Home Apps Like Earnin | Best 5 Earnin App Alternatives 2021
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Do you frequently use bank overdrafts? Earnin can help you escape the prohibitive bank rates associated with overdrafts. And it’s not just Earnin; you might want to check out the competition. There are many similar alternatives. In this article, we have reviewed some of the best apps based on several factors. Read on and pick your favorite.

How We Rank the Apps Like Earnin

Well, before we look into the various apps, you need to know how we arrived at these choices.

We used strict criteria to filter and identify only high-quality, overdraft loan apps. Some of the factors we considered include:

  • The cost of the loan, which includes interest rates and other fees, if any.
  • Ease of applying and getting the loan
  • The loan turnaround time – how quickly the lender processes the loan request.
  • Ease and flexibility of loan repayment
  • Customer safety
  • Loan limit
  • Variety of loan options
 Note: Overdrawing checking accounts fees have growingly become expensive, pushing most account holders to find alternative options.

The top 10 Apps Like Earnin

1. Viva Payday Loans | Best Overall

Our Rating

  • Quick funding – 24 hours loan turnaround.
  • Available in all states in the USA.
  • Flexible repayment period.
  • It's costly in states with no rate caps.

2. FundsJoy | Best for Individuals with a Good Credit

FundsJoy extends you a loan of up to $5,000 with an APR of as little as 4.99%. You must have a regular income, which requires you to provide proof of employment. Also, while you don't need to have a stellar credit score, it is necessary to enjoy the low rates. Otherwise, the APR can be as high as 1386%; it is down to your creditworthiness.

Like most pay advance loan apps, the entire application process is online. FundJoy processes payments pretty quickly. The funds reach your account on the same day of your application, or over the next business day.

Our Rating

  • Quick loan processing with 24-hours funding
  • Borrow up to $5,000.
  • Low-interest rates for those with both stellar credit ratings and high income
  • Costly rates for those bad credit loans.
  • The loan limit is very restrictive; not everyone gets it.

3. Loan Solo | Best on-phone Payday Loan

For starters, Loan Solo is not your regular payday loan lender. Instead, it is a loan marketplace linking borrowers with bad credit to payday to a wide range of lenders available across the market. You may not even know whose loan you are holding.

We have, however, featured it in this list because it accepts both online and over-the-phone loan applications. Through the Loan Solo app, you can borrow up to $1,000, which you must fully settle with your next paycheck.

The amount you can borrow on the platform depends on your credit score and your monthly income.

Our Rating

  • Apply for the loan online or over the phone
  • Quick loan turnaround.
  • Borrow up to $1,000 cash advance of your next paycheck
  • A very high cost of borrowing as a result of commissions, high APR rates, and late fees
  • It considers credit score, with low APRs only available to creditworthy borrowers.

4. Extra Lend |Best for Safety and Security of Personal Data

Few lenders are concerned about their user's safety as Extra Lend is! This bad-credit loan marketplace protects your data using 256-bit encryption from the prying eyes of data fishers.

Besides security, Extra Lend offers a limit of up to $5,000 and an extended loan repayment period.

Do these features get you interested in this app? Well, the loan application process is easy. Just fill in a few personal details to make a loan qualification request. If you qualify, the money is yours for the stipulated repayment period.

Our Rating

  • Broadcasts your application to many lenders, increasing your chances to qualify for a loan.
  • Easy loan application process.
  • Extended loan limits and extensive repayment period
  • It is not a direct lender.
  • It has no power over the terms of the loan.

5. CashNetUSA - Best for Small Emergency Funding

If you are looking for a quick loan of between $255 and $500, then you can turn to CashNetUSA. The loan application process is reasonably straightforward, taking under three minutes to complete. The funds will reflect in your account in under 24 hours. What's more, the lender doesn't dig into your credit history.

Another benefit of CashNetUSA is that it allows you to stagger your payments across multiple paydays. So, you don't need to settle the loan in full with your next paycheck. You can negotiate for a repayment period of between two weeks to 15 months.

All said and done, the low loan limit and the high cost of borrowing may inhibit your ability to use its loans. It will cost you from $10 to $45 for every $100 you borrow, which means the APR ranges from 205 to 800%.

Our Rating

  • Quick application process.
  • Under 24-hours funding
  • Long repayment period.
  • Meager loan limit.
  • Costly loans, with up an APR of up to 800%

6. Brigit Loan App | Best alternative of Bank Overdraft

With over 250,000 users, Brigit Loan App is standing out as the best alternative to bank overdrafts. If you are about to overdraw your account, the app offers you a small loan up to $250 to avert overdraft fees.

This app is simple, transparent, and easy to use, and it is available in all states across the US. Depending on the type of loan you are seeking, you can borrow up to $250 or $1,000.

What makes Brigit Loan App unique is that instead of charging interest, it charges a monthly subscription fee. Once you have paid this fee, you can access interest-free loans. And it neither has a fixed payment period, consequently, nor late payment fees. In case you encounter financial difficulties, you can get an extension.

Our Rating

  • Cheaper than bank overdraft and most payday loans.
  • You can ask for a due extension date without penalty.
  • It helps you avoid unnecessary bank overdraft fees.
  • The conditional monthly subscription fee, whether using or not using the app.
  • Low monthly loan limit.
  • Slow processing of funds.

7. Dave Loan App | Best for variety

Apart from having the name of people, Dave App and Brigit have a lot in common. We could use Dave in place of the Brigit app and still be accurate.

With that in mind, Dave is an app that alerts you when your checking account balance goes below the critical minimum. It allows you to request a cash advance of up to $100 to cover your expenses until the next paycheck. You can repay the loan manually. But if you don't, on the due date, the app automatically withdraws from your checking account to settle the loan.

You don't pay interest for the borrowed funds. Instead, Dave is a monthly subscription-based service, charging $1.0 per month, deducted from your first paycheck of each month. The app also asks you for tips, and you can further earn free months by buying from some businesses.

Our Rating

  • No form of interest, but it is a subscription-based service with an optional tipping system.
  • You earn unpaid months for spending on select businesses.
  • It helps you averts bank overdraft fees.
  • Monthly subscription fee-regardless of whether you use it or not.
  • The $100 monthly max loan limit is low.

8. Check Into Cash | Best On-shop Lending

Do you want to borrow as little as $50 and up to $1,000? Check Into Cash is your best shot. Plus, it gives you the ability to manage your loans on the go. Besides payday loans, it also offers title loans, installment loans, lines of credit, and flex loans

Unlike most of the apps we have already discussed, this one has physical locations. However, it is more convenient to apply for the loan online instead. Once the situation turns to normalcy, you can walk into a local store and apply.

For online applications, the drill is the same. Submit your details through the app, and wait for Check Into Cash to process your request. In case you are approved, the lender will reach through the contacts you provided. However, you'll have to wait up to 48 hours to receive the money.

Although Check In Cash has a reasonable APR, the 390% is still on the higher side. Nonetheless, it is available across 30 states in the country, with complement stores complementing its online service.

Our Rating

  • Competitive fees and interests since it is a direct lender.
  • It has over 1000 local branches – it can be used by technophobes as well.
  • Accept borrowers with bad credit.
  • No long-term options
  • Late payment penalty
  • Additional fees inflate the cost of the loan.

9. MoneyLion - Best Interest Subscription-Based App

MoneyLion is a personal finance app that offers small-dollar loans at an interest and free cash advance loans of up to $250. Also, it has a no-fee checking account, which you must maintain to benefit from its services. Nonetheless, it has a reasonably low loan limit of $500, with its APR running from 5.99% to 29.99% %.

Unlike most cash advance apps, MoneyLion provides credit builder loans, which count in your credit rating. So, if you frequently need small loans, you can always borrow here and help build your credit score to qualify for quality credit products in the mainstream financial system.

For you benefit from its payroll advance, you must subscribe to its Plus Membership. You pay $19.99 monthly and must have at least $50 in your investment account with them. If you meet the condition, MoneyLion instantly deposits the requested cash advance into the checking account whenever you need it.

Our Rating

  • It helps to build your credit score.
  • With an APR of between 5.99% and 29.99% %, it's among the cheapest options.
  • No fee cash advances.
  • Must have a checking account with them.
  • High monthly fees for the best perks.

10. LendUp - Best Lender in terms of reputation

LendUp is a direct lender specializing in payday loans for people with bad credit, which, of course, is reflective in the rates it charges. The company strives to offer instant approval loans, followed by equally fast funds disbursements. So, this is the place to turn to in case you have an emergency.

The entire loan application process is relatively simple, and you can qualify for loans from $100 to $600 for up to 6 months. However, first-timers can only borrow up to $250, which is suitable for responsible lending.

You can use the LendUp loans to build your credit by paying back on time. Also, through its LendUp Ladder feature, you are awarded points for timely payments, and the more points you accumulate, the higher your loan limit climbs. Over time you will be able to qualify for up to $10,000 payable for a relatively long period at meager rates.

Our Rating

  • Accepts bad credit
  • Simple mobile application process
  • Instant approval & disbursement
  • Very high APR
  • Only available in some states
Note: While these apps are handy as small short-term loan alternatives, they cannot replace the need for quality loan products for deep financial problems.

How Apps Like Earnin Can Save You Overdraft Cost

A bank overdraft enables you to spend more money than you have in your current account. But usually at a cost. In most cases, you have to arrange with your bank, yet sometimes it is a feature of the account you hold. Simply put, an overdraft is a debt, and you need to repay it.

Since the overdraft is a loan, you should settle for the cheapest way to borrow. This form of borrowing is expensive as the bank charges you daily or monthly fees. These changes could see you lose the interest-free overdraft and overdraft buffer.

You pay between 15%-20% monthly. In other cases, a daily charge until you pay what you owe applies. But the amount you can overdraw depends on your limit, and the fees, too, are sometimes capped at a predetermined amount. According to Bankrate’s 2019 checking account and ATM fee study, the average overdraft fee is $33.36. This fee is way more expensive than the subscription fees of some of these apps.

Generally, overdrafts are high-street banks’ version of a payday loan. For instance, you accrue up to £150 in fees when you borrow £100 for 30 days. That is more than seven times higher than a payday loan.

Apps like Earnin, MoneyLion, Dave, Brigit, and many others, send you alerts when you are close to overdrawing your account. They give you the option of borrowing a short-term loan at better rates than the overdrafts by banks. Most of these apps, if used well, can save you hundreds of dollars in overdraft fees.

Conclusion

Payday loans are synonymous with taxi rides, very efficient for short rides, but pretty expensive for long journeys. In some cases, though, they are proving to be better than bank overdrafts. With so many apps like Earning that provide short-term loans, don’t pay more than it’s necessary.

But there is no “one-size fits all” payday loan app. It all depends on your circumstances. There are lots of other good lenders who didn’t make it into this list, but we cover them in our other reviews. It can be overwhelming to settle on a particular provider. We nonetheless recommend Viva Payday Loans for its long-standing reputation of trustworthiness, fast loan processing, and easy to use the platform, and flexible and equally high borrowing limit of up to $5,000.

Glossary Of Loaning Terms

FAQs

Can I apply for a payday loan when I already hold another loan from a different lender?

I have a mortgage, can I get a payday loan?

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Thadues

Thadues

Thadeus Geodfrey has been a contract writer for Lernbonds since 2019. As a fulltime investment writer, Thadeus oversees much of the personal-finance and investment-planning content published daily on this site. With a background as an iGaming expert and independent financial consultant, Thadeus’s articles are based on years of experience from all angles of the financial world.