What is the minimum income for a personal loan?
Some lenders don't have a minimum income requirement. They'll judge your application based on your expenses instead.
We’re reader-supported and may be paid when you visit links to partner sites. We don’t compare all products in the market, but we’re working on it!
Personal loans are available to people in a range of financial situations. To make sure the loan is suitable, lenders set certain requirements that borrowers need to meet to be eligible to apply for the loan. One of these is a minimum income requirement. This is one way of proving you're able to afford the loan.
Some lenders will need you to earn over $30,000 p.a. to be eligible, while others only need you to be making over $300 per week. There are also lenders that don't have a minimum income requirement, although these loans are usually more expensive.
What income do I need to earn to be approved for a personal loan?
| Lender | Minimum income required | Review the loans |
|---|---|---|
| ANZ | $15,000 p.a. | Review |
| Bankwest | $20,000 p.a. | Review |
| Bank of Melbourne | No minimum | Review |
| BankSA | No minimum | Review |
| bcu | No minimum | Review |
| Bendigo Bank | No minimum | Review |
| Citi | $40,000 p.a. | Review |
| CommBank | No minimum | Review |
| CUA | No minimum | Review |
| IMB | No minimum | Review |
| Latitude | $24,000 p.a. | Review |
| ME Bank | No minimum | Review |
| NAB | No minimum | Review |
| Plenti | No minimum | Review |
| RACQ | No minimum | Review |
| RACV | No minimum | Review |
| SocietyOne | $30,000 p.a. | Review |
| St.George | No minimum | Review |
| Westpac | No minimum | Review |
| Lender | Minimum income required | Review the loan |
|---|---|---|
| Cash Converters | $300 per week | Review |
| Cash Train | $1,200 per month | Review |
| ClearLoans | No minimum | Review |
| Fair Go Finance | $500 per week | Review |
| MoneyMe | No minimum | Review |
| MoneySpot | No minimum | Review |
| Nimble | No minimum | Review |
| Speckle | $22,000 p.a. | Review |
| Swoosh Finance | $300 per week | Review |
| Sunshine Loans | $300 per week | Review |
| Wallet Wizard | No minimum | Review |
What if the lender has no minimum income requirement?
If the lender has no minimum income requirement then it will rely on its own methods to determine whether or not you can afford the loan. The lender will do its due diligence by asking for your bank statements and/or an estimate of your expenses and other commitments, such as credit card limits and loans, to see if you will be able to afford the repayments.
If you have concerns about whether or not you will be approved, you might want to contact the lender to get some more information.
How do lenders determine how much I can borrow?
When you submit an application for a loan, the lender will most likely ask about your expenditure. You should try to be as accurate as possible when estimating your expenses as the lender may check your bank statements. Lenders also use a formula called the Household Expenditure Method (HEM) to work out how much you’re likely to be spending based on the median spending of Australian households.
The HEM uses the number of adults and dependents in your household, the state you live in, whether you rent or own and how lavish a lifestyle you lead to determine how much you’re spending. While this may not seem altogether fair, as your expenditure may actually be lower than the average, it does help banks curtail false expenditure claims.
How can I prove my borrowing power?
The first step to proving your borrowing power is working out whether you can actually afford the loan. Use a personal loan repayment calculator to work out your repayments based on the interest rate, fees, loan amount and loan term of your chosen personal loan. After you’ve done this, determine whether you’ll be able to manage the repayments on your current budget.
If you’re unsure of your borrowing power, you can use this borrowing power calculator to find out how much you might be eligible to borrow.
What do I do if I’m not eligible?
There are a few things you can do if you find out you don’t meet the minimum income requirements:
- Apply for a lower amount. If you can’t prove your ability to manage repayments for your current requested loan amount, consider borrowing less. This will mean lower repayments and less of a risk for the lender.
- Choose a more affordable loan. The reason you might be ineligible for a loan could be that the loan has costs that are deemed too expensive for you. Other loans may have lower interest rates and fewer fees, which will give you a better chance of managing the repayments.
- Try your current bank. If you have a good banking history you might have a better chance of being approved for a loan with your current bank. You may be able to find products that you could be eligible for by logging into your Internet banking portal.
Compare a range of personal loans
Now that you know how to find out what income you need to earn to be approved for a personal loan, and how to determine your own borrowing power, compare a range of personal loans to find the right one for you.
Picture: Shutterstock
More guides on Finder
-
Coronavirus: Will income protection cover me?
Learn how income protection can help – whether you’ve already got coverage or you’re thinking about buying it.
-
Community First Credit Union Accelerator Package Fixed Home Loan
A review of Community First Credit Union’s Accelerator Package Fixed Home Loan.
-
CommBank Ultimate Awards Credit Card with Qantas Points
With 70,000 bonus Qantas Points on offer and up to 1.2 points per $1 spent, how do the features on this CommBank credit card stack up?
-
Super low 1.59% home loan rate – but what’s the catch?
Greater Bank has dropped some fixed rate home loans to just 1.59%. Find out if you're eligible to save thousands on your mortgage.
-
Australian Unity Wealth Builder Investor Package Variable Home Loan
Discover the features and benefits of Australian Unity’s Wealth Builder Investor Package variable rate home loan.
-
Salt and Lime Debt Consolidation Loan
Looking to consolidate your debt? Salt and Lime offers fee-free loans, same-day funding, and the ability to earn discounts on your interest over the life of the loan. Apply today.
-
G&C Mutual Bank Fixed Rate Home Loan
A review of G&C Mutual Bank’s fixed rate home loan. Discover the features and benefits of this loan.
-
Lowest home loan rates
Learn how to look for the cheapest home loans and how to pick them out from a broad selection on offer.
-
Westpac Low Rate Credit Card – Cashback Offer
A no-frills card offering a $0 annual fee for the first year, $400 back when you meet the spend requirement and a 13.74% p.a. interest rate on purchases.
-
CommBank Green Loan
Are you an existing Commbank home loan customer looking to make your home more energy-efficient? Apply for a 0.99% p.a. Commbank Green Loan for up to $20,000. No fees attached.
Personal Loan Offers
Important Information*
Ask an Expert
I earn $565 per week. Am I able to borrow $5000?
Hi Warren,
Thanks for reaching out to us.
Your ability to borrow money would depend on how your chosen lender would assess your creditworthiness. If you meet their eligibility requirements, there’s a higher chance you’ll get approved. You can use our calculator to get an idea how of much you can borrow. You can also read more about how to increase your chance of getting approved for a personal loan.
I hope this helps.
Cheers,
Rench