Earnest refinances student loans for people with a degree and decent credit, and it has one feature most lenders don’t: you can skip a payment once a year.
That skip isn’t free, though, and Earnest’s credit bar is a little higher than some. Here’s what you need to qualify, how the skip really works, and when refinancing with Earnest is a bad idea.
The short answer
- Earnest refinances student loans and parent loans for borrowers with an undergraduate or graduate degree.
- You’ll need a credit score of at least 665. Checking your rate is a soft inquiry.
- After six on-time payments in a row, you can skip one payment every 12 months. Interest keeps running, and it may get added to your balance.
- If any of your loans are federal, refinancing them ends federal protections for good.
Earnest at a glance
| What | Earnest refinance |
|---|---|
| Who can apply | People with undergraduate or graduate degrees |
| Credit score | 665 minimum |
| Loans it refinances | Student loans, plus parent loans through its parent loan refinancing |
| Rate types | Fixed or variable. Variable isn’t offered in AK, IL, MN, MS, NH, OH, TN or TX |
| Payment flexibility | Skip one payment every 12 months after six straight on-time payments |
| Checking your rate | Soft credit inquiry |
| Who makes the loan | Earnest Operations LLC or FinWise Bank |
Rates move all the time, so check the current ones with Earnest directly. It takes a soft inquiry, not a hard one.
The skip-a-payment feature, and what it costs
Once you’ve made six consecutive on-time payments, Earnest lets you skip one payment every 12 months. That can be a real help in a month when the car dies or a paycheck shows up late.
Earnest treats the skipped month as forbearance. Interest doesn’t stop, and Earnest says it may be capitalized, which means added to what you owe. Then you pay interest on that interest for the rest of the loan.
Example: skipping one payment on $40,000
- Balance
- $40,000
- Rate (assumed for the example)
- 7% fixed
- Interest for the skipped month
- About $233
- Balance if that interest is added
- About $40,233
How we got it: $40,000 times 7%, divided by 12 months, is $233.33. The 7% is only an assumption to show the math, not an Earnest rate. Plug in your own balance and rate to see your number.
So the skip is a pressure valve, not a gift. Use it when you need it and don’t plan around it.
Who Earnest fits
Earnest makes sense if you have private loans, a finished degree, a credit score comfortably above 665, and steady income. Parents with loans they took out for a child can also look at its parent loan refinancing.
Got a mix of high-rate private loans and federal loans? Refinance the private ones and leave the federal ones alone. That’s usually the cleanest split. Our refinance calculator will show you what a lower rate does to your monthly payment and total interest before you apply anywhere.
Where Earnest falls short
Earnest only says people with undergraduate and graduate degrees are eligible. If you left school without finishing, look at SoFi, which accepts borrowers who enrolled but didn’t graduate.
The 665 credit floor is also a touch higher than LendKey’s posted 650, so a borrower in the low 600s may have better luck with a credit union through LendKey. And if you live in one of the eight states without variable rates, you’re choosing from fixed rates only.
Before you refinance federal loans
Federal student loans can’t be refinanced inside the federal system. Refinancing them with a private lender takes them out for good, and Federal Student Aid says plainly that you lose the benefits.
That means no income-driven repayment (RAP or IBR), no Public Service Loan Forgiveness or other federal forgiveness, no federal deferment or forbearance, and no federal death or disability discharge. There’s no way back once the new loan pays off the old ones.
Not sure which of your loans are federal? Log in to StudentAid.gov. Federal loans show up there and private ones don’t. Our guide to deciding whether to refinance covers the trade in more detail.
Earnest also makes loans for school
Earnest isn’t only a refinance lender. Its private student loans start at $1,000 and can cover up to 100% of your cost of attendance, with up to a 9-month grace period after school. Federal student loans should come first, though. Our guide to private student loans covers when a private loan makes sense.
Bottom line: Earnest is a solid place to get a refinance quote if you have a degree and good credit, and the payment skip is a nice backup. Get at least one more quote before you sign.
Compare Earnest against other lenders in one rate check
- See offers from Splash’s lending partners with a soft credit pull. Continuing to apply leads to a hard pull.
- No application fees, no origination fees and no prepayment penalties.
- Fixed terms of 5 to 20 years and variable terms of 5 to 25 years. Minimum $5,000.
- Best fit: private loans, a four-year degree, and credit of 700 or higher.
Splash Financial is a marketplace, not the lender. Your loan comes from one of its lending partners, and some are credit unions you’d need to join. Not all rates and amounts are available in every state. If you refinance federal loans through Splash, you lose federal benefits for good.
Earnest says a minimum credit score of 665 is needed for approval.
No. Getting your initial rate estimate takes only a soft credit inquiry, which doesn’t affect your credit score.
Yes. After six consecutive on-time payments, you can skip one payment every 12 months. It counts as forbearance, so interest keeps building and may be added to your balance.
Yes. Earnest offers parent loan refinancing. If the loans are federal Parent PLUS loans, refinancing them ends federal benefits permanently.
Earnest says people with undergraduate and graduate degrees are eligible. It doesn’t say it accepts borrowers without a degree.
Disclosure: Some of the links above may be affiliate links. Beat Student Loans is helping to transform the $3.2 trillion dollar consumer lending market. By showing consumers real rates from America’s community lenders, we’re ensuring thousands of borrowers are making educated financing choices and putting themselves in the best position to repay their low-interest rate loans.
Sources (7)
We use primary sources wherever we can: Federal Student Aid, the U.S. Department of Education, the IRS, federal regulations and each company’s own site.
- Earnest. Refinance student loans. earnest.com. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Earnest. Eligibility. earnest.com. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Earnest. Private student loans. earnest.com. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Federal Student Aid. Financial aid dictionary: refinance. studentaid.gov. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- SoFi. Eligibility criteria. sofi.com. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- LendKey. Student loan refinancing. lendkey.com. Accessed October 22, 2026.
- Splash Financial. Student loan refinancing. splashfinancial.com. Accessed October 22, 2026.
