What Is It?
When you share your personal referral link or code with your friends and family, you'll each receive $200 when they refinance their student loan(s) with Earnest (currently, we're not offering referral bonuses on our personal loans or private student loans). If you were referred to Earnest by a website, blog, podcast, or employer, you'll want to check out this article for more information.
Referral bonuses are paid within 30 days of the referral signing their loan agreement.
Who Is Eligible?
As a referrer, you must:
- Be a legal resident of the United States of America (excluding Massachusetts, Michigan, and Kentucky);
- Be of the age of majority in your state of residence;
- Maintain an Earnest account.
As a referral, you must:
- Be a legal resident of the United States of America (excluding Massachusetts, Michigan, and Kentucky);
- Be of the age of majority in your state of residence;
- Never had an Earnest loan;
- Complete the application process with the Referrer’s unique referral URL or identifier code. If the application is complete using any other partner link or marketing method, the registration will not count as a qualified referral, and the referrer and referral will not earn Reward(s);
- Sign a contract for a student loan refinance with Earnest, and cannot cancel the loan within any applicable grace period.
Our clients in Massachusetts, Michigan, and Kentucky are unable to participate in this referral plan due to state limitations.
How Do I Refer Someone?
You’ll want to share your unique referral link with the person(s) you would like to refer. They’ll click the link to begin their Earnest application. You can find your referral link using the directions below.
- Sign in to your Earnest account.
- Click “Refer a friend” from the left-side navigation menu.
- From the referral page, you'll be able to copy your referral link to share.
Your referral will use your unique link to start an Earnest application. If they are approved and sign their loan agreement, both you and your referral will receive $200. Bonuses are paid out within 30 days of your referral signing their loan agreement.
I Forgot to Use My Referral’s Unique Link, or I Already Started an Earnest Application Before Being Referred. What Are My Options?
If you have already been approved and signed your loan agreement, we are unable to retroactively apply the referral bonus. Our apologies for the inconvenience.
If you haven’t received a decision or signed your loan agreement yet, please send us an email to hello@earnest.com with all of the following information so that we may apply the referral for you before you sign:
- Your friend’s first and last name.
- The email address associated with your friend’s Earnest account.
- Your friend’s unique referral code.
If approved, you and your referrer will receive the $200 within 30 days of signing your loan agreement.
How Do I Know if My Link Was Used?
Once your referral uses your link and starts an application, your referral dashboard will populate with a “My Referrals” section. Follow the directions below to access your referral dashboard.
- Sign in to your Earnest account.
- Click “Refer a friend” from the left-side navigation menu.
- Scroll down to the “My Referrals” section.
If you do not see a “My Referrals” section, please check in with your referral to see if they have started an application with your link.
Haven't Received Your Referral Bonus Yet?
If it's been over 30 days since your referral signed their loan agreement, please have your referral contact our Client Happiness Team at hello@earnest.com. They'll need to provide us with the following:
- Your first and last name.
- The email address associated with your Earnest account.
- Your unique referral code.
Further information about our Student Loan Referral Terms and Conditions can be found here.
1 Terms and conditions apply. See https://www.earnest.com/referral-terms Referral reward amounts of $600 or greater in a single calendar year may be reported to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as miscellaneous income to the recipient on Form 1099-MISC in the year received as required by applicable law. Recipient is responsible for any applicable federal, state, or local taxes associated with receiving the reward offer; consult your tax advisor to determine applicable tax consequences.