What You Need to Know About Oportun Personal Loans

Oportun is a direct lender based in San Carlos, California, that works with consumers who are underserved by the financial sector.

It used to be called Progreso Financiero but changed its name to Oportun – which is the beginning of the word oportunidad (meaning opportunity) in Spanish. This lender welcomes customers to apply for a personal loan regardless of whether they speak only English or Spanish.

Oportun offers personal loans to consumers with bad credit, but because of this, interest rates can be higher than our recommended maximum of 36%. Before borrowing, be sure to know the total cost of your loan and have a plan for repayment. To compare bad credit loans with interest rates under 36%, check out our bad credit loans page.

In this review:

• Application Process & Eligibility Requirements
• Interest Rates, Fees, & Loan Amounts
• Benefits of Oportun Personal Loans
• Downsides of Oportun Personal Loans

Application Process & Eligibility Requirements

Oportun is known for its very flexible credit score requirements. The credit score range that borrowers must fall into in order to be eligible for an Oportun loan is generally 300 – 700, but it will also approve people who have no credit.

To be eligible for an Oportun loan, you must:

• Be 18 or over
• Live in one of the 12 states they work in (AZ, CA, FL, ID, IL, MO, NV, NJ, NM, SC, TX, UT, WI)

Applicants should have the following documents on hand:

• A valid photo ID, such as a driver’s license, passport, consular ID card, or a non-U.S. ID card (we accept from most countries)
• Proof of income, such as current paystubs or current bank statements
• Verification of address, such as a piece of mail with your name and address (cannot be a PO box)
• Up to four personal references, which can include friends, family, or employers

Basic Information: Rates, Terms, Fees, and Loan Amounts

Oportun provides its borrowers with unsecured installment loans that start at $300 and go up to $7,000 – but the larger loan options are only available to returning customers who have borrowed from Oportun in the past.

Interest rates on Oportun loans vary from 12% – 99% APR depending on the state you live in and your personal financial situation. In addition, term lengths range from seven months to 35 months.

There are late fees and origination fees with Oportun loans but no prepayment penalties.

Benefits & Drawbacks of Oportun Personal Loans

Benefits

Accept Borrowers With No Credit or Low Credit Scores

For borrowers who are applying for an Oportun loan, there is no need for any credit history in order to be eligible. For people who have little credit history, it opens up lending opportunities to populations of borrowers who can’t get approved for loans from other lenders.

Low Interest Rates Compared to Other Bad Credit Personal Loans

Oportun has a much lower APR maximum than a lot of its competitors that offer bad credit loans. For other lenders that accept extremely low credit scores, APRs can get into the 200% – 300% range.

With that being said, any loan with rates over 36% can be very costly and make repayment difficult. Be sure to know the total cost of your loan and have a plan for repayment before taking out an Oportun personal loan.

Oportun Loans May Help You Build Credit

Another benefit is that this lender reports to two out of the three main credit bureaus – TransUnion and Experian. That way, borrowers who are looking to boost their credit scores have an opportunity to do so with this lender.

Fast Application Process

Also, this platform is really fast – loan applications only take between 10 and 15 minutes to get done, and a response is usually provided that same day.

Downsides

Interest Rates Often Over 36%

Despite Oportun having lower rates than some competitors, the lender still often has interest rates over our recommended maximum of 36%. This can make the loan quite expensive and you should only use it as a last resort.

You may be able to get a lower rate with a secured credit card, secured personal loan, or other payday loan alternative.

You can also see lenders offering loans to consumers with bad credit that have maximum rates under 36%.

Online Application Not Available in All States

With Oportun, you can apply for a loan online. Customers are able to complete an application without going into the retail store. Oportun loans are available online in all states in which it operates.

The fact that people often have to submit documents at a physical location is a drawback, especially when there are competing lenders that handle 100% of the application process online.

Mixed Customer Reviews

According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB) as of the time of this writing, 100% of the 20 customers who reviewed Oportun had a negative experience. Many of the complaints have to do with the product or service and with billing issues.

A note from Oportun:

“Our service and superior customer value proposition have led to exceptional customer satisfaction and loyalty, as evidenced by our strong Net Promoter Score^®, or NPS, averaging over 80 since 2016. This NPS places us among the top consumer companies and is exceptional compared to other financial services companies.”

Oportun

Bottom Line

Oportun loans might be worth considering for people who have little-to-no credit history and don’t want to get suckered into predatory payday loan-type schemes.

Check out our picks for the Best Personal Loans or Best Bad Credit Loans to see other options that you may want to consider.

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¹The full range of available rates varies by state. The average 3-year loan offered across all lenders using the Upstart platform will have an APR of 21.97% and 36 monthly payments of $35 per $1,000 borrowed. For example, the total cost of a $10,000 loan would be $12,646 including a $626 origination fee. APR is calculated based on 3-year rates offered in the last 1 month. There is no down payment and no prepayment penalty. Your APR will be determined based on your credit, income, and certain other information provided in your loan application.