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Reading a small loan offer

How to read a small loan offer before you sign

Guide · Updated November 6, 2026

A small loan offer tells you five things, and all five are on the screen before you sign: the amount you receive, the finance charge, the APR, the payment dates, and the total you will repay. If you can point to each of those in the offer, you understand the loan; if one is missing, ask the lender before you go further.

This guide walks through an offer in the order a lender shows it. DigiCashRx is a loan connection service, not a lender. Any offer you see after sending a request for $100 – $5,000 comes from a lender in the network, on that lender's terms, and you are free to decline it with nothing owed.

The five numbers, in order

Amount financed

The money that would actually reach your account. Some lenders deduct an origination fee from the loan, so the amount financed can be smaller than the amount you asked for. Check that this number is the one you need.

Finance charge

The dollar cost of borrowing: interest plus any fees that are part of the loan. For short-term loans this is often a flat amount per hundred dollars borrowed. It is the number to compare between two offers of the same size and length.

APR

The finance charge expressed as a yearly rate. Short-term and small-dollar loans can carry APRs well above 200%, and some lenders, including tribal lenders, may exceed state usury caps. A high APR on a two-week loan is not a mistake in the paperwork; it is what a flat fee looks like when it is annualised. The APR lets you compare a two-week loan with a six-month one on the same scale.

Payment schedule

How many payments, how much each one is, and the date each is due. Most lenders line the dates up with your paydays. If a date falls two days before your deposit lands, ask whether it can move; a returned payment usually costs a fee from the lender and another from your bank.

Total of payments

Amount financed plus finance charge. This is the full cost in one number. Say it out loud before you sign.

A worked example

Suppose a lender offers $500 with a $75 finance charge, repaid in one payment 14 days later. Amount financed: $500. Finance charge: $75. Total of payments: $575. APR: about 391%, because $75 on $500 is 15% for two weeks, and there are roughly 26 two-week periods in a year. The same $500 repaid over six months in equal instalments would show a lower APR but could carry a larger total finance charge, because interest runs for longer. Neither is automatically better; the right one depends on what your paydays can carry.

Three lines people skip, and should not

Autopay authorisation. Most small loans are repaid by electronic withdrawal from the account your pay lands in. The agreement says which account, how much and on which dates. You can usually revoke the authorisation, but you still owe the payments.
Late and returned-payment fees. The offer should state what happens if a payment bounces or arrives late. Pair this with your payday calendar before you accept.
Prepayment. Some lenders charge no penalty for paying early; a few do. If you expect a bonus or a tax refund, this line decides whether paying early saves money.

What an offer cannot promise

An offer comes from one lender, on that lender's terms, after it has reviewed your request. It is not a promise from DigiCashRx, which is not a lender, does not set terms and does not approve or deny anything. Submitting a request does not guarantee an offer, and the amount offered may differ from the amount you asked for. If the offer does not work for you, decline it. Nothing is owed until you sign, and checking your options won't affect your credit score.

Questions people ask at this point

How long do I have to decide?

The lender sets a window, often a day or two, after which the offer lapses. Lapsing is not a penalty; you can send a new request later.

Can I ask for a different amount or date?

Some lenders let you adjust the amount or move a payment date before you sign. If the offer screen does not show the option, contact the lender directly; its contact details are on the offer.

Where do I find these numbers later?

The signed agreement, usually emailed to you, repeats every number above. Save it to your phone the day you sign it.

Not at the offer stage yet? It starts with one request on the home page. Free to send, and the terms arrive before anything is signed.

Start my request