Explore your options
Free help
Start here. These options cost nothing and they can shrink the amount you need to borrow, or remove the need entirely.
You are on step 1: Free help & more time
Advertiser disclosure: we're paid when you apply through some links on this site, and some lenders here are operated by our parent company. Compensation does not change our scores or the order of the cost ladder. How we make money →
- Call 211 FirstBefore you borrow, one phone call can connect you to rent, utility, food and medical assistance in your area.
- Credit Union PAL LoansPayday Alternative Loans from federal credit unions are capped at 28% APR. Here's how to get one, even if you're not a member yet.
- Help Paying Rent and UtilitiesLIHEAP, utility hardship plans, emergency rental assistance and how to negotiate more time.
- How to Get Out of Payday LoansExtended payment plans, state rules, credit-union consolidation and what happens if you stop paying.
- Non-Profit Credit CounselingHow NFCC-member agencies work, what a debt management plan costs, and how to spot a fake.