Top lines of credit compared

About Top lines of credit compared

A line of credit is a limit you can draw, repay and redraw, so the cost of the whole facility matters more here than the rate on any single loan. This ranking covers 305 providers of credit lines, from short personal lines in Spain, the Philippines and Latvia to business facilities for companies in France, Switzerland and the United States. The main trade-off runs between price and access: the lower rates in the set tend to sit with lenders that want good credit, while the most open doors carry higher rates on the same balance. A second split is pace, between lines that pay out within minutes and those that take weeks. A third is audience, since a business line can be far larger but asks for trading history. Rate type matters as well, because a fixed line keeps its cost while a variable one can move. Each profile gives the limit, the annual rate, the term and the fees, with the account type each fee applies to, so you can weigh cost, safety of the money and how the account works against your own situation.

How we picked

Every brand in this ranking was scored on weighted pillars, and the weights are fixed across the category. Trust carries the most weight at 40%, cost 35% and the offer itself 25%. Trust looks at the legal entity behind the brand, where it is registered, whether it lends directly or works as a broker, the credit check it runs, the credit history it needs, the rate type, the support channels and whether early repayment is free. Cost weighs the annual rate, the term and the fees charged to open or draw on a line. The offer pillar looks at the limit, the term available, the features listed, the kinds of loan offered and how fast money lands. Every figure comes from the brand's own pages, including its terms and conditions, fee schedule and help pages, read alongside a database of published rates covering 1,103 brands, of which 682 are licensed and 71 are partners. Partner brands are listed first, then the rest in score order, so a partner position is a listing convention rather than a verdict.

Our top picks

1. 1. Plazo ES

   Plazo ES is in this ranking for the clearest cost picture of any Spanish line here. A fixed 24.19% on a limit of €500 to €5,000, repaid over 48, with an origination fee of 0 EUR and a percentage share of 0%, makes the total easy to budget. It is a direct lender, IDFinance Plazo, S.L.U., and it runs a hard credit check against good credit, so a thin file will struggle. Support covers email, chat and phone, which runs from email to phone. Early repayment is not free, and the trade-off against Vivus in Latvia, the brand ranked next, is that early repayment there is free while the rate sits higher here.

   • APR: 24.19%
   • Loan amount: €500 to €5,000
   • Term: 48 months

   Pros

   • The approval answer arrives in minutes and the money is available in your account shortly after you sign up, so a cost that cannot wait can be covered the same day.
   • The origination fee is 0 EUR on the personal loan and the credit line, so the cost sits in the rate rather than in a setup charge.
   • The rate is fixed, so an instalment does not rise when market rates move.
   • Support runs on email, chat and phone, including a phone line, chat and a help centre.
   • It appears with Banco de España under 6899, so Spanish residents deal with a lender a Spanish supervisor holds to conduct rules.

   Cons

   • The annual cost of 24.19% sits well above 12% for the median brand on the site, so the interest does most of the work in what you repay.
   • Free early repayment is not offered, so clearing the balance ahead of schedule does not bring the cost down, while 81.2% of the brands compared do offer it.
   • Applications run a hard credit check, so an outcome here can also weigh on other credit applications you make.
   • Lending runs €500 to €5,000, and the largest credit lines on the site reach €5,000, so bigger projects fall outside this range.

2. 2. Vivus

   Vivus holds a place in this ranking because it is the rare line that is both fixed rate and free to repay early. Latvian residents with a personal code, regular income and no overdue debts qualify, a hard check runs against good credit, and the limit runs €50 to €10,000 over 3 to 60 at 44.5%. The credit line disbursement fee is 0 EUR (credit line disbursement fee), and money lands within minutes of approval on the same day when the bank sits in the instant payment system. Support runs on chat, phone and email, and home improvement is a named use. The catch is price: 44.5% is dear next to AXI Card, the brand below, which also allows free early repayment at a lower rate.

   • APR: 44.5%
   • Loan amount: €50 to €10,000
   • Term: 3 to 60 months

   Pros

   • Free early repayment, so a borrower who finishes ahead of schedule is not penalised for it
   • Repayments are fixed under fixed on a fixed rate basis, so the monthly figure holds for the whole term
   • A revolving credit line sits under same day funding and credit line and its percentage fee is 0%, so drawing and repaying the line adds nothing extra
   • Money can move within minutes of approval on the same working day when the receiving bank sits in the instant payment system, and same day funding and credit line lists same day funding
   • Support runs on chat, phone and email, giving phone and live chat alongside email and a help centre

   Cons

   • The annual percentage rate of 44.5% sits well above the 12% median across the site and well above 10% to 23% at Monzo Flex
   • A hard credit check with a good credit requirement narrows who gets an offer, and eligibility also rules out anyone with overdue payments or debts
   • The products listed are personal, payday and car, so there is no stated route for consolidating other debts into one payment
   • Terms run 3 to 60, which caps how far a larger project, the stated use under home improvement, can be spread

3. 3. Vivus ES

   Vivus ES follows Cashspace in this ranking because it combines a quick payout with phone support, and it asks more of your credit file in exchange. Spanish residents of legal age with a Spanish bank account and no pending debts qualify, a hard credit check runs, and the limit runs €50 to €1,400 over 7 to 30 at 0% to 3,752.4%. The origination fee is 0 EUR, with a percentage share of 0%, and money can arrive up to 15 minutes after approval. Support runs on phone, email and help centre. Early repayment is not free, and the ceiling on that rate range is punishing, which is the trade-off against Plazo ES, the brand ranked next, where a fixed rate makes the total predictable.

   • APR: 0% to 3,752.4%
   • Loan amount: €50 to €1,400
   • Term: 7 to 30 months

   Pros

   • No origination charge, with fees of 0 EUR and 0% on payday and personal loans
   • Funding lands up to 15 minutes after approval, so a same day loan is realistic
   • Direct lender, so direct lender means you deal with one company from application to repayment
   • Repayment terms of 7 to 30 keep the commitment short

   Cons

   • APR reaches 0% to 3,752.4%, and the representative example pairs a small loan with a very high annual cost
   • Free early repayment is no, so settling early does not earn a rebate
   • Loan amounts top out at €50 to €1,400, which limits what the product can cover
   • A hard credit search, so a declined application is visible to other lenders

4. 6. Qonto ES

   Qonto is where this ranking turns from personal lines to business facilities, and it earns its place on size. Limits run €750 to €1,000,000 at a fixed 19.5% over 1 to 12, a scale nothing aimed at individuals here reaches. It suits any legal form or sole trader with a Spanish registered office, a year of registration behind it and a minimum monthly turnover, and a Qonto account is required. It works as a broker, and the money arrives in the Qonto account within days of the answer rather than in minutes. Support runs on chat, email and phone. The trade-off against AXI Card, the brand ranked above, is pace and audience: eligibility here is written around company turnover. Solcredito, next, brings the opposite profile for personal borrowing.

   • APR: 19.5%
   • Loan amount: €750 to €1,000,000
   • Term: 1 to 12 months

   Pros

   • The rate is fixed (fixed), so the cost of drawn credit does not reset with market moves.
   • The facility is a credit line (credit line) as well as a business loan (business and credit line), so one relationship covers a repeating need and a single large draw.
   • Amounts run €750 to €1,000,000, wide enough for an equipment purchase or a payroll bridge.
   • Support runs on chat, email and phone, so help is not confined to email and a help centre.

   Cons

   • The rate of 19.5% sits above the 12% median across the site and up in the 24.92% band, which makes it an expensive way to borrow.
   • The credit check is hard (hard) and the bar is good credit (good), so a thin file has no route here.
   • The facility runs 1 to 12, so a drawn balance has to clear inside a short window rather than be spread over years.
   • Qonto works as a broker (broker), so the terms of the credit line sit with a partner lender rather than with the brand you apply through.

5. 7. Cashspace: best for top-pick

   Cashspace heads this ranking because it accepts a poor credit history and still moves money the same day, and it pairs that with a bigger limit than the Spanish lines further down. The limit runs PHP 500 to PHP 25,000 with an annual rate of PHP 12 to PHP 36 over 2 to 4, and an origination fee of 0 applies to a personal credit line. Money can reach the account within minutes, and most approved applicants see it the same day. A hard credit check runs, so the file is weighed rather than waved through. Support runs on email, help centre and community only, and the brand works as a broker, so Fininity OU puts a partner lender in front of you. Vivus ES, next in line, is far stricter on credit history and caps its limit much lower.

   • APR: ₱12 to ₱36
   • Loan amount: ₱500 to ₱25,000
   • Term: 2 to 4 months

   Pros

   • No origination fee, listed at 0 on personal, payday and credit line products.
   • Money moves fast: funds within a few minutes and most approved applicants are paid the same day.
   • APR of PHP 12 to PHP 36 starts below the personal loan site median of 12%.
   • Open to applicants with poor credit, and the credit check is hard rather than a soft prequalification.
   • Personal loans, payday lending and a revolving credit line sit under one broker.

   Cons

   • Term of 2 to 4 is short, so a missed payment can land quickly on a small balance.
   • The credit check is hard, so an application puts a full search on the record.
   • Support runs on email, help centre and community only, with no phone line or live chat listed.
   • Cashspace is a broker, so the rate you are offered depends on which lender it places you with.

6. 8. AXI Card Tarjeta y Credito

   AXI Card earns a place in this ranking on cost and speed, and the rate rather than the size is the reason. A fixed 21.59% on a limit of up to €1,500 is lower than the rate on any other Spanish line in the set, card issuance and annual maintenance cost 0 EUR (card issuance and annual maintenance), and early repayment is free. The line is available as soon as the card is activated, and support runs on phone, email and help centre. Two limits sit against it: the repayment window is 1, so the balance has to clear quickly, and applicants must be clear of any Spanish credit register listing and of long-overdue debt. Qonto, ranked next, moves the same fixed-rate idea into business territory.

   • APR: 21.59%
   • Loan amount: up to €1,500
   • Term: 1 month

   Pros

   • Early repayment is free, so a balance cleared inside the payment period stops accruing interest.
   • Help is reachable on phone, email and help centre, which covers a phone line, an email address and a help centre.
   • The rate type is fixed, so the interest charged on a drawn balance holds steady between payment periods.
   • The lender writes directly as direct lender, so the company named in your agreement is the company you deal with.

   Cons

   • Interest runs at 21.59%, above the site median of 12% and above the starting point of the range Monzo Flex quotes at 10% to 23%.
   • Applications run a hard credit check, so an application leaves a full search on the file whatever the outcome.
   • The line stops at up to €1,500, so it will not stretch to a large expense.
   • The term is 1 against a site median of 36, so a balance left unpaid keeps costing interest rather than being spread out.

7. 9. Solcredito

   Solcredito sits in this ranking as the personal line that stays open to a file needing room. Credit needed is poor, the limit runs €50 to €5,000 over 3 to 60 and the origination fee is 0 EUR. A decision comes within minutes and the money follows within hours, faster than the business lines below it. It covers personal, payday, debt consolidation and credit line products, with home improvement a named use, and it works as a broker through Fiizy OU. The catch is the rate spread, where 0% to 3,752% opens high for some partner lenders, and support runs on email and help centre only. Memo Bank, next, is a business facility for companies in France and Europe.

   • APR: 0% to 3,752%
   • Loan amount: €50 to €5,000
   • Term: 3 to 60 months

   Pros

   • Arrangement fee of 0 EUR on the personal loan offer, and the representative example records no fees on the credit line
   • A decision in minutes and money in the account within a few hours
   • Accepts a poor credit profile, which covers a large share of the loans on the site
   • Covers personal, payday and debt consolidation, so consolidation and short bridging both sit under one application
   • Built around same day funding and credit line, letting you draw and repay a revolving line as needed

   Cons

   • The cost range runs up to 0% to 3,752%, well above the 25.03% upper quartile for personal loans on the site
   • Solcredito is a broker, so the lender setting the rate is not named in the offer
   • Support runs on email and help centre only, with no phone line listed
   • The lending ceiling of €50 to €5,000 sits well below the €2,500 mark for personal loans

What to look for

Cost of the whole line

Interest is only part of what a line costs, so read the annual rate next to any upfront or drawdown fee. The median annual rate here is 10.5%, the lower quartile sits at 4.86%, the upper quartile at 20%, and the full set stretches to 195%.

How much you can draw

A limit you cannot use is worthless, and a limit far larger than you need invites a balance you cannot clear. The median limit in this ranking is €885.74, the middle of the set runs €183.42 to €5,000, and the top of the range reaches €4,384,811.01.

Term and repayment

A line clears over months, so the schedule decides how heavy the balance feels. The median term here is 36, with 12 at the lower quartile and 60 at the upper, and the shortest is 1 against a longest of 480.

Fixed or variable

A fixed rate holds the same cost for the life of the line, while a variable one can move with the market. In this category 68.3% of the lines are fixed and 31.7% are variable, so the choice is narrow but it decides whether your repayment figure stays put.

Who gets through the check

A hard credit check is the norm in this category, at 74.3% of the set, so expect your file to be read closely. On the credit side, 36.2% of lines are open to a poor history and 33% want good credit, which is why a missed payment changes the list you can apply to.

Getting money and getting help

Speed matters when a bill is due, and so does a phone line when a payment fails. Support in this category runs mostly on email and help centres, at 77.9% and 81.5%, with phone support offered by 86.2% of the set, while a community forum is the only route for 8.1%.

Frequently asked questions

Top lines of credit compared by country

• Australia
• Canada
• China
• Colombia
• Germany
• Italy
• Japan
• Mexico
• Poland
• Portugal
• South Africa
• Spain
• Sweden
• United Kingdom
• United States

The data behind this ranking

All data and the CSV