Personal Loans: Compare 50+ Australian Lenders

The biggest structural decision in a personal loan application is whether to secure it against an asset. Both options are available through Emu Money's lender panel.

A secured personal loan uses an asset, usually a car, as collateral. Because the lender's risk is lower, secured loans tend to price more sharply and can offer higher borrowing limits. On a $20,000 loan over 5 years, the gap between a secured and unsecured rate can save roughly $536 to $891 in total interest, depending on your credit profile.

An unsecured personal loan requires no collateral. Approval rests on your income, credit history and bank statement conduct, and settlement is typically faster because there is no asset to value.

If you fall behind on a secured loan, the National Credit Code requires the lender to give you 30 days to catch up after issuing a default notice, before any repossession action can proceed. That protection applies across the industry, not just to Emu Money's panel.

For a full breakdown of how each structure affects your rate, risk and approval speed, see our guide to secured vs unsecured personal loans.

Loan sizes on Emu Money's panel typically run from $2,000 to $75,000, with some lenders extending up to $200,000 unsecured for applicants who pass a rigorous income and credit assessment.

Lenders assess borrowing capacity using your income, existing debts and living expenses, benchmarked against the Household Expenditure Measure (HEM). For a single adult, HEM estimates typical living costs at $1,500 to $1,800 per month, and this figure is deducted from your income before your capacity to service a loan is calculated.

As a working example, someone earning $70,000 a year with no other debts might be assessed as able to borrow between $20,000 and $45,000, depending on the lender, the loan term and whether the loan is secured.

For a step-by-step look at how lenders calculate your borrowing power, see our guide to how much you can borrow for a personal loan.

Personal loan pricing is risk-based. Lenders weigh several factors to set the rate they offer you, and small changes to your profile can shift you into a sharper pricing band.

Your credit score is the starting point, but it is not the only input. Loan amount, term length, security, income stability and your existing debt load all feed into the final rate. Two applicants with the same credit score can be offered different rates depending on the rest of their profile.

Because pricing varies so much by lender, comparing across a panel rather than applying to a single bank is usually worth more than trying to guess which factor matters most.

Credit card debt is one of the most common reasons Australians take out a personal loan. As at February 2026, there were 6.2 million credit card accounts nationally carrying $21.7 billion in balances that accrue interest, with an average interest-bearing balance of $3,591.

The cost difference between minimum payments and a structured loan is significant. Making only minimum payments on a $10,000 credit card balance can cost more than $25,700 in total and take over 30 years to clear, because minimum payments are calculated as a small percentage of the balance and barely outpace interest. The same $10,000 repaid on a 5-year personal loan at an indicative 10% rate costs around $12,748 in total, a defined end date included.

A credit card still has a place for short-term, revolving spending you clear each month. But for an existing balance you are carrying month to month, a personal loan with fixed repayments and a fixed term is usually the cheaper, more predictable path. See our full breakdown in personal loan vs credit card: which is better?

Self-employed Australians can access personal loans through Emu Money's panel, though the documents required differ from a standard PAYG application. Most lenders ask for a minimum of 6 to 12 months of ABN registration and Business Activity Statements (BAS) as proof of income.

Where full financials are not available, some lenders offer low doc personal loans and may assess your income at around 40% of declared turnover, rather than requiring full tax returns and financial statements. This suits sole traders and small business owners whose income is harder to verify through traditional payslips.

For the full list of documents lenders accept and how low doc assessment works in practice, see our guide to low doc personal loans in Australia.

A past default, missed payment or low credit score does not automatically rule you out of a personal loan. Several lenders on Emu Money's panel specialise in applicants with impaired credit, though rates are typically higher to reflect the added risk.

What matters most to these lenders is your current situation: stable income, manageable existing commitments and clean recent bank statement conduct, even if your credit history includes past issues. Offering security can also improve your chances and pricing.

For a full explanation of how bad credit lending works, what to expect, and how to improve your position before applying, read our guide to personal loans with bad credit in Australia.

Centrelink income, including the age pension, disability support pension and other government payments, is accepted as income by a number of lenders on Emu Money's panel. Loan amounts for Centrelink-reliant applicants are generally smaller and more conservative than for full-time PAYG income, reflecting typically lower and fixed incomes.

Pensioners applying for a personal loan are assessed on affordability in the same way as any other applicant: income, essential living costs and existing commitments all factor into what a lender will approve.

For a closer look at what is realistically available on Centrelink income, read Centrelink loans: what you can actually get in 2026. For pension-specific eligibility and lender options, see personal loans for pensioners in Australia.

The rate you are offered is only part of the total cost. Fees, term length and how you structure the loan all affect what you pay overall.

Always compare the comparison rate, not just the headline rate. The comparison rate bundles most fees and the interest rate into one figure using a standard example loan, making it easier to compare offers from different lenders on a like-for-like basis.

Choose the shortest term you can comfortably afford. Shorter terms mean higher monthly repayments but substantially less total interest over the life of the loan.

If you can offer security, weigh the potential rate saving against the risk of putting an asset at stake. And check early repayment policies before you sign. Many lenders on Emu Money's panel allow extra repayments or early payout without penalty, which can shorten your loan and reduce total interest if your circumstances improve.