SoFi Snapshot
SoFi is one of the largest student loan refinance companies in the industry. With competitive interest rates, a diverse set of repayment options, and exclusive member benefits, SoFi is a good fit for borrowers with an associate’s degree or higher or borrowers with a high income and strong credit score.
Fixed APR Range: 4.49% to 8.99%
Variable APR Range: 4.49% to 8.99%
Loan Amounts: $5,000 up to your total outstanding balance
Minimum Credit Score: Did not disclose
| Best Features | Drawbacks |
| • Competitive interest rates • Students can refinance parent PLUS loans in their own name • Comes with borrower protections (forbearance and deferment) • Includes perks like member events, wealth management, and other personal finance services | • Unclear about credit requirements • No cosigner release • Refinancing is unavailable to borrowers without a degree • No spousal consolidation loans |
What’s Inside
- Interest Rates, Fees, and Terms
- Eligibility Requirements – Financial
- Eligibility Requirements – Personal
- Repayment Options
- Customer Service
- FAQ
Best Features of Refinancing with SoFi
Competitive interest rates and zero fees for qualified borrowers
Although SoFi has strict qualification requirements, the borrowers who do qualify for refinancing have access to some of the most competitive rates in the industry. In addition, you won’t have to pay origination fees, application fees, prepayment penalties, late fees, or insufficient funds fees.
| SoFi Student Loan Refinance | |
| Fixed APR* | 4.49% to 8.99% |
| Variable APR* | 4.49% to 8.99% |
Students can refinance parent PLUS loans in their own name
If your parent has taken out a Parent PLUS loan or a private student loan in their name, SoFi gives your parent the option to refinance that loan or transfer the loan to your name (so long as you are the primary applicant). In addition, SoFi gives parents access to refinancing services to help make debt management easy.
Comes with borrower protections
While borrowers who refinance their federal student loans with a private lender lose access to federal protections (income-driven repayment, loan forgiveness, and loan forbearance), SoFi offers generous borrower protections such as deferment and forbearance. Borrowers who lose their job through no fault of their own are eligible to postpone their payments for three months at a time, for up to 12 months total. Check out the table below to see if you qualify for any of SoFi’s borrower protections:
| Deferment | Forbearance |
| • Returning to school • Rehabilitation treat for a disability • Unemployment • Economic hardship/job loss • Military service | • Unemployment • Economic hardship/job loss • Military mobilization • Natural disaster • National emergency |
Note: During deferment and forbearance, interest will still accrue, but the loan will be re-amortized.
Includes perks like member events, wealth management, and other personal finance services
SoFi offers its borrowers a variety of perks that help you take control of your financial future.
- Member events: SoFi organizes workshops, speaker series and social events to help you build a strong community.
- No-fee wealth management: SoFi offers a no-fee wealth management and investing platform to help you get your money right.
- Referral bonus: You can send a link to your friends to use SoFi student loan, investment, or credit card service and deduct up to $75 in student loans. The rules can be found here.
- Discount on other SoFi loans: SoFi offers its members a 0.125% discount on additional loans taken out through SoFi, including mortgages and personal loans.
Drawbacks of Refinancing with SoFi
Unclear about credit requirements
While SoFi used to have a minimum credit score requirement of 650, the company no longer shares an explicit minimum credit score. SoFi only shares that “good or excellent” credit scores will be approved, and for refinancing, this usually means those around or above 670. If you do not have a strong credit score, a cosigner with a good credit score will likely be necessary.
No cosigner release
Most private student lenders require or strongly encourage you to apply with a cosigner. Given that young people generally have no/limited credit history, a cosigner can help you qualify for better loan terms.
Many private student lenders allow you to release your cosigner after a few years of timely payments (typically 1-2 years). This essentially means that the cosigner is no longer liable for repaying the loan in the event that you (the borrower) are unable to make payments.
While becoming a cosigner can be daunting, the cosigner release policy is meant to ease the burden and make it less risky.
Unfortunately, SoFi does not offer any form of cosigner release on its refinance loans.
Refinancing is unavailable to borrowers without a degree
In order to refinance through SoFi, you must have earned an associate’s degree or higher. If you attended school but did not complete your degree, you are ineligible for refinancing your student loan through SoFi.
No spousal consolidation loans
SoFi does not provide people who are married with the opportunity to combine student loan debt which many see as a simpler route to paying off their debt.
SoFi: The Nuts and Bolts
Interest Rates, Fees, and Terms
| Fixed APR Range | 4.49% to 8.99% |
| Variable APR Range | 4.49% to 8.99% |
| Loan Terms | 5, 7, 10, 15 or 20 years. |
| Loan Amounts | $5,000 up to your total outstanding balance. |
| Ability to transfer a parent loan to the student | Yes. |
| Application or Origination Fee | No. |
| Prepayment Penalty | No. |
| Late Fees | Yes, $5 late fee if your loan is 15 days past due. |
Eligibility Requirements – Financial
| Minimum Credit Score | Did not disclose. |
| Minimum Income | No minimum. SoFi looks at the amount you have leftover after paying your monthly expenses. |
| Typical Credit Score of Approved Borrowers or Cosigners | 700+. |
| Typical Income of Approved Borrower | $100,000+. |
| Maximum Debt-to-Income Ratio | Did not disclose. |
| Ability to qualify if you’ve filed for bankruptcy | Yes, once the bankruptcy drops off your credit report. This happens after seven years for Chapter 13 bankruptcy and after 10 years for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. |
Eligibility Requirements – Personal
| Citizenship | Must be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident or have a qualifying visa (E-2, E-3, H-1B, J-1, L-1, or O-1). Non-permanent residents, DACA recipients and those without a qualifying visa need a cosigner who is a citizen or permanent resident. |
| Location | Available to borrowers in all 50 states. |
| Must have graduated | Yes, with an associate degree or higher. |
| Must have attended a school authorized to receive federal aid | Yes. |
| Must be employed | Yes. If not, the borrower must have enough income from other sources or have proof of a job that starts within 90 days. |
| Percentage of borrowers who have a cosigner | Around 15%. |
Repayment Options
| Academic Deferment | Yes, you can postpone payment if you return to school. |
| Military Deferment | Yes, you can postpone payment while on active military duty. |
| Disability Deferment | Determined on a case-by-case basis and after specific requirements are verified. |
| Reduced payments for medical and dental residents | Yes, physicians and dentists can pay $100/month during residency for up to four years. |
| Forbearance | Cases for hardship forbearance are evaluated on an individual basis so that SoFi can determine the best option. |
| Cosigner Release | No. |
| Death or Disability Discharge | Yes. Contact SoFi’s customer service. |
| Loan discharge if cosigner dies or becomes disabled | No. |
| Autopay | Allows for surplus payments via autopay: Yes. Allows for biweekly payments via autopay: No. |
Customer Service
| Loan Servicer | MOHELA. |
| In-house Customer Service Team | Yes. |
| Process for Escalating Concerns | Yes. |
| Borrowers get assigned a personal customer service representative | No. |
| Average time from approval to payoff | One week. |
Before you take out a loan from SoFi…
Complete the Sparrow application to compare pre-qualified rates from more than 15 different lenders to make sure you’re getting the best rate possible.
See pre-qualified rates, not rate ranges: Sparrow enables you to compare student loan products you pre-qualify for from multiple lenders side-by-side based on all of the criteria that are important to you, like total repayment amount, APR, repayment options, and monthly payment.
No impact on your credit score: Checking your pre-qualified rates on Sparrow won’t impact your credit score.
Data Privacy: Sparrow doesn’t sell your information, so don’t worry about getting calls from that random number that won’t leave you alone.
FAQ
Is SoFi a legitimate lender?
Yes, SoFi is one of the largest online lenders in the industry with millions of customers. The company offers student loans and student loan refinancing, along with other financial services such as mortgages, personal loans, insurance, and investment accounts. Since it began offering student loan refinancing in 2012, SoFi has helped nearly 400,000 borrowers refinance $30 billion in student loans.
Is SoFi available in all 50 states?
Yes.
How long does it take to get a SoFi refinance loan?
Submitting an application through SoFi takes a few minutes. Once you’ve submitted your loan application, SoFi will instantaneously return a decision about your eligibility. If you qualify, you will receive the rate and terms of your loan.
It may take some time to actually receive your loan. You can speed up the process by requesting debt payoff letters from your existing lenders and loan servicers.
What happens if I don’t qualify for a SoFi refinance loan?
If you don’t qualify for a SoFi refinance loan, the company will inform you why. Depending on the reason, you may consider applying with a qualified cosigner or trying with a different lender. To check your rates across multiple lenders at once, try using Sparrow’s free search engine. In just two minutes, you can receive pre-qualified rates from over 15 different lenders ready to help you. And best of all, it won’t impact your credit score.
Are SoFi refinance loans federal or private?
SoFi’s loans are private loans. Before you take out a private student loan, we recommend that you exhaust your federal funding options, including grants and scholarships.
Does applying for a loan through SoFi hurt my credit score?
In order to estimate what rate you qualify for, SoFi conducts a “soft credit check” — this does not affect your credit score. If you choose to accept the SoFi loan, the company will conduct a hard credit check to verify your information. A hard credit check may temporarily impact your credit score.
See SoFi’s disclosures here.