LendingTree Review

LendingTree is America's largest online loan marketplace. It connects borrowers with multiple lenders so they can find the best deals on personal loans, credit cards, deposit accounts, insurance and more.

Pros & Cons

There are so many lenders out there it’s hard to figure out which ones are the best suited for your needs.

From online-only companies, to brick and mortar locations, to local companies, it can take a lot of time and hassle to look up rates for a loan and compare them using a personal loan calculator.

Plus, if you start applying for loans (though some you simply go through a pre-approval process first), your credit score could get dinged.

So what’s a person to do?  LendingTree is a company that can help you cut through the confusion and the amount of time it takes to compare loans. 

It’s not a lending company per se — it’s a marketplace of sorts where it works partner companies to tell you what you can qualify for.

It will take your information and send it over, who then in turn show you different loan terms you can get, all in one place. 

But is it worth using the service?  Let’s find out.

What is LendingTree?

LendingTree is one of the country’s largest loan marketplace online. As mentioned above briefly, borrowers can search for a bunch of lenders in one place — find the best personal loans for your needs by seeing what you may be able to qualify for. 

That way, you can see personal loan rates and terms all in one place it saves you time when doing research.

Lending Tree doesn’t directly dish out loans - so there's really no such thing as a LendingTree personal loans, rather it’s a lender aggregator who sends you to a lender site after you find the one you want.

Launched in 1998, the company has since helped more than 100 million customers and facilitated over 55 million loan requests.

Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, it’s a publicly traded company and helps borrowers all over the U.S.

How LendingTree Works?

To save you time, LendingTree has streamlined process so you can start comparing rates in as little as a few minutes.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Submit Your Information

Pick what kind of loan you want then complete the online request form. Information you need to submit typically includes your credit score range, the loan amount you want to borrow and your email address.

This usually takes around 15 minutes. Instead of the online form, you can call LendingTree customer service and submit information over the phone.

Make a request - Once you’ve completed the form, you can then submit the form to send to prospective lenders.

Step 2: Wait for a response

Lenders will then get a hold of the information you submitted and LendingTree will match you with offers.

Typically these offers will be sent to you via email once LendingTree finds out a prospective lender is interested in offering you a loan.

Step 3: Choose from different loan offers

Once you get multiple loan offers (assuming there are any), then you can choose from the options available to you.  LendingTree categorizes each one using their scoring methods through user reviews.

In some cases they’ve done a thorough review on their website by way of written articles. 

Step 4: Negotiate or accept loan offer

If you like something you see, you can then contact the lender directly to negotiate the rate or to submit an application for a loan (you’re only pre-approved for offers, so it’s not a guarantee you’ll be approved).

There is no obligation to accept any loan offers if you like none of them.

Also, if you're not certain about your credit report before you apply, you can use LendingTree's free credit score service so you know how to grade your credit history when you apply.

Types of Loans Available

LendingTree offers a wide variety of loans to choose from. Below are what you can find on their platform:

Auto Loans

Business Loans

Credit Cards

Home Loans

Debt Consolidation

Student Loans

Does LendingTree Charge For It's Services?

No, not directly to the consumer. LendingTree earns its revenue from their partner lenders. These companies will pay LendingTree a fee to use their platform.

LendingTree also makes it money from its marketing lead generator services. As in, your information could be given to third party lenders so these partners can solicit you for your business. 

Should You Use LendingTree?

The main advantage with using LendingTree is that it has a wide variety of types of loans you can do research on - with options for most credit scores.

While there are other loan comparison websites competing for your attention, you’ll find that LendingTree typically has the most lenders you can choose from. 

These partners are all looking for your business, so you can see at a glance at a bunch of different lenders to see what is the best option for you. The comparison will also show rates, any origination fee to pay, and other details.

Plus, you’re not committing to anything at this point, so your credit score won’t be dinged until you go and apply for the loan on the lender’s website.

However, be warned that you will probably be solicited by different lenders once you enter your information on LendingTree’s website, even after you choose your lender.

LendingTree is open about the fact that they’re a company that generates leads, so your contact information is made available to their lender partners. 

If this is of concern to you, then it might be a better idea to find another platform or do your own research but that can take up more time.

However, if you’re ok with other lenders contacting you (you can ask to be taken off their mailing list) then give LendingTree a try.