Welcome to the Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023Approximately two-thirds of Canadians cut back on their spending in 2023 with many finding ways to save either by shopping for deals or looking for value.(1) But finding value can be hard, particularly when you don’t have first-hand experience with a brand or product. To bridge this gap, many consumers rely on word-of-mouth recommendations directly from family and friends or through online reviews. But, in a fast-moving, competitive world it can be hard to find that first-hand experience. To help, we turned to the people with real-world experience working with personal loan providers: Customers.To tap into the power of word-of-mouth, we launched the Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023. We asked customers for their honest assessment of Canada’s leading personal loan providers and used these results to develop a list that recognizes Canada’s best personal loan providers for 2023.Winners of the personal loan customer satisfaction awards 2023The winners of the Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 were determined based on the results of a customer survey that dictated each brand’s overall customer satisfaction score. You can read our full methodology below.Here are the winners for 2023:Best Personal Loan Alternative LenderWinnerPrudent FinancialAs an Ontario-based alternative lender, Prudent Financial offers home equity and vehicle title loans — even to borrowers with poor or bad credit or those who have experienced bankruptcy. Customers appreciate the firm’s “great service attitude” and this attention to customer needs pushed this personal loan lender to the top of the list with an overall customer satisfaction score of 87.89% and a Finder: ★★★★★ star rating.Read our review of Prudent FinancialFinalistCashco FinancialLoans from Cashco Financial not only help borrowers find financing but also help to rebuild or build credit. Loan repayments are reported to credit bureaus, and even those with poor or fair credit have options. Customers report that the application process is quick and easy giving this alternative lender an overall customer satisfaction score of 86.55% and a Finder: ★★★★★ star rating.Read our review of Cashco FinancialBest Personal Loan Search PlatformWinnerBorrowellAs a personal loan search platform, Borrowell is known for providing many options to its clients. Customers report helpful agents and a user-friendly process. This helped this personal loan search platform rise to the top with an overall customer satisfaction score of 76.45% and a Finder: ★★★★★ star rating.Read our review of BorrowellFinalistLoans CanadaLike many search platforms, Loans Canada specializes in finding multiple lenders for borrowers through one application. Customers report that the application process is easy and the online site is simple and easy to navigate — giving this personal loan search platform an overall customer satisfaction score of 75.15% and a Finder: ★★★★★ star rating.Read our review of Loans CanadaBest Personal Loan Traditional LenderWinnerVancityVancity is a BC-based credit union with a wide range of personal loans, including flexible lines of credit, personal loans over $5,000 and short-term loans to help borrowers rebuild their credit scores. Customers appreciate the personalized service and the credit union’s simple, straightforward process. This gave this traditional lender an overall customer satisfaction score of 86.75% and a Finder: ★★★★★ star rating.Read our review of VancityFinalistTDAs a traditional lender, TD offers a great deal of flexibility when it comes to personal loans. Customers appreciate how easy and fast the personal loan application process is with TD Bank and the trustworthiness of this traditional lender. As a result, TD’s overall customer satisfaction score was 86.15% with a Finder: ★★★★★ star rating.Read our review of TDTop 15 Finder: Most Recommended Personal Loan Providers in Canada in 2023Opinions matter. It’s why firms spend time and money building brand loyalty. It’s why customers — overwhelmed by provider and product choices — will focus on word-of-mouth recommendations. According to a report from McKinsey & Company, word-of-mouth referrals drive 20% to 50% of purchasing decisions(2) — and the power of personal recommendations actually amplified and accelerated over the last decade with the growth of the digital revolution. To capture the importance of personal recommendations, Finder created the “Most Recommended” list of personal loan providers in Canada. The only criterion was the percentage of past customers who would recommend the personal loan provider to a friend or family member.Here are the Top 15 Most Recommended personal loan providers in 2023:Cashco FinancialCashco Financial scores high as a recommended brand with 93.10% of former customers who would recommend this lender to a friend or family member. Former customers praised the company for the easy application process and quick approval time, as well as the firm’s transparent and easy-to-understand fees and terms.93.10%Read reviewVancityVancity is a BC-based credit union that takes pride in giving back to its community and its customers. It ranked very high in the Most Recommended list with a score of 92.00%. Current and former customers praised this traditional personal loan lender for its proactive helpful approach, uncomplicated loan application process and great customer service and open communication.92.00%Read reviewSpring FinancialSpring Financial specializes in online-only loan application and funding. By dedicating resources to building a solid digital infrastructure and excellent customer service, this alternative lender is now building a solid reputation for easy loan applications and a fast approval process. Customers really appreciate this quick and easy approach, and this translates into 91.30% who would recommend this alternative personal loan lender to a friend or family member.91.30%Read reviewPrudent FinancialPrudent Financial is an alternative personal loan lender that offers home equity and vehicle title loans to customers in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Clients with poor credit history appreciate the helpful service offered by this company, while former customers praise the firm for a simple and fast submission and application process. Turns out 89.47% of clients would recommend Prudent Financial to a friend or family member.89.47%Read reviewRBCRBC competes for the title of the largest bank in Canada — and is one of the largest banks in the world. However, this doesn’t stop this large traditional personal loan provider from offering excellent customer service. The bank’s long history and large presence leave many customers feeling safe and secure with the brand and former customers appreciate the smooth and hassle-free loan process. As a result, RBC Loans earned a recommendation score of 86.30%.86.30%Read reviewTDTD is one of the largest banks in Canada and, despite its size, still manages to provide clients with a quick, easy loan application process. Former customers appreciate the bank’s dedication to good customer service that is marked by honest, open communication. Other customers appreciate TD’s promotional low-rate offers and its commitment to going online for many of its banking services. As a result, TD Loans earned a recommendation score of 86.15%.86.15%Read reviewServus Credit UnionServus Credit Union is one of the largest credit unions in Canada. As a traditional personal loan lender, Servus Credit Union provides a wide range of loans (as well as a long list of banking products and services). As a result, this credit union has many repeat and long-term clients. While some customers weren’t crazy about the slow application process, most clients appreciate this traditional lender’s honest, straightforward approach that doesn’t forget a human-centred approach to customer service. As such, this credit union obtained a recommendation score of 84.85%.84.85%Read reviewLendDirectLendDirect is an alternative personal loan lender that specializes in providing an online application and approval process, LendDirect offers borrowers in almost all provinces and territories an opportunity for instant pre-approval. Former customers value the fast, easy application and the speedy funding process and give this alternative personal loan lender a recommendation score of 84.62%.84.62%Read reviewCIBCCIBC offers a reputation as a large, reliable bank with the ability to tailor loans to meet customer needs. For instance, customers appreciated this traditional lender’s ability to complete loan applications over the phone, while others liked the competitive rates and comprehensive loan repayment plans. The bank’s polite and helpful approach meant that CIBC received a recommendation score of 82.93%.82.93%Read reviewMagical CreditMagical Credit impressed customers with its simple and easy application process and various loan products. Some clients didn’t like the higher fees, while others were pleased with the company’s transparent fee structure. As such, 82.61% would recommend this personal loan lender to a friend or family member.82.61%Read reviewScotiabankScotiabank requires customers to book an appointment and speak with a customer service specialist. For some clients, this personalized, human-centred approach was great in developing a sense of reliability and security. While others were not as happy with the process, they appreciated the good rates and relatively simple application process. Based on its reputation, reliability and commitment to customer service, Scotiabank obtained a recommendation score of 82.46%.82.46%Read reviewLoan AwayLoan Away offers installment loans to people with fair to poor credit. Past customers appreciate the variety of loan products and the firm’s professional approach to helping clients find the best loan option for their needs. As such, Loan Away earned a recommendation score of 82.35%.82.35%Read reviewLoanConnectLoanConnect offers customers a chance to apply once but shop for multiple loan products with as many as 20 lenders. Customers like the company’s friendly online user interface and easy-to-navigate loan application process. This combined with LoanConnect’s great customer service prompted 81.25% of past customers to recommend the brand to a friend or family member.81.25%Read reviewSkyCap FinancialSkycap Financial specializes in providing customers with a completely online personal loan process. Customers with fair to good credit appreciate the firm’s holistic approach to loan qualification and past clients praise the firm’s attention to after-sales care and a fast and efficient application process. As a result, 81.08% would recommend the lender to a friend or family member.81.08%Read reviewFlexMoneyFlexMoney is a Toronto-based alternative personal loan provider that offers loans to Canadians in most provinces and some territories. Customers like the ease and speed of the online application process and the firm’s commitment to security and reliability. As an alternative loan provider with a reputation for being easy to work with, FlexMoney earned a recommendation score of 80.00%.80.00%Read reviewTop 15 Finder: Best-Rated Customer Satisfaction Personal Loan Providers in Canada in 2023In this digital age, brand reputation matters. Positive online reviews can help build trust and grow a company’s client base. For customers, online reviews help with research and allow for more strategic spending decisions.According to Brand Rated, a US-based review and affiliate marketing site, 95% of consumers read reviews before buying a product or service.(3)To capture the importance and power of online reviews, Finder created the “Best-Rated” list of personal loan providers in Canada. The only criterion was how satisfied past customers were when dealing with the personal loan provider or platform.Here are the Top 15 Best-Rated personal loan providers in 2023:Prudent FinancialPrudent Financial is an alternative personal loan lender that really emphasizes the customer service experience. Prior clients describe the firm as “warm” and “thoughtful,” and the majority of Prudent Financial’s past customers consider the firm to have a “great service attitude.” Unsurprisingly, this small alternative personal loan lender gets top marks in customer satisfaction with a top score of 86.32%.86.32%Read reviewTDTD Personal Loans offers clients a variety of products and services with fair to excellent credit scores. Borrowers like the easy and informative loan application process and love the after-sales service this branch and its representatives consistently provide. The result is a top customer satisfaction score of 86.15%.86.15%Read reviewVancityVancity is a BC-based credit union that’s committed to community building and customer service. Past customers appreciate the friendly, human-centred approach to setting up loans, the credit union’s interest rates, and the ongoing help Vancity offers its clients — to help them through tough times and maximize their savings. As a result, this credit union gets an 85.00% best-rated customer satisfaction score.85.00%Read reviewLendDirectLendDirect customers appreciate how this alternative personal loan lender enables them to apply and get approved for a personal loan from the comfort of their own homes. Despite a completely online process, LendDirect customers appreciate the smooth process and clear communication, and this translates into 81.54% of customers being “very satisfied.”81.54%Read reviewCashco FinancialCashco Financial customers like this alternative lender’s easy application process and quick approval time. The feedback from previous borrowers is that Cashco Financial focuses on a smooth, comfortable and transparent experience, which is why it gets an 80.00% customer satisfaction score.80.00%Read reviewRBCRBC is a traditional bank lender with a variety of loan products and services for borrowers across Canada. Despite RBC’s size, many former customers are positive about their experience with RBC with reports of strong after-sales service and helpful staff. As a result, RBC Loans obtained a customer satisfaction score of 79.78%.79.78%Read reviewMogoMogo as an alternative lender, Mogo offers a variety of banking services and products, including personal loans. Customers appreciate the ease and convenience of working with this online alternative lender, as well as the great rates and service, which is why 78.67% of Mogo clients report being “very satisfied.”78.67%Read reviewMeridianMeridian offers a full range of banking services and personal loan products. What customers appear to like is the credit union’s honest, straightforward approach and quick and easy online application process. As a result, many clients stay with the credit union for years, giving them a best-rated score of 77.73%.77.73%Read reviewMagical CreditMagical Credit offers customers a simple and easy application process and a range of loan products. Some clients didn’t like the higher fees, while others appreciated the free loan counselling and informative staff. As a result, 77.39% of customers are “very satisfied.”77.39%Read reviewSpring FinancialSpring Financial is an online-only loan application and funding alternative lender. Customers really appreciated this firm’s speed during the application review stage and the firm’s commitment to explaining terms and conditions clearly and concisely. As a result, 76.52% of Spring Financial customers are “very satisfied.”76.52%Read reviewLoans CanadaLoans Canada works hard to match borrowers to the right lender — even if you have fair or bad credit. The loan application process is simple and easy — taking only 10 minutes to complete — and past customers appreciated the platform’s large lender network and great customer service. Approximately 3 out of 4 (76.08%) Loans Canada customers were “very satisfied.”76.08%Read reviewSkyCap FinancialSkycap Financial customers appreciate the easy and fast application process, but some found the approval and funding process to be a bit long. Still, over three-quarters (75.68%) of customers were “very satisfied.”75.68%Read reviewCIBCCIBC is a large, reliable bank that can provide a personalized touch. Many customers consider this traditional lender very easy to work with — with some recognizing that the bank is creating a more accessible process when applying for and finalizing loans that don’t require in-branch visits. As a result, 75.00% of customers reported being “very satisfied.”75.00%Read reviewScotiabankScotiabank is a traditional lender and, in many cases, will require customers to visit a branch to complete a loan application. Despite this in-person requirement, customers appreciate the lender’s fast, easy application process and the good rates. As such, 75.00% of Scotiabank loan customers were “very satisfied” when working with this lender.75.00%Read reviewFlexMoneyFlexMoney is an alternative personal loan provider with customers from across Canada. Prior customers love the easy online application process and the firm’s commitment to security and reliability. This means most customers — 3 out of 4 (75.00%) — were “very satisfied” when working with this lender.75.00%Read reviewFinder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 — Selection CriteriaThe initial step in determining the short list of personal loan providers was to list lenders currently operating in Canada, including traditional lenders, loan search platforms, and alternative financing sources.Finder experts ran this long list of loan providers through an independent search traffic database to eliminate niche or smaller-market loan providers. Only brands with a monthly search volume of 10,000 or more were shortlisted. Using this preliminary list, Finder experts added market leaders in the alternative lenders and loan search platform markets — two categories specializing in providing personal loans to borrowers with less than exceptional credit scores. The final result was a list of 29 personal loan providers.While we endeavour to assess the majority of product providers in the personal loan marketplace, this is not always possible, and, as a result, not every product or brand found in the Canadian market was included in our customer satisfaction assessment.Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 — Survey MethodologyBetween April and June 2023, Finder experts ran an independent customer satisfaction survey. Almost 1,100 customer responses (1,063) were recorded — with respondents providing detailed opinions on their current lender experience.In particular, survey respondents were asked to assess, measure and rank their experience with their personal loan providers based on the following criteria:How satisfied were you when working with the lender?Would you recommend this provider to a friend or family member?Explain the rationale for your individual score of this personal loan provider or platform.To keep customer experience current and relevant, only customers with experience working with a personal loan provider in the last 24 months were included in the survey results.To be eligible for a Finder Award and 5-Star Rating, brands had to receive a minimum of 15 responses.Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 — Rating MethodologyThe Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 recognizes Canada’s best personal loan brands across three main categories: Alternative lenders, loan search platforms and traditional lenders.Each personal loan provider was pre-sorted into an appropriate category type before calculations were completed to determine winners.While the definition of these categories follows industry standards, for the sake of transparency these are the definitions used by Finder experts:Traditional lender. Before there was competition among lenders to offer personal loans, Canadians could only get extended credit from banks, credit unions and, in some cases, larger financial institutions, such as life insurance companies. These days, the traditional lender category continues to capture any lender that is classified as a bank, credit union and, in some cases, the financial arm of a life insurance firm.Alternative lender. A company or brand that offers lines of credit or personal loans through in-house financing. This can include private firms as well as publicly traded companies. While there are many different business models in the alternative lender category, the common element is that these lenders have access to their own source of funding and, as a result, do not partner with traditional lenders or shop the market on behalf of their clients.Loan search platform. A loan search platform is a relatively newer category in the personal lending marketplace. These companies specialize in matching lenders to customers with the aim of comparing many lending products to find the best option for the client.To determine the list of winners, Finder experts converted recommended and satisfaction rankings into scores, which were then used to calculate each provider’s overall customer satisfaction score. The breakdown of this calculation was as follows:50% of the overall customer satisfaction score is derived from the average customer satisfaction score50% of the overall customer satisfaction score came from the average “would you recommend” scoreIn each of the three categories, the personal loan provider with the highest overall customer satisfaction score was awarded the title of Winner, while the highly acclaimed runner-up was awarded the title of Finalist. Brands had to receive at least 15 responses to be eligible for an award.To obtain a 5-star rating, the overall customer satisfaction score was converted using the following five-star rating range:Personal loan ratings★★★★★ — Excellent★★★★★ — Good★★★★★ — Average★★★★★ — Subpar★★★★★ — PoorMost Recommended and Best-Rated Winners ListTo keep the emphasis on the customer’s voice, Finder experts also chose to publish two “top” lists:Top 15 Most Recommended Personal Loan Providers — a ranking of all personal loan providers based on the highest “would you recommend” score and theTop 15 Best-Rated Personal Loan Providers — a ranking of all personal loan providers based on the highest “customer satisfaction” score.These two lists recognize and capture the importance of real-world customer satisfaction and the power of personal recommendations.No commercial partnerships influenced the results of the Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023.Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 — Survey Margin of ErrorThe Finder: Personal Loans Customer Satisfaction Awards 2023 survey results were collected through an online third-party survey provider. The survey was conducted between April and June 2023. The survey asked 506 respondents, representing a stratified representation of Canadians above the age of 18, about their opinions and experience with a personal loan provider. The estimated margin of error for the survey is +/- 3.20%, 17 out of 20 times.Check out more Finder Awards winners
About Finder
Finder is a personal finance comparison site with a mission to help Canadians save, invest, spend wisely and grow their wealth. Each month, Finder provides half a million Canadians – and more than five million globally – with independent and trustworthy financial information. Our goal is to help people make better financial decisions by providing objective, comparative insight on thousands of products and services.
As a global fintech website and app, Finder provides consumers free access to smart money content. Whether it’s expert insight, product or service comparisons or independent reviews, Finder helps consumers stay on top of their finances while saving time and money.
Finder is available to consumers in Canada, Australia, America and the United Kingdom. Initially launched in 2006 by three Australians – Fred Schebesta, Frank Restuccia and Jeremy Cabral – Finder’s global reach now includes thousands of products and services in hundreds of financial categories and provides expert content and independent reviews to more than five million users each month.
Sources
Angus Reid Institute: Cost of Living report
Brand Rated: 9 out of 10 Customers Read Reviews Before Buying a Product
McKinsey & Company: A New Way to Measure Word of Mouth Marketing
