Universal Credit Personal Loans Review

Universal Credit is an online provider of consumer loans. It is a subsidiary of Upgrade and differs from its parent brand by approving borrowers lower down the credit spectrum, while still offering many of the same perks and features.

Loan Options

• Universal Credit offers only unsecured personal loans between $1,000 and $50,000.

• Loan lengths are either 3 or 5 years.

• Universal Credit does not currently support joint loan applications or the inclusion of cosigners.

Interest & Fees

• APR: 11.69%-35.99% (lowest rates are reserved for borrowers who satisfy discount criteria- see below).

• Origination Fee: 5.25%-9.99%

• Prepayment Penalty: Borrowers do not incur any fees if they wish to pay off their loan early.

• Late Payment: It's not disclosed on the Universal Credit website but Upgrade will impose $10 fee if the full payment is not received within 15 calendar days of the payment due date.

• Unsuccessful payment: It's not disclosed on the Universal Credit website but, according to its parent company, Upgrade, borrowers will be charged $10 if bank transfers (ACH) or checks are returned or fail. This fee may be on top of charges that are imposed by your banking institution.

• Discounts: It's not disclosed on the Universal Credit website but borrowers can reduce their APR by 0.5% with autopay and by an additional 1%-2% if Universal Credit sends at least half of the loan proceeds directly to existing creditors for debt consolidation. Combined, eligible borrowers could lower their rate by up to 2.5 percentage points.

Loan Eligibility

While they do not explicitly publish a hard minimum limit, third-party platforms and industry reviews consistently list 580 as their minimum credit score requirement.

Income Requirements

No publicly stated income requirements.

Are they legit?

Yes. Universal Credit is owned by the online lending platform, Upgrade, but is positioned towards borrowers with lower credit scores than Upgrade's core customer base. It is not a lender but rather a facilitator of loans issued by one of its bank partners. Universal Credit handles the customer service, application process and loan management, while the actual funds are provided by the bank.

Reviews & News

At the time of writing, Universal Credit had approximately 85% 5-star reviews on Trustpilot from a total of just over 3,000.

On their A+ accredited BBB profile, they have an average rating of 4.75/5 from over 300 reviews, with just 4 complaints closed in the last year.

Do They Report to the Credit Bureaus?

Yes. Universal Credit report monthly snapshots of loan and payment status to the three major credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and Transunion. Regular on-time payments in your credit file will likely increase your credit score and improve your chances of qualifying for credit in the future. However, failure to satisfy your repayment obligations could damage your credit score, making it more difficult to borrow again.

Get in touch

You can reach the Universal Credit customer service team by calling toll-free (877) 418-9765 5AM-6PM PT (Monday-Friday) and 6AM-5PM PT (Saturday & Sunday). Alternatively, you may choose to email them at support-universal@upgrade.com.

What we like?

Multiple Discounts: Borrowers can reduce their APR (and save money) by accepting one or both of the AutoPay or direct payment to creditor discounts. Autopay can help borrowers avoid missed payments and potential damage to their credit score, while automatic payments on your existing debt could help you get out of debt faster.

Check your Rate: Borrowers can check their rate on the Universal Credit website and app, without any impact to their credit score. Even if you have an offer elsewhere, it might be worth seeing if Universal Credit can beat it.

Flexible Loan Amounts: Universal Credit personal loans cater for all types of borrower needs. With loans between $1,000 and $50,000, they can be used to cover short-term emergencies and longer-term projects.

Well-Rated App: Universal Credit customers can manage their loans through the free Upgrade app, where they can make payments, receive updates and track their credit score. You can also seamlessly browse additional financial products, such as checking accounts and credit cards. The app is available for both Apple and Android.

What we don't like?

Origination Fees: Universal Credit will charge origination fees of 5.25%-9.99% on the approved loan amount. Origination fees are automatically paid at the time of funding. For example, if you are approved for $10,000 loan with a 5% origination fee, you'll only receive $9,500 in your bank account. Many lenders don't charge origination fees, so you may wish to look elsewhere to avoid them.

No joint/cosigned loans: Unlike its parent company, Upgrade, Universal Credit does not support loans with multiple applicants, either joint or cosigned applications. A cosigner or joint applicant can sometimes increase your chance of approval or give you better terms, so it might be worth checking out alternative lenders that provide this option.

No Secured Loans: Again, unlike its parent company, Universal Credit does not currently offer collateral backed personal loans. Securing your loan with an asset (e.g. vehicle) is one way to achieve a lower rate.

Uninformative Website: Compared to its parent company's website, the Universal Credit website is a little sparse. Its FAQ section is limited and often links to its parent company's website. Furthermore, the website lacks educational resources that might help borrowers make better financial choices.

Summary

With flexible loan amounts and risk-free prequalification, Universal Credit is a reasonable option for borrowers with fair or bad credit. However, the relatively high origination fees and lack of joint or secured loan options may push stronger applicants toward Upgrade or other competitors