Sallie Mae® is a financial services company specializing in private student loans. It offers competitive interest rates with a choice between interest-only, fixed, or deferred repayment options during school. As a former government entity-turned-private lender, it can also facilitate various forms of student financial aid and scholarships.
Loan types: Undergraduate, graduate, career training
APRs: 6.37% -16.70%² variable, 4.50% - 15.49%² fixed
Repayment terms for the Smart Option Student Loan ®: 10-15 years3,4
Loan amount: Up to 100% of cost of attendance⁵
Origination fees: No
Sallie Mae has among the lowest student loan rates for variable and fixed APRs. Like other lenders, the lowest rates are reserved for borrowers and co-signers with the best credit. An automatic 0.25% rate discount applies when using autopay to make monthly payments. The rates below include autopay.
| Loan type | Variable APRs | Fixed APRs |
| Undergraduate loans | 6.37% -16.70%² | 4.50% - 15.49%² |
| Career training | 5.49% - 16.00%⁶ | 4.50% - 15.10%⁶ |
The repayment terms for the Smart Option Student Loan® vary from 10-15 years3,4. Unlike other lenders, Sallie Mae doesn’t specify the exact repayment terms (e.g., 5 years, 10 years, 15 years).
The Smart Option Student Loan for undergraduate and career training students offers three repayment options:
As a former government-sponsored enterprise, Sallie Mae offers assistance with scholarships and financial aid.
It also offers a range of savings products to help you achieve short-term and long-term goals and fund your college experience. These include:
Applying for a student loan from Sallie Mae is fast and easy. The entire application process takes place online. To begin, provide some basic details about yourself and your school. After you’re approved, choose the repayment option and interest rate type that suits your budget and timeframe. Finally, review, sign, and accept your loan documents. Sallie Mae will take care of the rest with your school (this can take 5 days to 3 weeks – standard for private student lenders).
Sallie Mae has extremely flexible eligibility requirements compared to most lenders. This flexibility makes it a good choice for many situations, including:
According to Sallie Mae, 96% of undergraduate students who’ve been approved with a cosigner were approved again when they returned with a cosigner the following year.⁷ You or your co-signer may start the application. If you are in two different places, Sallie Mae will send your co-signer an email with a link to their section of the application so they can fill it in later.
You may apply to release your co-signer from an open and active loan after you graduate, make 12 on-time principal and interest payments, and meet certain credit requirements.⁸
The Sallie Mae website has everything you need to apply for, complete, or check your loan application status. It also offers phone service from Mon-Thu, 8am-9pm ET, and Fri, 8am-8pm ET. The number is 877-279-7172.
SLM Corporation, commonly known as Sallie Mae, is a publicly traded US corporation that provides private student loans and other financial services. It was created in 1973 as a government-sponsored enterprise servicing federal student loans. It was later privatized and began offering private student loans, although at one point it had a contract to service federal loans. Today, Sallie Mae operates exclusively in the private sector, offering private student loans and managing around $13 billion in assets.
Sallie Mae is one of the oldest and most-respected private student loans companies in America. It offers competitive interest rates, flexible repayment options, and loans to suit all types of degrees and courses. Its flexible eligibility requirements make it a great choice for borrowers not covered by other private student loan providers, such as people studying less than half-time or studying abroad.
We encourage students and families to start with savings, grants, scholarships, and federal student loans to pay for college. Students and families should evaluate all anticipated monthly loan payments, and how much the student expects to earn in the future, before considering a private student loan.
Loans for Undergraduate & Career Training Students are not intended for graduate students and are subject to credit approval, identity verification, signed loan documents, and school certification. Student must attend a participating school. Student or cosigner must meet the age of majority in their state of residence. Students who are not U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents must reside in the U.S., attend school in the U.S., apply with a creditworthy cosigner (who must be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident), and provide an unexpired government-issued photo ID. Requested loan amount must be at least $1,000.
1. Although we do not charge a penalty or fee if you prepay your loan, any prepayment will be applied as outlined in your promissory note—first to Unpaid Fees and costs, then to Unpaid Interest, and then to Current Principal.
2. Advertised APRs for undergraduate students assume a $10,000 loan to a student who attends school for 4 years and has no prior Sallie Mae-serviced loans. Interest rates for variable rate loans may increase or decrease over the life of the loan based on changes to the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent. Advertised variable rates are the starting range of rates and may vary outside of that range over the life of the loan. Interest is charged starting when funds are sent to the school. With the Fixed and Deferred Repayment Options, the interest rate is higher than with the Interest Repayment Option and Unpaid Interest is added to the loan’s Current Principal at the end of the grace/separation period. To receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate discount, the borrower or cosigner must enroll in auto debit through Sallie Mae. The discount applies only during active repayment for as long as the Current Amount Due or Designated Amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month. It may be suspended during forbearance or deferment.
3. Examples of typical costs for a $10,000 Smart Option Student Loan with the most common fixed rate, fixed repayment option, 6-month separation period, and two disbursements: For a borrower with no prior loans and a 4-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.28% fixed APR, 51 payments of $25.00, 119 payments of $182.67 and one payment of $121.71, for a Total Loan Cost of $23,134.44. For a borrower with $20,000 in prior loans and a 2-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.78% fixed APR, 27 payments of $25.00, 179 payments of $132.53 and one payment of $40.35 for a total loan cost of $24,438.22. Loans that are subject to a $50 minimum principal and interest payment amount may receive a loan term that is less than 10 years.
4. Examples of typical costs for a $10,000 Smart Option Student Loan with the most common fixed rate, fixed repayment option, 6-month separation period, and two disbursements: For a borrower with no prior loans and a 2-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.73% fixed APR, 27 payments of $25.00, 119 payments of $160.63 and one payment of $107.39, for a Total Loan Cost of $19,897.36. For a borrower with $10,000 in prior loans and a 1-year in-school period, it works out to a 10.92% fixed APR, 15 payments of $25.00, 143 payments of $136.14 and one payment of $74.20 for a total loan cost of $19,917.22. Loans that are subject to a $50 minimum principal and interest payment amount may receive a loan term that is less than 10 years.
5. For applications submitted directly to Sallie Mae, loan amount cannot exceed the cost of attendance less financial aid received, as certified by the school. Applications submitted to Sallie Mae through a partner website may be subjected to a lower maximum loan request amount. Miscellaneous personal expenses (such as a laptop) may be included in the cost of attendance for students enrolled at least half-time.
6. Advertised APRs for career training students assume a $10,000 loan to a student who attends school for 2 years and has no prior Sallie Mae-serviced loans. Interest rates for variable rate loans may increase or decrease over the life of the loan based on changes to the 30-day Average Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) rounded up to the nearest one-eighth of one percent. Advertised variable rates are the starting range of rates and may vary outside of that range over the life of the loan. Interest is charged starting when funds are sent to the school. With the Fixed and Deferred Repayment Options, the interest rate is higher than with the Interest Repayment Option and Unpaid Interest is added to the loan’s Current Principal at the end of the grace/separation period. To receive a 0.25 percentage point interest rate discount, the borrower or cosigner must enroll in auto debit through Sallie Mae. The discount applies only during active repayment for as long as the Current Amount Due or Designated Amount is successfully withdrawn from the authorized bank account each month. It may be suspended during forbearance or deferment.
7. Sallie Mae loans cover enrollment periods of up to 12 months. Students must apply for a new loan each school year. This approval percentage is based on students who were approved for a Sallie Mae undergraduate loan with a cosigner in the 2019/20 school year and were approved for another Sallie Mae undergraduate loan when they returned with the same or new cosigner in 2020/21. It does not include the denied applications of students who were ultimately approved in 2020/21.
8. Only the borrower may apply for cosigner release. To do so, they must first meet the age of majority in their state and provide proof of graduation (or completion of certification program), income, and U.S. citizenship or permanent residency (if their status has changed since they applied). In the last 12 months, the borrower can’t have been past due on any loans serviced by Sallie Mae for 30 or more days or enrolled in any hardship forbearances or modified repayment programs. In addition, the borrower must have paid ahead or made 12 on-time principal and interest payments on each loan requested for release. The loan can’t be past due when the cosigner release application is processed. The borrower must also demonstrate the ability to assume full responsibility of the loan(s) individually and pass a credit review when the cosigner release application is processed that demonstrates a satisfactory credit history including but not limited to no: bankruptcy, foreclosure, student loan(s) in default or 90-day delinquencies in the last 24 months. Requirements are subject to change.
SALLIE MAE RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MODIFY OR DISCONTINUE PRODUCTS, SERVICES, AND BENEFITS AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE.
Information advertised valid as of 02/27/2023.