off right there that this loan is a last resort deal. But OppLoans genuinely seems to want to help their borrowers, while payday loans are intended debt traps.

You can take out a loan for anywhere between $1,000-$10,000 (depending on the state). You can have up to 36 months to pay it back, with and APR between 99-199 percent. That’s obviously a very high APR, but it’s still lower than payday or title loans, both of which can reach past 300 percent.

You can apply easily online, and applying won’t hurt your credit score. You do have access to a representative if you have any questions or concerns. Based on the Better Business Bureau, OppLoans receives great reviews when it comes to their customer service.

What can you use the loan for?

There are a number of loans you can get through OppLoans. You can use the loan for car repairs, child expenses, medical expenses, rent, major purchases, or debt consolidation.

OppLoans offers personal loans for those surprise, unavoidable expenses. Within these personal loans are installment loans and bad credit loans that can actually help you repair your credit. OppLoans reports payments to TransUnion, so if you make your payments on time and regularly, you can improve your credit score.

They do describe in depth the difference between the loans they, and companies similar to them, offer. They are open and honest about the nature of the loans offer and advice borrowers to seriously consider the decision to take on such loans.

The types of loans offered, their APRs, and the loan terms differ greatly between states, and many states don’t offer any loans through OppLoans, so be sure to do a little research before you think of applying.

Should you take out a loan with OppLoans?

We’d like to make it clear that, while OppLoans offers APRs better than other alternatives, this is definitely not the best option for financing suddent expenses. It should be a last resort.

Let’s take a second to compare OppLoans to payday loans and title loans and you’ll see why it’s a slightly better alternative.

Payday loans are, in a way, simple because you don’t have to go through an entire credit check to get them. But payday loans are well known to be debt traps. They have APRs over 300 percent typically and very short loan terms. So to get fully out of debt you’ll need to come up with a lot of money quickly…which most borrowers don’t have, that’s why they’re taking out the loan in the first place. It’s a vicious cycle.

Title loans, on the other hand, are terrible in their own right because you need to have collateral to take out a loan—typically the title to your car, which you have to physically hand over to the lender. So if you borrow a significant amount of money, chances are you’ll end up losing your car.

Looking at these two options, you can see why OppLoans are a better choice, albeit still not perfect.

Learn more about OppLoans today, and get the loan you need

Summary

No one should take out last minute loans unless they absolutely have to. And those that have to should find the best deal out there, even if those deals are few and far between. OppLoans is your best bet in a bind, with lower APRs than payday or title loans, and with a longer payback period.

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About the author

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Christopher Murray is a professional personal finance and sustainability writer who enjoys writing about everything from budgeting to unique investing options like SRI and cryptocurrency. He also focuses on how sustainability is the best savings tool around. You can find his work on sites like MoneyGeek, Money Under 30, Investor Junkie, MoneyCrashers, and Time. You can find out more about Christopher on his website or via LinkedIn.