So you've decided you need a personal loan, and you're planning to apply for one online to save the hassle of visiting your local bank, and also hopefully to get a better deal. The problem is, the web is absolutely saturated with adverts for loan sites, and with thousands upon thousands of these sites touting their wares as the best on the net, how do you know which site to apply through?

While this article obviously can't tell you which kind of loan you need or who to apply for it with, it can make a start on the process by describing the various different kinds of loan site you'll come across during your research, along with their strengths and weaknesses.

The most basic type of site you'll come across is an informational one filled with hopefully authoritative articles on the subject of loans and finance. These articles will generally have links to specific lenders, either as part of the article itself or as more obvious advertising. While this kind of site can be very useful for increasing your knowledge of finance, and so helping you to make a better choice of loan provider, you can't really rely on the best deals being shown. The lenders featured on the pages will tend to be those who pay the most to be there, rather than those who offer the best deal.

Another popular kind of site is a comparison site, which present details of dozens or even hundreds of loan deals all on one page, letting you easily see which one has the lowest rate, or has benefits you'd like such as a payment holiday or fixed repayment rate. These sites offer real convenience in helping you to narrow the range of your research, but you need to bear in mind the fact that not every loan available will be shown. In most cases, the comparison site will only feature loans on which they'll get paid a commission should you apply. This doesn't mean that the best loans are necessarily featured elsewhere, but it's something to be aware of.

A slightly more advance kind of comparison site is the aggregator site where you fill in one application form, and then you'll automatically be shown deals from a wide range of lenders. Again, not every loan available will be featured, but you can easily get a terrific deal this way. Basically, these sites take a lot of the legwork out of searching out a deal.

Everyone knows that it can pay to cut out the middle man, so it's always worth checking out the loan sites of major banks or other financial companies such as brokers which you see advertised on TV or in other off line media. You may find that as the bank isn't paying commissions to a comparison site or a broker, that you can get a slightly cheaper rate.

The key to getting a good loan offer is to be well informed, and to look at a wide range of options, so the best strategy is to first read up on loans at the informational sites, to help you decide what you're looking for. Next, use a comparison site to see what the general range of loan features available is, and compare this with those offered by the major banks. Finally, either apply direct at a bank or broker site if that's the best deal you've found, or apply for the most attractive loan you find at a comparison or aggregator site. Good luck with your loan!

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Michael writes for Loan Time where you can read information on subjects such as debt consolidation and payday loans, as well as comparing a wide range of personal loan deals.