With a personal loan, there is no need for a deposit, and it is a way to obtain money from a credit union, bank, financial company, or online lender where you must repay what you borrowed in installments paid over time, usually over a couple of years and up to a maximum of five years, plus interest. The APR for such loans provided by most banks ranges from 5% to 36%. Funds obtained using a home as collateral, more commonly known as home equity loans, are cheaper, but there is the risk of losing your asset in the unfortunate scenario where you cannot repay it. Financing can also be obtained using a car as collateral, but this type of loan tends to be more expensive. If you find yourself in the unfortunate situation where you do not repay this loan, you risk losing the car used to secure the funds. Unless you can get approved for cards with a 0% APR while transferring a balance, spending on most personal loans may be more economical compared to what cards can offer, while allowing you to borrow larger amounts of money. If you have significant balances on high-interest credit cards, a personal loan might be a good option that can help consolidate all your debt into a single monthly payment at a much lower rate. You will need to compare interest rates from some lenders before choosing. After reviewing several options, your best choice is usually the loan with the lowest APR because it will be the least expensive. There may be situations where the least expensive option is also the one with the lowest available loan amount, meaning if you need a more substantial loan amount.