Sparrow Student Loan Comparison Review

Struggling to find a student loan that works for you? Sparrow is an online student loan marketplace that connects borrowers with loan opportunities. 

Let’s face it, finding the right student loan opportunities can be a time sink. If you don’t want to fill out applications with multiple lenders to find the best loan options for your situation, working with an online student loan marketplace can streamline your search for the right loans. 

We explore Sparrow’s features, and offer some alternatives in this full review, to help you decide if it’s worth it. 

Sparrow is a financial technology company with a mission to connect borrowers with affordable student loan opportunities. Last year, Sparrow facilitated the search for over $310 million in student loan volume. Students from over 8,000 schools have access to Sparrow when seeking a private student loan lender.

Here’s a closer look at Sparrow’s key features: 

Various Student Loan Opportunities 

Sparrow connects interested borrowers to student loan opportunities across over 17 different private lenders. As of writing, you can look at pre-qualified rates for:

After selecting which type of loan you want to pursue, you’ll answer some straightforward questions to see your pre-qualified rates. Be prepared to share how much you need to borrow, your citizenship status, permanent address, monthly housing costs, employment status, pre-tax income, and the school you need the loan for. You’ll also need to share your date of birth and Social Security Number to access loan opportunities. 

Student Loan Refinancing Opportunities

In addition to private student loans to get you through school, Sparrow offers student loan refinancing opportunities to help you manage debt after graduation. Notably, Sparrow offers connections for standard refinances and international student refinances.

On the international front, Sparrow’s network of lenders gives borrowers from over 190 counties the ability to potentially prequalify on the platform. If you want to get rates, you’ll need to provide information about your loans, financial situation, and personal details.

Short Pre-Qualification Form

Although the rates and terms available vary across Sparrow’s network of lenders, you can see what’s available after completing a short pre-qualification form.

According to Sparrow, it should only take a few minutes to complete. When I filled it out as a part of my research for this review, it took around five minutes.

Cosigner Not Required

You don’t necessarily need a cosigner in order to work with Sparrow. But keep in mind that a creditworthy cosigner can lead to more attractive loan opportunities. 

It’s free to use Sparrow to explore your student loan options. If you choose to move forward with a loan opportunity, you will likely run into fees with the lender you choose to work with. For example, most lenders charge late fees if you don’t make on-time payments. 

Sparrow isn’t the only platform designed to connect borrowers with private student loan lenders. Here are a couple of alternatives. 

Credible is another popular student loan marketplace. In addition to seeking out private student loans across multiple lenders with a single application, you can also search for personal loans. As of writing, Credible is offering a $1,000 gift card to borrowers who refinance at least $100,000 in student loans through their platform.

Splash also connects borrowers with private student loans. Although this platform helps students of all kinds, it specializes in medical student loan refinancing. If you are a medical professional, Splash’s particular network of lenders might make more sense.

If you want to open an account with Sparrow, you’ll need to provide your name, email address, phone number, and create a password. You’ll receive a pin to your email address to finalize the account set up. 

Sparrow isn’t a lender, but it works with a collection of legitimate lenders. The company uses your information to match you with lenders. According to the privacy policy, Sparrow makes an effort to protect your data against unauthorized access. 

If you want to get in touch with Sparrow, you can call them at 1-646-980-4056. You also have the option to send an email through a contact form on the company’s website, or email Sparrow at [email protected]. 

Sparrow has a 4.3 out of 5 star rating on Trustpilot, which is deemed excellent. While this is a good sign when it comes to the customer service experience, the rating is based on a small sample size of only 15 reviews. 

For students seeking private student loans and borrowers seeking to refinance their private student loans, Sparrow is a worthwhile option. You can explore your rates across multiple lenders as painlessly as possible. For international students, Sparrow’s reach across a global network is especially helpful.

Unfortunately,  we found Sparrow to be less transparent about available loan rates and terms on its website, when compared to other marketplaces, such as Splash and Credible. 

If you have federal student loans, refinancing through a private lender would eliminate your borrower protections, including potential forgiveness. Weigh all of the benefits of federal loans before jumping into a private refinance.

Check out Sparrow here >>