DCU Personal Loans Review 2025: Rates, Terms, and Alternatives

3.2 _/5

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Our take: DCU personal loans offer flexible repayment terms. However, borrowers with good to excellent credit may find lower rates with other lenders on our list of the best personal loans.

Signature Personal Loan

• No payments required for the first 60 days

• Lower rates may be available from several higher-rated lenders
• Credit union membership required
• Lacks transparency (loan amounts and minimum allowed credit scores not disclosed)

Rates (APR)	Starting at 11.99%
Loan amounts	Not disclosed
Repayment terms	Up to 5 years

Table of Contents

1. DCU personal loan at a glance
   1. Signature Personal Loan (Unsecured)
   2. Credit Builder Loan
   3. Savings Secured Loan
   4. Energy Efficiency Loan
   5. Access Loan
   6. Fuel Assistance Loan
2. Pros and cons
3. Alternatives
   1. vs. SoFi
   2. vs. LightStream
   3. vs. PenFed Credit Union

DCU personal loan details at a glance

Feature	Details
Loan amounts	Not disclosed
APR range	As low as 11.99% (Signature loan)
Loan types	Signature, Credit Builder, Savings Secured, Access, Fuel Assistance, Energy Efficiency
Loan terms	Up to 60 months
Fees	No origination or prepayment fees; late fees apply
Credit score required	Not disclosed
Time to fund	Typically 3–4 business days after approval
Membership required?	Yes, but you can apply before joining

Signature Personal Loan (Unsecured)

DCU’s Signature Personal Loan is its standard unsecured option for debt consolidation, major purchases, or general expenses. Like most credit unions, DCU doesn’t charge origination or prepayment fees.

You don’t need to be a DCU member to apply, but you’ll need to join if you’re approved. Loan funds are typically deposited within a few business days after approval, and there’s a 60-day payment deferral option for new loans.

Features:

• 60-month maximum term
• Fixed rate starting at 11.99% APR
• 0.50% rate discount for Plus and Relationship members with autopay
• No payments due for the first 60 days
• Late payment fees apply monthly if you’re behind

What to watch for:

DCU doesn’t clearly disclose credit score requirements, but its lowest rates are likely reserved for borrowers with excellent credit. (And excellent-credit borrowers might qualify for much lower rates with LightStream.)

If you’re not in that range, your rate could be much higher, or you may not qualify at all.

Credit Builder Loan

DCU’s Credit Builder Loan is a secured loan designed to help members build or rebuild credit. The amount you borrow is held in a DCU savings account until the loan is repaid. Once paid in full, you’ll receive the funds, along with the benefit of a positive payment history reported to the credit bureaus.

• Rates as low as 5.00% APR
• Funds held in savings until repaid
• Designed to help build credit

Savings Secured Loan

With a Savings Secured Loan, you borrow against your DCU savings account or certificate of deposit (CD). This type of loan is ideal if you want to preserve your savings while building credit or covering a short-term need.

• Rates as low as 3.50% APR
• Secured by your own funds
• Funds remain on hold until the loan is paid

Energy Efficiency Loan

This option helps finance energy-efficient home improvements like heat pumps, solar panels, or insulation upgrades. To qualify, the contractor must be a DCU-approved Home Improvement partner.

• Rates as low as 8.75% APR
• Term up to 10 years
• Contractor must be DCU-approved

Access Loan

DCU’s Access Loan can help borrowers finance specialty equipment and home improvements that assist someone with a disability.

• Rates as low as 10.85% APR
• Term up to 6 years

Fuel Assistance Loan

This seasonal loan helps cover home heating costs during the winter months. It can be used for oil, gas, propane, pellets, firewood, or electricity used for home heating.

• Borrow up to $3,000
• Rates starting at 8.25% APR
• Maximum term of 1 year
• Must qualify for an unsecured loan

Pros and cons of DCU personal loans

Pros

• No origination or prepayment fee

  You won’t pay extra to get the loan or pay it off early.

• Membership is open nationwide

  You don’t have to live in New England to join; anyone can become a DCU member

• Payment deferral

  New personal loans come with the ability to delay your first payment for 60 days.

• Multiple loan types

  Options include secured, unsecured, and purpose-specific loans.

Cons

• Limited transparency

  Credit requirements, Signature Loan amounts, and more aren’t disclosed on the website.

• Lower rates may be available elsewhere with excellent credit

  Several of our team’s highest-rated personal loan lenders offer much lower starting rates.

Alternatives to DCU

Here are three alternatives we recommend considering before you proceed with DCU:

DCU vs. SoFi

SoFi offers large loan amounts, lower fixed rates, and extra benefits, like financial planning and referral bonuses. It’s best suited for borrowers with strong credit profiles.

DCU vs. LightStream

LightStream offers some of the lowest personal loan rates on the market, but you can’t check your rates without affecting your credit score. We think it’s best for borrowers with excellent credit who are confident they’ll be approved. Loan amounts are generous, with no fees and same-day funding.

DCU vs. PenFed Credit Union

If you want to stick with a credit union but need higher loan limits, PenFed offers loans up to $50,000 and lower rates. It’s more transparent than DCU about eligibility.

How we rated DCU

We designed LendEDU’s editorial rating system to help readers find companies that offer the best personal loans. Our system awards higher ratings to companies with affordable solutions, positive customer reviews, and online transparency of benefits and terms.

We compared DCU to several personal loan lenders, using hundreds of data points from company websites, public disclosures, customer reviews, and direct communication with company representatives. We weighted, scored, and combined each factor to produce a final editorial rating. This rating is expressed on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest possible score. Our take is represented in our rating, recapped below.