Many or all companies we feature compensate us. Compensation and editorial research influence how products appear on a page. Personal Loans How Long Does It Take to Get a Personal Loan? What to Expect for Approval, Funding, and More Updated Oct 09, 2025 4-min read Expert Approved Expert Approved This article has been reviewed by a Certified Financial Planner™ for accuracy. Written by Taylor Milam-Samuel Written by Taylor Milam-Samuel Expertise: Student loans, debt, budgeting, tax relief, home equity, personal loans, auto loans Taylor Milam-Samuel is a personal finance writer and credentialed educator who is passionate about helping people take control of their finances and create a life they love. When she's not researching financial terms and conditions, she can be found in the classroom teaching. Learn more about Taylor Milam-Samuel Edited by Amanda Hankel Edited by Amanda Hankel Expertise: Writing, editing, digital publishing Amanda Hankel is a managing editor at LendEDU. She has more than seven years of experience covering various finance-related topics and has worked for more than 15 years overall in writing, editing, and publishing. Learn more about Amanda Hankel Reviewed by Catherine Valega, CFP®, CAIA® Reviewed by Catherine Valega, CFP®, CAIA® Expertise: Financial planning, retirement planning, education planning, insurance planning, investment planning Catherine Valega, CFP®, CAIA®, founded Green Bee Advisory LLC to help women, philanthropists, investors, and small businesses build, manage, and preserve their financial resources. She's been practicing financial planning for more than 20 years. Learn more about Catherine Valega, CFP®, CAIA® It can take anywhere from a few minutes to three business days to be approved for a personal loan and get the funds in hand. How long it takes depends on your financial history, credit score, chosen lender, and if you have your documentation ready. Typically, if you have excellent credit, you can be approved more quickly. Online applications also tend to be processed faster. If speed is your top priority, start by contacting your current bank or credit union. Having an existing account and financial history with the lender might reduce the loan processing time. Here’s a closer look at the process of getting a personal loan and and how long it takes to complete each step. Table of Contents Personal loan processing time: How long does each step take? Preapproval Applying Approval Getting your funds Personal loan approval and funding times by lender Alternatives if personal loan approval times aren’t fast enough Personal loan processing time: How long does each step take? There are typically four steps for taking out a personal loan with most lenders: an optional preapproval step, the application, approval, and disbursement of your funds. Here’s the average time to expect for each step, and how to expedite the process as much as possible. Preapproval Average time: 1 to 2 minutes Getting preapproved is optional, but it can reduce the total time it takes to get the personal loan because you can see which lenders you’re likely to be approved by. Preapproval also lets you shop around, review the interest rates, calculate your payments, and check other loan terms before you sign. Ideally, we recommend completing this process with a few different lenders before making a decision. Applying for the personal loan Average time: 10 to 20 minutes The applications for most personal loans are streamlined nowadays. Gathering the necessary paperwork and information can be the most time-consuming part. The average time assumes you have all the documentation you need to proceed on hand. How long does personal loan approval take? Average time: Instant to 3 days During this step, the lender reviews your documentation and other details. Some lenders offer automatic approval processes that go through instantaneously or in minutes. Others require one full business day (or several) to approve the application. In cases where your application is unclear or is missing documentation, the lender will follow up for clarification, which can lead to the whole process lasting several more business days. How long does it take to get your personal loan funds? Average time: Instant to 3 days Once the lender approves your application, you must sign the paperwork to finalize the agreement. From there, the lender disburses the funds to your account. The lender might disburse the funds immediately. It may also take one to three days to arrive in your account due to bank processing times. For specific lenders, it can take up to 10 days. Personal loan approval and funding times by lender We researched personal loans from a mix of online lenders, banks, and credit unions to get an idea of average approval and funding times. Here’s what we found below. Also be sure to check out our post on the fastest personal loans. It features several lenders that offer same-day funding. Also read our full roundup of the best personal loans. 4.6 View Rates View Rates Type Credit union Approval Time Instant or up to 1 day Funding Time Instant 4.6 View Rates 4.5 View Rates View Rates Type Online lender Approval Time 1 – 3 days Funding Time 1 – 3 days 4.5 View Rates 4.3 View Rates View Rates Type Credit union Approval Time Instant or up to 2 days Funding Time Checks are mailed within 24 – 48 hours; can take up to 10 days to arrive 4.3 View Rates 4.2 View Rates View Rates Type Online lender Approval Time 1 – 2 business days Funding Time 1 – 3 business days 4.2 View Rates 4.0 View Rates View Rates Type Bank Approval Time Instant or up to 1 business day Funding Time Direct deposit to a Wells Fargo account in 1 – 3 business days; Cashier’s check at signing if you go to a branch 4.0 View Rates 3.9 View Rates View Rates Type Bank Approval Time Up to 1 day Funding Time Funds are sent the next business day; up to 3 days to arrive in your account 3.9 View Rates 3.9 View Rates View Rates Type Online lender Approval Time Instant or up to 2 business days Funding Time Funds are sent the next business day 3.9 View Rates 3.8 View Rates View Rates Type Bank Approval Time Instant or up to 3 days Funding Time Funds are sent the next business day; up to 10 days to arrive in your account 3.8 View Rates 3.7 View Rates View Rates Type Online lender Approval Time 1 – 2 days Funding Time 1 – 3 business days 3.7 View Rates 3.2 View Rates View Rates Type Credit union Approval Time Instant Funding Time 1 business day 3.2 View Rates Alternatives if personal loan approval times aren’t fast enough If you need money right now, waiting days for a personal loan approval can feel impossible. While payday or title loans might seem like a quick fix, they come with a huge catch—sky-high interest rates and fees that can reach 400% or more of the loan amount. That’s a debt spiral waiting to happen. A smarter short-term solution could be a cash advance app. These apps let you borrow against your upcoming paycheck—sometimes instantly—without the outrageous interest. Depending on the app, you may pay nothing at all, a small one-time fee, or a monthly subscription. If you only need a few hundred dollars (say, under $750) to bridge a temporary gap and you’re confident you can repay it quickly, a cash advance app can be a far safer and cheaper route than a payday loan. Here are our top picks for the best cash advance apps to help you get money fast without the financial headache. About our contributors Written by Taylor Milam-Samuel Taylor Milam-Samuel is a personal finance writer and credentialed educator who is passionate about helping people take control of their finances and create a life they love. When she's not researching financial terms and conditions, she can be found in the classroom teaching. Edited by Amanda Hankel Amanda Hankel is a managing editor at LendEDU. She has more than seven years of experience covering various finance-related topics and has worked for more than 15 years overall in writing, editing, and publishing.