Edfinancial Student Loan Servicing Review

What you need to know:

• Edfinancial Services is one of five loan servicers awarded a new contract by the Department of Education to service federal student loans beginning in 2024.
• It is one of the “Big 4” previous federal loan servicers that was awarded a new contract. Others include MOHELA, Nelnet and Aidvantage.
• Edfinancial Services ranks second on Student Loan Planner®’s list of best federal loan servicers.

Edfinancial Services is one of five loan servicers chosen by the U.S. Department of Education to service more than 68 million student loan borrowers. Based in Knoxville, Tennessee, Edfinancial Services is not new to servicing federal loans because it was awarded similar contracts since 2012. That doesn’t mean it's necessarily a good loan servicer, though.

Here’s a detailed look at Edfinancial student loan servicing and what you should be aware of if it’s your new loan servicer.

What is Edfinancial Services?

Edfinancial is a private financial services company with over 25 years of experience in the student loan industry. In addition to servicing student loans for the federal government, Edfinancial Services also handles private student loans.

In 2010, Edfinancial launched a Higher Education Solutions division, now named Edamerica, that provides third-party services to colleges and universities. Services offered include:

• Contact support
• Student engagement
• Default prevention
• Consulting services
• Financial aid support

Student loan servicers don’t originate any student loans themselves. Instead, they manage student loan payments, provide support to borrowers, can discuss payment plans, or process deferment and forbearance requests. If you have federal student loans already, Edfinancial Services may be your current loan servicer.

Edfinancial Services customer feedback

Edfinancial Services has been servicing federal student loans for years, and in that time, it has developed a reputation for poor customer service.

On the surface, Edfinancial Services seems like a reputable student loan servicer — for example, it has an B+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Additionally, based on our survey of the best federal student loan servicers, Edfinancial Services ranks second for existing servicers.

However, Edfinancial doesn’t serve the volume of student loans that other servicers do. 

In our most recent Student Loan Planner® Loan Servicer Survey in 2024, only 17 respondents had Edfinancial student loans. By comparison, we had 266 respondents who had loans serviced by MOHELA.

Out of the 17 responses about Edfinancial, it's clear the loan servicer isn't highly rated. We asked student loan borrowers to rate loan servicers from 1 to 10, with 1 being “Poor.” Eight respondents rated the servicer a 1, three rated the servicer a 2, and the remaining six rated the servicer a 3.

Some of the top complaints from respondents in the 2024 survey include:

“I receive a monthly bill that shows a different amount than what I am charged in autopayment. No one at the company can figure out why and any call backs never actually happen.”

“Applied for IDR on 10/16. Still in process 3 months later. Zero communication.”

“They don’t answer the phone, keep saying I owe a different amount every month (this amount has fluctuated anywhere from $0-$700 per month), they do not respond to emails, call center employees hang up on you after waiting for hours on hold. Very frustrating.”

“Customer service not knowing anything. Also autopay not working.”

Currently, there are about 1,000 complaints about Edfinancial Services from 2020 to present day in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Consumer Complaint Database. This number is likely limited to the pause on federal student loan payments under the CARES Act, which was then extended all the way until August 30, 2023. Among the complaints listed, though, are issues with how payments are applied and errors reporting monthly payments to credit bureaus.

Edfinancial Services is a ‘middle of the road’ servicer

As mentioned earlier, Edfinancial Services ranks No. 2 on our list of the best student loan servicers. That said, there's a lot left to be desired when it comes to the quality of federal student loan servicers.

Student Loan Planner® founder Travis Hornsby said, “Their track record doesn’t suggest they know [income-driven replacement] and can explain it well. However, they don’t have the glaring complaints per million borrowers that some of the other [loan servicers] do.”

What to do if Edfinancial Services is your new servicer

If you have student loans moved to Edfinancial Services, you should receive a letter to inform you of the loan balance transfer. Set up your online account with Edfinancial Services as soon as possible and start making payments. Your loan terms don’t change, but you may lose access to previous payments and other information from your prior servicer.

Edfinancial Services and your old loan servicer are supposed to partner together for a smoother transition, but, based on most federal loan servicers’ track records, that doesn’t always happen.

Take time to make sure your loan information is correct and that all payments made during the transition period (if you continued to make payments) are correctly handled. This is especially important if you need to track payments for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) or other student loan cancellation programs. A good tool you can use for comparison is the National Student Loan Data System, which gives you a detailed look at any student loans you’ve taken out.

How to contact Edfinancial Services about your student loans

Edfinancial Services offers several ways for previous and new borrowers to get support:

Phone support:

Direct Loans (inquiries and payments): 1-855-337-6884
FFELP & Private Loans (inquiries): 1-800-337-6884
FFELP & Private Loans (payments): 1-866-709-0202
Military Members: 1-800-337-6884 or 1-855-337-6884 (option 4)
Business hours are Monday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. (EST), Tuesday and Wednesday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Thursday and Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Mailing a payment:

For Direct Loans, mail payments to:

Edfinancial Services

P.O. Box 36008
Knoxville, TN 37930-6008

For FFELP and private Loans, mail payments to:

Edfinancial Services
P.O. Box 36014

Knoxville, TN 37930-6014

Email Support:

Borrowers can also send general inquiries by email to Edfinancial Services through a contact form on its website.

Military members can reach Edfinancial Services by emailing military@edfinancial.com.

Online chat support:

Live agents are available during normal business hours (listed above).

Edfinancial Services FAQs

Is Edfinancial a federal student loan?

No, Edfinancial Services is a federal loan servicer for the Department of Education. It has been a federal loan servicer since 2012 and was recently awarded a new contract to continue its service to federal borrowers. It does not issue student loans.

Is Edfinancial real?

Yes, Edfinancial is a real federal loan servicer – it isn't a scam. If you already have federal student loans, you may have received a letter from Edfinancial Services stating that it is your new loan servicer. You’ll need to establish an online account with Edfinancial Services and set up payments to remain in good standing.

How do I pay my Edfinancial loan?

Borrowers can make loan payments through Edfinancial Services in several ways, including:

• Automatic payments from your bank account (autopay)
• Online payments
• Through your bank or financial institution’s bill pay service
• Mail-in payments
• Pay by phone

Does Edfinancial have an app?

Edfinancial Services doesn’t currently have a mobile app for its customers.

Navigating Edfinancial Services student loans

Whether you’ve had loans serviced through Edfinancial Services for a while or it was recently assigned as your new servicer, you should understand your loan servicing and repayment options going forward. Unfortunately, you can’t choose your loan servicer unless you consolidate your loans into a Direct Consolidation loan. Even then, there’s no guarantee that the servicer you choose will offer a better experience than your last one.

Refinancing your student loans to a lower interest rate may be a viable solution, but typically our experts recommend private student loan refinancing as a last resort. If you use a student loan refinance lender, you’ll lose access to important federal protections, like repayment plans and student loan forgiveness programs as you'll have a private lender now.

You have options. Student Loan Planner® has helped over 11,500 clients tackle more than $2.4 billion of student loan debt. We work alongside you to create a customized student loan repayment plan that makes sense for you. Reach out today to book a call with one of our experienced student loan consultants.