Home Equity Loan Rates Today: What You'll Pay (2026)

What is the interest rate on a home equity loan right now? In mid-to-late September 2026, published offers and averages ran from about 6.5% APR for the strongest borrowers to just over 8% as a national average. Your rate depends on credit score, combined loan-to-value, debt-to-income, loan amount and term.

Rate pages from different publishers rarely agree, because each surveys a different set of lenders, on a different day, with different borrower assumptions. Rather than pretend there is one "today's rate", this guide shows what the main sources were reporting, explains why your quote can sit well above or below them, and turns rates into monthly payments you can actually budget for. Treat every figure here as a snapshot as of September 2026 — rates change daily.

What is the interest rate on a home equity loan today? What the sources show

The gap between "as low as 6.49%" and "average 8.14%" is normal. Advertised minimums assume excellent credit, low CLTV and often a relationship discount or autopay. Averages include everyone. Most borrowers with good but not perfect credit land somewhere between. Once you have a quote, plug it into our home equity loan calculator to see the exact payment and total interest.

Notice that smaller loans can carry higher rates. Lenders have fixed costs to originate a loan, so a $25,000 loan often prices higher than a $100,000 one — the opposite of what many borrowers expect.

What decides your home equity loan rate

A home equity loan is a fixed-rate second mortgage, so lenders price it on the risk that you won't repay and on how much equity cushions them if you don't. These are the factors that move your quote, roughly in order of impact.

Unlike a HELOC, a home equity loan rate is locked for the life of the loan. That makes the day you lock more important: if the Federal Reserve cuts rates after you close, your rate won't follow unless you refinance.

Home equity loan vs HELOC rates

Home equity loan rates are fixed and priced off longer-term funding costs; HELOC rates are usually variable and priced as the prime rate plus a margin. That is why, on any given day, the two averages can sit close together (as in mid-September 2026) yet behave very differently over time. With prime at 7.00%, a HELOC at prime + 1% costs 8.00% today but will move with every Fed decision.

If you are unsure which product suits you, our guide on HELOC requirements covers the qualification side of the same decision.

What today's rates mean in monthly payments

A percentage point sounds small, but over 15 or 20 years it adds up. These are principal-and-interest payments, rounded, for two common loan sizes at three rates spanning today's range.

On $100,000 over 20 years, the difference between 7% and 9% is about $125 a month, or roughly $30,000 over the life of the loan. Shopping even three lenders is worth it.

How to get the lowest home equity loan rate

1. Know your CLTV before you apply. If borrowing $10,000 less drops you from 82% to 78% CLTV, you may move into a better pricing tier.
2. Improve your score first. Paying credit card balances down before the lender pulls credit can lift your score quickly.
3. Get three to five quotes the same week. Include your current mortgage servicer, a credit union and an online lender. Credit unions often price second mortgages competitively for members.
4. Compare APR, not just rate. APR includes certain fees, so two loans at the same rate can have different APRs. Closing costs on home equity loans are often quoted in the 2–5% range, though some lenders waive them.
5. Ask about discounts. Autopay from a checking account at the same bank is a common rate reduction.
6. Choose the shortest term you can afford. Shorter terms usually price lower and cost far less in total interest.

Before you commit, check that consolidating debt into your home actually helps. Our analysis of using home equity to pay off credit cards walks through when it does and when it just turns unsecured debt into debt secured by your house.

Rates by lender type: banks, credit unions and online lenders

Where you borrow matters almost as much as your credit profile. Each lender type prices home equity differently because their funding costs and appetite for second liens differ.

From rate to real cost: fees, points and APR

The interest rate is only part of what a home equity loan costs. Lenders may charge an origination fee, appraisal, title search, recording fees and sometimes discount points to buy the rate down. The APR folds many of these into one annualised figure, which is why it is the better number for comparing offers.

Here is how the maths works in practice. Suppose two lenders quote $75,000 over 15 years. Lender A offers 7.50% with no closing costs. Lender B offers 7.25% but charges $2,000 in fees. Lender B's monthly payment is about $10 lower, so it takes almost 16 years to earn back the $2,000 — longer than the 15-year loan itself. Lender A is cheaper overall, even with the higher rate. If you plan to pay the loan off early, no-fee offers look even better.

Also ask whether the lender charges a prepayment penalty or an early payoff fee. Most don't on home equity loans, but some recover waived closing costs if you pay off within the first few years. Get the Loan Estimate or equivalent disclosure in writing from each lender so you are comparing the same numbers.

How lenders build your quote: a worked example

Lenders typically start from a base rate for their best tier and add adjustments. Imagine a lender whose best tier is advertised around 6.5%. A borrower with a 700 score might add a quarter to half a point for credit; a CLTV of 84% instead of 70% might add another quarter to half a point; a 20-year term instead of 10 might add a little more. Stack those and the same lender quotes that borrower somewhere near 7.5%–8%, close to the national average. The adjustments are illustrative, but the logic explains why your quote rarely matches the headline.

Is now a good time to take a home equity loan?

Nobody can time rates reliably. What you can control is whether the payment fits your budget at a fixed rate and whether the purpose justifies putting your home up as collateral. Compared with alternatives, home equity borrowing is usually far cheaper than personal loans (CBS reported personal loan rates around 12% in September 2026) and credit cards, but more expensive than a first mortgage.

• Good reasons: home improvements that add value, replacing high-interest debt with a disciplined payoff plan, a one-off known cost.
• Weak reasons: vacations, cars, or funding ongoing spending — all of which leave you with a long-term lien and nothing to show for it.

For the official benchmark behind variable home equity pricing, see the Federal Reserve H.15 selected interest rates. Then run your quotes through the home equity loan calculator to compare total cost side by side.

This article is general information, not financial, tax or legal advice. Figures are approximate and change over time — always verify with a qualified professional or the official source before making a decision.

Written and reviewed by the HELOC Payment Calculator editorial team. Facts checked against primary sources; see the reference above.

← All articles