Loans

With the help of our service you can quickly compare the best rates and terms for both secured and unsecured loans with the reassurance that your search will not impact on your credit rating.

Our easy-to-use form will ask you how much you want to borrow and the borrowing period - figures that you can quickly change to weigh up your options.

You'll automatically see all our available loan options, but you can choose to see any or all of personal, secured, peer-to-peer, guarantor and short-term loan choices.

If you're struggling with those definitions, you can get a simple explanation of each type of loan with details of how much can be borrowed under them and the maximum term.

Your results table can be filtered at this stage with our smart search facility (see below), and we recommend that you do this.

Alternatively, take a look at our full best-buy table which shows the loan product and provider, APR, total amount repayable, monthly repayment and loan term.

If you see an option you like it can be expanded to show the flexibility of the deal (any terms regarding early repayment charges and/or repayment holidays), typical circumstances when the loan is used and factors required for acceptance (age restrictions and credit history).

Should you see an option you like you can click through to apply with the provider. At this stage, if you haven't already applied the smart search filters you'll be offered the opportunity to do so.

This free facility helps you find loans that it's estimated you'll be three times more likely to be accepted for before you make a formal application, and the 'soft search' won't show up on credit files.

This can help you avoid credit application rejections which can negatively affect credit scores and impact on your ability to get the most attractive financial deals.

You'll be asked how much you want to borrow and for how long, and to select whether the loan will be used for a car, home improvement, debt consolidation or any other purpose.

Fill in your basic personal, contact, employment, salary, address and homeowner details. If you own your own home you'll be asked if you already have a homeowner loan, the remaining balance, monthly repayments, and if you want to consolidate it with your new loan.

You'll also be asked if you've missed any credit card, loan or mortgage repayments in the last 12 months, plus whether in the last six years you've been declared bankrupt, had any County Court Judgements (CCJs) or any Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs).

If you answer 'no' to these questions you'll have the option of consenting to a consumer enquiry search with a credit reference agency.

Selecting this will help deliver more relevant results and - while it will leave a footprint on your credit file - it won't be visible to lenders and won't affect a credit rating.

Your search can then be run and the best-buy table will be tailored to the information you've provided, delivering options you're more likely to be accepted for.

Should you wish you can also choose to see a list of the lenders whose products it's been determined you would not qualify for.

Learn more about loans by reading our guides, where you'll also find the answers to frequently asked questions. Look out for dedicated pages on personal, homeowner, secured, bad credit, peer-to-peer and debt consolidation loans.

Our guides offer more information on key areas such as fees, fixed rates, variable rates, payment protection, social lending, early repayment of loans, payment breaks, deferment, credit reports and scores, and how to build them.

We also consider the Consumer Credit Act, when a credit card may be a suitable alternative to a loan, why payday loan options are a rather bad idea, and how to cut the cost of debt.