Santander Personal Loan August 2026 Review
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You came here to compare a Santander personal loan, so here's the part that saves you time: you can't get one right now. Santander stopped taking new personal loan applications. If you already have a Santander loan, nothing changes for you. If you're shopping for a new one, you'll need a different lender.
Does Santander do personal loans?
No, Santander doesn't accept new personal loan applications at this time. The bank stopped taking them in mid-2025. It still services loans that were already open and finished processing applications submitted before the cutoff.
Santander hasn't said anything about the stoppage, including whether the pause in personal loans is temporary or permanent. However, the bank also left the U.S. mortgage and home equity line market in 2022, so this may be a sign that Santander isn’t interested in consumer lending in the U.S. going forward.
What Santander offers instead
Santander still offers bank accounts, but its credit and lending lineup is much smaller than it was a few years ago:
| Loan product | Available now? |
|---|---|
| Personal loan | No. New applications paused May 12, 2025 |
| Credit cards | Yes |
| Auto loan | Through Santander Consumer USA, a separate company |
| Mortgage or refinance | No. Santander left U.S. home lending in 2022 |
| Home equity line (HELOC) | No. Exited in 2022 |
One point prevents confusion later: Santander Bank and Santander Consumer USA aren't the same. The bank handles checking, savings, credit cards, and (formerly) personal loans. Santander Consumer USA is a separate auto-finance arm.
In addition to the above, Santander Bank has checking and savings accounts, as well as investment services. The bank also offers private client services, small business banking and lending, and commercial products.
For folks in the market for a consumer personal loan, the closest Santander Bank offers right now is a credit card. If you need an installment loan, you’ll have to look at other lenders.
Personal loan alternatives to Santander
Here are a few personal loan lenders to consider since Santander isn’t an option:
| Lender | APR range | Loan amount / terms | Fees / notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo | 6.74% to 26.74% | $3,000 to $100,000; 12 to 84 months | No origination or prepayment fee. Existing customers only (qualifying account open 12+ months) |
| Discover | 6.99% to 24.99% | Up to $40,000; 3 to 7 years | No fees of any kind; no prepayment penalty. |
| SoFi | 6.99% APR to 35.49% (with autopay) | $5,000 to $100,000 | No origination fee unless you choose it for lower rate |
All three of these lenders let you check your rate with a soft credit inquiry that won’t hurt your score. They also share wide rate ranges with low minimums, and charge no mandatory origination fees.
Is Santander legit?
Santander Bank is a real, FDIC-insured national bank, founded in 1902 and headquartered in Boston. It's a subsidiary of Banco Santander, one of the largest banks in the world. So yes, it's legitimate. The weaker spot is customer satisfaction.
| Source | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| Better Business Bureau | 1 out of 5 | 65 |
| Trustpilot | 1.5 out of 5, 84% one-star | 1,519 |
Two caveats on these numbers. They're bank-wide, not specific to personal loans, and the reviews mix U.S. and international customers. The Better Business Bureau rating here is for Santander Bank.
You can reach Santander's loan line at 833-SAN-LOAN, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern. The bank also runs a mobile app and branches across the Northeast and Florida.