Earnest vs. Ascent: 2026 Student Loan Comparison

Both Earnest and Ascent have some of the best private student loans available, but which one is the better option for you?

Below, we’ll compare rates, terms, special features, and more and break down which lender is better for your specific situation.

	4.7 Visit Site	4.8 Visit Site
Fixed rates (APR)	4.13% – 17.99%*	2.89% – 14.93%^
Fixed rates (APR)	Fixed rates (APR)
4.13% – 17.99%*	2.89% – 14.93%^
Variable rates (APR)	4.13% – 17.99%**	4.34% – 14.84%^^
Variable rates (APR)	Variable rates (APR)
4.13% – 17.99%**	4.34% – 14.84%^^
Borrowing amount	$1,000 up to the certified cost of attendance	$2,001 up to the certified cost of attendance
Borrowing amount	Borrowing amount
$1,000 up to the certified cost of attendance	$2,001 up to the certified cost of attendance
Repayment options	Full, interest only, flat ($25/month), or deferred	Full, interest only, flat ($25/month), or deferred
Repayment options	Repayment options
Full, interest only, flat ($25/month), or deferred	Full, interest only, flat ($25/month), or deferred
Repayment terms	5, 7, 10, 12, or 15 years	5, 7, 10, 12, 15, or 20 years
Repayment terms	Repayment terms
5, 7, 10, 12, or 15 years	5, 7, 10, 12, 15, or 20 years
Grace period	9 months	9 months
Grace period	Grace period
9 months	9 months
Loan types available	Undergraduate, graduate, loans with cosigner, MBA, medical school, law school, half-time students, DACA students, refinances	Undergraduate with cosigner, undergraduate without cosigner, graduate, MBA, dental, law, medical, health professionals, PhD & master’s, computer science & engineering, parent, DACA & international, career & trade school
Loan types available	Loan types available
Undergraduate, graduate, loans with cosigner, MBA, medical school, law school, half-time students, DACA students, refinances	Undergraduate with cosigner, undergraduate without cosigner, graduate, MBA, dental, law, medical, health professionals, PhD & master’s, computer science & engineering, parent, DACA & international, career & trade school
LendEDU's take	Best for large loans	Best graduation reward
LendEDU's take	LendEDU's take
Best for large loans	Best graduation reward
	See the best private student loans.

*ⓘ **ⓘ ^^ⓘ ^^^ⓘ

Ascent vs. Earnest: Rates, repayment, borrowing amounts, and loan types

While you should always prioritize taking out federal student loans when possible, sometimes these don’t cover the full cost of college. If that’s the case, your next course of action is usually to apply for a private student loan. Among our top-recommended private lenders are Earnest and Ascent.

Both lenders have longer-than-average grace periods (nine months) for undergrads, and their interest rates on cosigned undergrad loans are quite competitive.

Let’s take a closer look at how the two compare.

Rates

Both Earnest and Ascent offer fixed- and variable-rate options for their student loans, with lower rates for student loans with a cosigner. Ascent has the lowest overall fixed rate (cosigned), but when you compare non-cosigned loans, Earnest’s rates are considerably lower.

The takeaway:

• Ascent: Better rates with a cosigner
• Earnest: Better rates without a cosigner

	Earnest	Ascent
Fixed rate (APR) cosigned	4.13% – 16.49%	2.89% – 14.41%
Variable rate (APR) cosigned	4.13% – 17.99%	4.34% – 14.75%
Fixed rate (APR) non-cosigned	4.49% – 16.49%	7.79% – 13.91%
Variable rate (APR) non-cosigned	6.14% – 17.99%	7.54% – 13.50%

Repayment

Both Ascent and Earnest offer multiple repayment options and the same extended grace period for undergrad loans, but only Ascent offers a 20-year repayment option.

Ascent also offers a cosigner release option, while Earnest doesn’t, but Earnest offers other helpful repayment features, such as an annual skip-a-payment option. The takeaway:

• Ascent: Better if you’ll want cosigner release
• Earnest: Better if you want payment flexibility

Here’s a full breakdown of repayment details for Earnest and Ascent:

Borrowing amounts

While it’s great that both Earnest and Ascent can cover up to the full certified cost of college, you may not always need that after scholarships, grants, and federal loans. Being able to borrow a smaller amount is thus crucial, and you can borrow less with Earnest.

Here are the minimum borrowing amounts for each lender (barring special state-based restrictions):

• Ascent: $2,001
• Earnest: $1,000

Loan types

Both Ascent and Earnest offer a wide variety of student loan types, including with and without cosigners. With both, you can get financing for an undergraduate degree, a graduate degree, or a professional degree.

Ascent notably has private education loans for parents (different from a parent-cosigned loan), as well as loans for career and trade schools (careful; these have a 5% origination fee).

Only Earnest offers student loan refinancing.

Should I get an Earnest or Ascent student loan?

Both Earnest and Ascent are strong private student loan lenders worth considering if you’ve maxed out your scholarships, grants, and federal loan options. But which one is right for you? That really depends on your circumstances.

Below are various borrowing scenarios, with our preferred lender in each situation:

If you need a cosigner

Winner

Ascent

Ascent is the better option if you have a willing cosigner lined up:

• Ascent’s lowest starting fixed rate for undergrad cosigned loans is just slightly lower than Earnest’s.
• Ascent’s variable rate for cosigned loans beats out Earnest’s by a whole percentage point.

Even more noteworthy: It’s possible to get cosigner release with Ascent after 12 months of on-time payments. Earnest doesn’t offer cosigner release.

If you can qualify without a cosigner

Winner

Earnest

On the flip side, Earnest is a much better student loan option if you can qualify without a cosigner. Earnest’s fixed and variable rates for non-cosigned loans are notably lower than Ascent’s.

If you only need a little financial assistance

Winner

Earnest

Earnest lets you borrow as little as $1,000; this is great if most of your costs are already covered by scholarships and federal student loans. With Ascent, you’ll need to borrow at least $2,001. That’s still relatively low, but in unique circumstances where you don’t need much help at all, Earnest is the better option.

If you’ll need more financial assistance

Winner

Earnest

Earnest is also the better option if you anticipate needing a good amount of financing over the course of your college career. If you’re entering your first year of undergrad and know you’ll pursue an expensive graduate degree, or even a medical or law degree, you’ll have more flexibility with Earnest.

Earnest lets you borrow up to $400,000 throughout your academic career. Conversely, Ascent caps financing at $200,000.

If you want a longer repayment term

Winner

Ascent

Ascent’s longest repayment term is 20 years, compared to Earnest’s 15 years. Choosing a longer repayment term means you’ll pay significantly more money in interest over the life of the loan, but it’s a great strategy for keeping your student loan payment as low as possible.

If you’re worried about high monthly payments, go with Ascent for the 20-year repayment option.

If you want payment flexibility

Winner

Earnest

Despite only offering repayment terms up to 15 years (compared to Ascent’s 20), Earnest may still be the better choice if you’re worried about affording monthly payments because the lender lets you skip a payment once a year.

Reasons you may need this include:

• You may want to skip a payment each December to afford Christmas presents as your family grows.
• Your car insurance likely bills twice a year. If you forgot to plan for the high payment in the middle of the year, being able to skip your student loan payment could be a game-changer.
• Things happen. If you don’t have a large enough emergency fund to cover an unexpected vet visit or a sudden car repair, skipping a student loan payment can help you avoid swiping your high-interest credit card or taking out a personal loan.

Earnest’s skip-a-payment is one of the coolest “gimmicks” available in the world of student loans, but it’s not the only one. Ascent has a creative feature, too: When you graduate, you’re eligible to receive 1% of your principal student loan balance in cash as a graduation reward.

If you’re attending a career or trade school

Winner

Ascent

Ascent offers loans for career training programs, though these technically aren’t student loans. They’re “consumer loans,” meaning interest isn’t tax-deductible, and they can be used for a wider range of purposes.

Earnest doesn’t offer financing for trade or vocational schools.

If you want to refinance your student loans

Winner

Earnest

Already have student loans and looking to refinance them? You can’t do so with Ascent. Earnest, on the other hand, is one of our top picks for the best student loan refinance companies, specifically for its low rates.

How to get a student loan from Ascent or Earnest

Applying for a student loan from Ascent or Earnest is straightforward; each lender has a quick online application process, allowing you to check your eligibility in minutes without an impact on your credit score.

Here’s a quick look at undergraduate loan eligibility requirements for Ascent student loans vs. Earnest:

What real students think about Earnest vs. Ascent

So far, we’ve looked at plenty of numbers, including rates, repayment terms, and borrowing amounts. Another important step to deciding between Earnest and Ascent is to read what actual borrowers think about the two lenders.

You can do this by reading reviews on sites like Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Trustpilot, as well as browsing Reddit threads to hear about students’ experiences with customer service and payment flexibility.

Here’s a quick peek at how the two compare:

	Earnest	Ascent
BBB accreditation	Accredited	Accredited
BBB rating	A+	B
BBB customer score	1.13/5 (8 reviews)	3.24/5 (17 ratings)
Trustpilot rating	4.6 stars (8K ratings)	4.6 stars (300 ratings)

How we rated Earnest and Ascent

We designed LendEDU’s editorial rating system to help readers find companies that offer the best student loans. Our system awards higher ratings to companies with affordable solutions, positive customer reviews, and online transparency of benefits and terms.

We compared Earnest and Ascent to several student loan lenders, using hundreds of data points from company websites, public disclosures, customer reviews, and direct communication with company representatives. We weighted, scored, and combined each factor to produce a final editorial rating. This rating is expressed on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest possible score. Our take on each company is represented in our ratings and best-for designations, recapped below.

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