Best Debt Settlement Companies

Freedom Debt Relief (FDR) has been in the debt settlement industry for over 15 years and has resolved over $15 billion of debt. Additionally, it is a founding member of the AFCC. The company has an impressive number of experts, too — over 550 certified debt consultants and over 200 debt negotiators.

Freedom Debt Relief will negotiate a minimum of $7,500 in unsecured debts, though that amount varies by state. Unlike some of the other debt settlement companies, Freedom Debt Relief can sometimes help settle business and private student loan debt. This is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

Clients pay no fees until after they’ve authorized a settlement and have made their first payment as part of that settlement. The fees range from 15% to 25% of your enrolled debt, and your specific fee percentage is determined by the state you live in.

There is an online dashboard that allows you to track your progress at any time. Plus, you can contact customer service seven days a week.

Some aspects of Freedom Debt Relief that we like include:

• No upfront fees
• Online progress dashboard

Some things to consider before choosing Freedom Debt Relief include:

• Fees as high as 25%
• Not available in all states

The vast majority of ConsumerAffairs reviewers report positive experiences with Freedom Debt Relief, with many noting that the company helped them significantly reduce the debt amounts they owed. “A friend referred me to FDR and I called them. They asked if I was okay with $348 per month and I agreed,” said Ellen from Alpena, Michigan. “Within a few months, they had the first credit card settled for 53% less than what I owed. A few months later, they were able to settle with the second credit card company for 50% less.”

Some reviewers who had negative experiences felt like they didn’t save enough money with Freedom Debt Relief to justify the damage that the debt settlement process did to their credit scores. Others felt that the debt settlement process was dragged out longer than necessary, and some regretted that they didn’t attempt to settle their debts independently.

CuraDebt has been helping customers with credit card debts, personal loan debts, business debts and more since 2000. A special service that CuraDebt offers is tax debt relief. CuraDebt says that its enrolled agents (EAs) can help resolve a wide range of tax debt amounts.

CuraDebt charges a fee that’s a percentage of your enrolled debt, ranging from 16% to 25%. The higher your enrolled debt amount, the lower your fee percentage. Additionally, it does not charge any upfront fees, nor does it charge for its free counseling session.

CuraDebt requires a low debt minimum of only $5,000, though that varies depending on what state you live in. While the company is available in all 50 states for either standard debt relief or tax debt relief, it offers only one or the other in certain states. For example, tax debt relief is not available in Pennsylvania, and standard debt relief is not available in Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, Nevada, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont or West Virginia.

Some of our favorite things about CuraDebt include:

• Low debt minimum
• Variety of debt relief services offered

Consider these factors before hiring CuraDebt:

• Limited services in select states
• Limited weekend support

Relatively few ConsumerAffairs readers have left reviews of their experience with CuraDebt. But the majority of those that did report on their experience with CuraDebt were impressed by its customer service. Sean from Temecula, California, said: “I received friendly and helpful service. They seemed to have a genuine caring for my situation and helped me understand everything.”

Negative feedback we received about CuraDebt included complaints that the company’s debt settlement process and fee structure were confusing.

New Era Debt Solutions has helped clients settle over $275 million of debt since it was founded in 1999. It offers a free debt analysis and does not charge upfront fees. Fees can range from 14% to 23% of the original debt amount you enrolled in the program. While New Era Debt Solutions is available in most states, it does not operate in Iowa, Maine or Oregon.

New Era Debt Solutions can help clients settle debts from credit cards, department store cards, medical bills, personal loans and private student loans, among other types of unsecured debt. Its clients have historically completed their debt settlement programs in an average of 27.73 months.

Some notable features of New Era Debt Solutions are:

• Low average program completion time
• Low debt minimum

Consider these drawbacks before choosing New Era Debt Solutions:

• Fees not published on site
• Not available in all states

Some ConsumerAffairs readers reported choosing New Era Debt Solutions because its fees were more affordable than competitors’ fees. Other customers praised the company’s impressive level of knowledge. “Their customer service is outstanding; their fees are very reasonable, collecting only when a debt is settled, and they are beyond knowledgeable,” said Samuel from Little Rock, Arkansas. “They settled all my debts, and now I am debt-free!”

New Era Debt Solutions has received a relatively limited amount of negative feedback on our site. Some customers complained about communication issues with New Era Debt Solutions and noted that the details of its debt settlement programs were unclear to them or difficult to ascertain.

Accredited Debt Relief, a DBA of Beyond Finance, LLC, operates in 31 states plus Washington, D.C. It works with clients who have over $10,000 of unsecured debts, like credit card debts, medical bills, some personal loans and payday loans; it cannot help with car loans, mortgages or student loan debt.

To enroll in the program, you’ll need at least $10,000 of debt, and the company states the average client can reduce their debt load to 55%. While the company does not charge money upfront, expect to pay between 15% to 25% of your debt balances at the time of enrollment, depending on your location. This is similar to many of its competitors.

Accredited Debt Relief says that the program can be canceled at any time without penalty and has a money-back guarantee. However, the company’s website is not transparent about how to cancel and if there are any exclusions to this guarantee.

While Accredited Debt Relief does not offer 24/7 customer service, clients can contact a representative seven days a week by either phone or email. The company is also transparent about its terms of services, allowing prospective clients to read them online prior to enrolling, and there is an extensive FAQ page.

It’s a member of the AFCC and has high customer service ratings on several user-reviewed sites.

Some of the pros of using Accredited Debt Relief include:

• No upfront fees and a money-back guarantee
• Free consultation
• Weekend customer service hours

Before enrolling with Accredited Debt Relief, make sure to consider:

• Only available in 31 states
• Fees as high as 25%
• Not available for all types of debts

Many ConsumerAffairs readers who enrolled with Accredited Debt Relief rated it highly because they felt heard by the consolidation specialist. “Unlike many companies, I did not feel like (the consolidation specialist) was reading a script or a set of questions and answers. ADR clearly trains their customer service representatives to hold genuine conversations and see their customers as real people instead of just a credit report,” one customer from Alabama said.

The most recent complaints include the difficulties around canceling the program, with clients reporting they did not receive responses to their cancellation requests.

National Debt Relief has helped over 400,000 individuals settle unsecured debt since 2009, including some private student loan and business debt. It can also help with repossessions, collections and medical bills. National Debt Relief claims to have established relationships with over 10,000 creditors. Eligible candidates should have at least $10,000 in unsecured debt.

The company is transparent about how much money a client can save, and clients pay no fees until their debts are settled. The average client can save 50%, but after National Debt Relief’s fee, that amounts to a savings of about 30%. Most clients will see debt relief between 24 and 48 months if they stick with the program.

You can request a free consultation online. There are no upfront costs, and there’s no cancellation fee. National Debt Relief hosts free calculators on its site to help you manage your money, and it also hosts a large library of educational personal finance resources.

Here are a few of our favorite things about National Debt Relief:

• Works with private student loans and business debts
• Offers a satisfaction guarantee
• No upfront fees

Some things we don’t love about National Debt Relief are:

• Not available in all states
• Fees as high as 25%

A number of ConsumerAffairs reviewers appreciated that National Debt Relief’s debt coaches were sympathetic, helpful and uplifting. Veronica from Tupelo, Mississippi, said that the National Debt Relief employee she connected with “was very honest and upfront with my situation and found me a plan where I could pay back my debtors in a time frame and with a payment plan I could afford and be able to have money for groceries each month.”

Some of the negative reviews indicated that the debt settlement process took a long time and that it was hard to cancel and recoup funds after debtors decided to leave the program.

Based in San Diego, California, Pacific Debt Inc. has settled over $300 million in debt. To qualify, customers must have at least $10,000 of unsecured debt. Payday loan debts and business debts are eligible. It can also settle some student loan debts. Its fee can be as low as 15% of your enrolled debt.

Pacific Debt Relief is available in 29 states and in Washington, D.C. On its website, you can find specific debt collection information and laws for each state.

Pacific Debt Relief is clear that debt settlement is not the right move for everyone and that enrolling in its program can hurt your credit score, send debt accounts into collections and have tax ramifications.

Some reasons to consider Pacific Debt Relief are:

• No upfront fees
• Free consultation
• Can help with some business and student loan debts

Some things to consider include:

• Not available in every state
• Relatively weak website navigation

Many ConsumerAffairs reviewers found Pacific Debt Relief’s employees to be accessible, knowledgeable and reassuring. Ls of Brooklyn, New York, loved working with Pacific Debt Relief’s director of client experience and characterized her as being “dedicated and professional, with so much insightful information. … Her communication is precise, consistent and personable!”

While most reviews are positive, some customers felt that the debt settlement process took too long. Others indicated that the settlement process hurt their credit scores more than they’d anticipated.

CountryWide Debt Relief works with debt from credit cards, payday loans, installment loans, medical collections, deficiency balances on auto loans and personal lines of credit. Its programs take 24 to 60 months to complete.

The company charges a fee of 25% of enrolled debt, and it says that dedicated customers who go through the program can expect to save 25% to 30% on their debt after its fee.

Unlike many other debt settlement companies, CountryWide also refers debtors to partner lenders offering debt consolidation loans.

We think that CountryWide Debt Relief has the following notable benefits:

• No upfront costs
• Free consultation
• Online qualification check

Individuals should consider the following before choosing CountryWide Debt Relief:

• Not available in all states
• Not accredited through the IAPDA

A number of ConsumerAffairs reviewers felt that CountryWide was able to help them get out of debt and avoid legal issues or harassment from collection agencies. “They had a computer program that told them what the minimum was that I could pay per month and set up an automatic debit out of my account. The program worked for me in handling the legal issues and negotiating for me,” said Carol from Fresno, California.

Some of the comparatively few negative reviews expressed frustration with the amount of time CountryWide took to negotiate with creditors. Other negative reviews complained about communication issues with CountryWide, as well as challenges navigating the company’s website.