Payday loans in Wisconsin
In Wisconsin, a payday loan is legal if the lender making it is licensed by DFI under Wis. Statutes 138.14 places caps on loan size, renewals, and interest after maturity, yet sets no rate limit during the term.
- Payday lending
- Allowed
- Max cost
- None in the law
- Top amount
- interest and fees count toward the combined total due to all payday licensees, capped at whichever is smaller: 35% of gross monthly income or $1,500
Are payday loans legal in Wisconsin?
Yes. In Wisconsin, a payday loan is legal if the lender is licensed under the Wisconsin payday loan law. Loans lasting 90 days or less fall under this rule. Your total debt to all licensed payday lenders cannot exceed $1,500 or 35 percent of pre-tax monthly pay, taking the smaller figure. Interest and fees both count toward that limit. Before the due date, lenders may set any rate, yet post-due interest must stay at or below 2.75 percent each month.
Even online lenders from other states serving a Wisconsin resident must be licensed by the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions. Verify the lender's license before borrowing, since loans from unlicensed firms are void and leave you with no debt. If you paid an unlicensed lender already, suing within one year lets you get that money back. Any payday loan can also be cancelled at no fee if you return the money before the end of the next business day.
- The Wisconsin payday law places no cap on interest before maturity, limiting only post-maturity rates to 2.75% monthly.
- The lower of $1,500 and 35% of gross monthly income is the most you may owe in payday debt to all licensees.
- If an unlicensed lender makes a payday loan, it is void, and you can recover all paid amounts by suing within one year.
- You may hand the money back before the next working day closes and cancel a payday loan free of charge.
- The DFI 2024 report found just 254 payday loans from all licensees, showing an average APR of 696.711%.
- No statewide payday loan database exists in Wisconsin anymore, DFI says, so each lender checks eligibility through its own internal database.
Wisconsin payday loan laws
- Law in force
- Wisconsin payday loan law
- Cited as
- Wis. Stat. 138.14
- Fees under the law
- a licensee may charge interest with no cap under this section before a payday loan matures; a limit of 2.75 percent per month applies to interest after maturity
- Most you can borrow
- interest and fees count toward the combined total due to all payday licensees, capped at whichever is smaller: 35% of gross monthly income or $1,500
- How long a loan runs
- 90 days (any loan lasting 90 days or less counts as a payday loan)
- Rollovers
- one: you may use proceeds from a new payday loan to repay an existing one only one time
- Cooling-off gap
- 24 hours after you repay that subsequent loan
- Loans you can hold at once
- limited by the aggregate cap of $1,500 or 35% of income across all licensees
- Repayment plan
- Once per 12 months, a lender must offer a repayment plan if maturity passes without payment: split the balance and up to 2.75% monthly interest into four equal installments due on the next four pay dates.
- Installment lending limits
- Firms licensed as loan companies (Wis. Statutes 138.09) face no statutory interest rate cap, per DFI
Also checked against dfi.wi.gov. Full statute text.
Online lenders that list Wisconsin
Eleven companies we track say they lend in Wisconsin: 4 online installment lenders, 6 tribal lenders and 1 loan broker.
| Lender | Kind | Posted APR |
|---|---|---|
 NetCredit | Installment | 34.99% to 99.99% |
 OppLoans | Installment | 99% to 195% |
 Fig Loans | Installment | 190% to 279% |
 Rise Credit | Installment | 60% to 299% |
 Viva Payday Loans | Broker | Partner lenders quote 4.99% to 1,386% |
Tribal loans in Wisconsin
A DFI licence is required in Wisconsin for any payday loan to a Wisconsin resident, even from lenders outside the state. If the lender is unlicensed, the loan is void: you owe nothing and can recover what you paid.
On the immunity claim tribal lenders make, see are tribal loans legal.
Six tribal lenders we track list Wisconsin as a state they lend in. Three of the six publish an APR, from 73.7% to 725%.
| Lender | Posted APR |
|---|---|
 Mobiloans | 73.7% to 405% |
 Spotloan | 99% to 490% |
 BrightLending | 325% to 725% |
 MaxLend | Not published |
 Minto Money | Not published |
| American Web Loan | Not published |
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Wisconsin and the states around it
| State | Payday lending | Max cost | Top amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | Allowed | None in the law | interest and fees count toward the combined total due to all payday licensees, capped at whichever is smaller: 35% of gross monthly income or $1,500 |
| Illinois | Banned | 36% APR | None allowed |
| Iowa | Allowed | $15.00 per $100 borrowed | Across the checks held from one borrower, the total cannot exceed $500. |
| Michigan | Allowed | $15.00 per $100 borrowed | Each transaction allows a maximum of $600. |
| Minnesota | Allowed | 50% APR | Consumer small loans with one payment are limited to $350; consumer short-term loans are limited to $1,300. |
Wisconsin loans with no credit check
Installment loan rates: Firms licensed as loan companies (Wis. Statutes 138.09) face no statutory interest rate cap, per DFI.
See no credit check loans: the checks lenders still run, and the price.
Verify a lender's license in Wisconsin
- Look the lender up on the license list before you hand over any bank details.
- Lenders here answer to the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), Division of Banking, Licensed Financial Services.
- Had trouble with a lender? Report the lender.
Sources for Wisconsin
- No interest limit exists under the payday statute before the loan matures.; Once the loan matures, interest cannot exceed 2.75% per month.; All licensees together cannot be owed more than $1,500 or 35% of your gross monthly income in payday debt.law.justia.com
- A payday loan means any loan with a term of 90 days or less, even from out-of-state lenders.; Any loan lasting 90 days or less fits the payday loan definition.docs.legis.wisconsin.gov
- DFI calls this a 24-hour cooling off period.; According to DFI, you may use a second payday loan to repay the first only one time.; Repayment plan: divide the balance and up to 2.75% monthly interest into four equal installments due on the next four pay dates.dfi.wi.gov
- The DFI 2024 report found 254 payday loans issued by all licensees.; In 2024, the average APR for payday loans reached 696.711%.docs.legis.wisconsin.gov
- The DFI payday lender page connects its licensee search tool to NMLS Consumer Access.; Payday lenders are licensed by DFI under Wis. Statutes 138.14.dfi.wi.gov
- Wisconsin residents can file complaints through the Licensed Financial Services section of the DFI.dfi.wi.gov