Home Equity Loan Interest Rates Right Now

On October 21, 2026, Bankrate's survey of the largest banks put the average 10-year home equity loan at 8.77%. In the same month, Curinos data published by Experian put the average home equity loan at 7.76%. Fortune's tracker, built on Mortgage Research Center figures, had the 10-year loan at 8.268%. That is three reputable sources describing one product in one month and landing a full point apart. This page is for homeowners a few years into a mortgage who are weighing a fixed second loan against their equity, for a kitchen, a tuition bill or a pile of card debt, and who want to know what rate to expect. Most of them make the same mistake. They treat one of those averages as a quote. None of them is one. Each average describes a different hypothetical borrower, and the gap between lenders quoting the same real borrower is several times wider than the gap between the trackers.

The conclusion follows from that. Take a borrower with a 720 credit score who will keep 20% equity after borrowing. Read together, the sources put that borrower's 10-year fixed rate somewhere between about 7.50% and 8.77%. On a $40,000 loan, the difference across that band is roughly $27 a month. Across the range of lenders Bankrate surveyed for 10-year loans, 6.25% to 10.54%, the difference is about $91 a month and roughly $11,000 over the life of the loan. Which tracker a borrower reads matters much less than how many lenders the borrower asks.

A home equity loan is a fixed-rate installment loan. The borrower receives one lump sum and repays it over a set term, typically 5 to 30 years. According to Experian's comparison of the two products, lenders price these loans off the 10-year Treasury yield, much as they price mortgages. A home equity line of credit works differently. It is a revolving line with a variable rate, set at the prime rate plus a lender's margin. Fortune describes a draw period of up to 10 years followed by a repayment period. The margin is where the borrower's profile shows up. In the words of Yahoo Finance's Tim Manni, "Riskier borrowers will have larger margins, while those considered less risky will receive smaller ones." Fixed loans are not described in margin terms, but the same logic governs their pricing.

The trackers differ mainly because each one prices a different imaginary applicant.

Curinos gives the lowest numbers because it describes the borrower lenders compete hardest for: a score of 780 or more and well under 70% of the home's value borrowed. Yahoo Finance's October 9 column states those assumptions plainly. Curinos snapshots also vary within the month. Yahoo reported 7.50% for the fixed loan on October 9, and Experian's October figure is 7.76%. Bankrate gives the highest numbers. Its home equity loan survey prices a 700-score borrower at 80% combined LTV across the 10 largest banks and thrifts in 10 large markets. The Mortgage Research Center figure sits between the two. It assumes a much lower score floor but a much larger loan. The sources do not reconcile those two assumptions, and anyone who claims to know which one dominates is guessing.

The gap between the fixed loan and the HELOC also depends on the tracker. By Curinos's count the two products were nearly level in October. Nadlan Capital Group found the variable line 4 basis points above the fixed loan on October 19. Bankrate had the HELOC 1.31 points cheaper. Anyone deciding between the two on the strength of the spread should know which spread they are reading. The period when the rates flipped is worth reviewing for that reason.

A borrower can get within half a point of a real quote with a calculator, a credit score and a mortgage statement. The steps below follow the order in which a lender will look at the file. The documents listed first are the ones lenders ask for, according to Experian and Yahoo Finance.

Reading a best-borrower benchmark as a personal rate. The Curinos figures quoted in daily columns assume a score of 780 or more and a combined LTV under 70%. Nadlan Capital Group says it directly: a borrower with a 680 score should not expect those rates. Anyone can spot the mistake by checking a benchmark's stated score assumption against their own score. The fix is to use the tier ranges by score instead.

Choosing between products on a few basis points. In mid-October the fixed loan and the variable line were 4 basis points apart on Curinos data. Nadlan's verdict was blunt: "With rates this close, choosing between the two products should not come down to a 0.04-percentage-point difference." A borrower making this mistake is comparing rates while ignoring structure. The question that should decide it is whether the cost arrives all at once, which suits a lump sum, or in stages, which suits a line.

Comparing an introductory HELOC rate with a fixed rate. Bankrate's HELOC list includes a 6.00% introductory rate from Police & Fire FCU on a line with a 5-year draw and a 15-year repayment period. That rate is real, and it is temporary. The sources do not say what it becomes afterward. The word 'introductory' is the warning sign. The useful question for the lender is the rate after the introductory period ends.

Planning on rates coming down. Bankrate's analysis cautions that "rates may not fall quickly, so borrowers should not rely on future rate declines." The recent record supports the caution. The average HELOC rate rose about 45 basis points in roughly five weeks, from 7.09% on September 11 to 7.54% by October 19, per Nadlan. Bankrate's home equity loan average reached its highest level since May 2024. A budget that only works if a variable rate falls is a budget that depends on luck.

Borrowing up to the ceiling. Top-tier pricing requires a combined LTV under 70%, and most lenders want 15% to 20% equity left over. A borrower who sizes the loan to the maximum the lender allows has usually moved into a worse pricing tier. Running the LTV calculation at two loan amounts shows whether trimming the loan changes the tier.

Forgetting what secures the debt. Experian notes that a home equity loan is secured by the home, and default carries a risk of foreclosure. The point matters most when the loan replaces unsecured card balances, because an unpaid credit card cannot cost anyone their house. Moving card debt onto the house is cheaper in interest and more serious in consequence.

A credit score near a cutoff. The Mortgage Reports names 620, 680, 700 and 740 as common pricing breaks. Its example shows the cost of moving down a tier: going from 7.50% to 10.50% on a $50,000, 15-year loan adds about $90 a month and more than $16,000 in interest. A borrower 15 points below a cutoff may gain more from waiting a billing cycle than from any rate move in the market.

Combined LTV above or below 70%. Lenders reserve their best rates for borrowers under 70%, and 80% is the common benchmark ceiling. Borrowers between the two pay the middle prices this page has been describing.

Loan size. Bankrate prices a $30,000 loan. The Mortgage Research Center prices $350,000, and $850,000 for non-conforming loans. The sources do not measure how loan size alone changes the rate. Borrowers well outside the $30,000 to $350,000 range should treat every published average with caution.

A Fed move. HELOC rates follow the prime rate, which follows the federal funds rate. Fixed home equity loans follow the 10-year Treasury. Experian notes that home equity loan rates generally trended down over recent years despite a Federal Reserve increase in September 2026. Short-term Fed moves therefore reach a line of credit faster than a fixed loan. For borrowers already holding a line, after the September hike explains what changed.

The time of year. Curinos's fixed-loan average hit its 2026 low of 7.31% in late June and was 7.50% by early October. Fortune's 10-year figure started October at 8.159%, rose to 8.291% mid-month and then eased to 8.268%. Those are moves of a quarter point or less, smaller than a single credit tier.

The property. Every benchmark here assumes an owner-occupied, single-family primary home. None of the sources prices second homes, condos or rentals, so their averages say nothing about them.

The strongest objection to a fixed loan is that a HELOC is cheaper today, and on Bankrate's figures that is clearly true. Its October 21 HELOC average of 7.36% was 1.31 points below its 8.67% home equity loan average. On $40,000, that is about $44 a month less interest during the draw. A homeowner paying for a renovation in stages also borrows only what has been spent, which shrinks the interest bill further. For a staged project, the objection is correct.

It does not hold for a single, known bill. A tuition payment or a kitchen invoice paid in full on one date needs a lump sum, and the price of a variable line is only the price for now. That price rose 45 basis points in five weeks this autumn. A fixed loan costs a known amount over a known term, which is the point Affinity Federal Credit Union's Sarah Rose made to Bankrate: "For stable, knowable payments, a home equity loan works well."

Both products are far cheaper than the alternatives. Experian's October figures put the 5-year personal loan at 11.93% APR and the average credit card at 19.40%. On Experian's $50,000 comparison, the card produced $63,576.60 in interest. The 10-year home equity loan at 7.76% produced $22,037.89.