Principal Product Designer, HELOC

About Upstart

Upstart is the leading AI lending marketplace partnering with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit. By leveraging Upstart's AI marketplace, Upstart-powered banks and credit unions can have higher approval rates and lower loss rates across races, ages, and genders, while simultaneously delivering the exceptional digital-first lending experience their customers demand. More than 80% of borrowers are approved instantly, with zero documentation to upload.

Upstart is a digital-first company, which means that most Upstarters live and work anywhere in the United States. However, we also have offices in San Mateo, California; Columbus, Ohio; and Austin, Texas.

Most Upstarters join us because they connect with our mission of enabling access to effortless credit based on true risk. If you are energized by the impact you can make at Upstart, we’d love to hear from you!

The Team

Upstart’s Home Lending team is tackling one of the most complex, high-stakes financial decisions people make: borrowing against their home. We’re building products that bring speed, simplicity, and inclusivity to an industry notorious for its friction and opacity. Our first offering—a radically faster, more accessible Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)—is already gaining strong traction. Now we’re expanding the team to scale our HELOC experience and lay the foundation for future mortgage products.

As a Principal Product Designer on Home Lending, you’ll shape the end-to-end experience for Upstart’s HELOC product, rethinking the application journey from the ground up. You’ll own the design strategy across acquisition, onboarding, qualification, pricing, and offer presentation—creating an experience that is intuitive, elegant, and grounded in trust. You’ll partner closely with Product, Engineering, Machine Learning, and Legal/Compliance to ensure that the experience meets both user needs and regulatory standards. And you'll mentor other designers as we grow the team and the product.

Position Location - This role is available in the following locations: Remote

Travel Requirements - As a digital first company, the majority of your work can be accomplished remotely. The majority of our employees can live and work anywhere in the U.S but are encouraged to to still spend high quality time in-person collaborating via regular onsites. The in-person sessions’ cadence varies depending on the team and role; most teams meet once or twice per quarter for 2-4 consecutive days at a time.

How you’ll make an impact:

• Lead design strategy and execution for the full HELOC application funnel
• Craft elegant, empowering experiences that simplify complex financial decisions
• Collaborate across PM, Engineering, ML, and Compliance to shape roadmap and execution
• Design across web, mobile, and email to ensure consistency and platform optimization
• Conduct research and usability testing to uncover insights and validate decisions
• Define scalable design patterns and systems to support future product expansion
• Balance clarity, empathy, and compliance in a high-trust product environment
• Mentor other designers and shape the evolution of Upstart’s design culture and practices

What we’re looking for:

• Minimum requirements:

• 10+ years of experience designing consumer-facing digital products, ideally in fintech or high-stakes decision environments

• Strong portfolio showcasing intuitive UX, high design quality, and measurable business impact

• Experience leading design for complex, multi-step flows (e.g., eligibility, pricing, personalization)

• Mastery of interaction design, visual design, and systems thinking

• Strong collaborator with product, engineering, legal, and data partners

• Skilled in design rationale, facilitation, and navigating ambiguity

• Fluency with modern design and research tools (Figma, UserTesting, etc.)

• Proven ability to guide and mentor design talent across teams

• Preferred qualifications:

• Experience designing financial products involving qualification, lending, or regulatory compliance

• Familiarity with experimentation, funnel optimization, and growth-oriented design

• Background in behavioral science, service design, or decision architecture

• Experience working within and contributing to design systems

• Commitment to accessibility and inclusive design standards

What you'll love:

• Competitive Compensation (base + bonus & equity)
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart
• 401(k) with 100% company match up to $4,500 and immediate vesting and after-tax savings
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
• Life and disability insurance
• Generous holiday, vacation, sick and safety leave
• Supportive parental, family care, and military leave programs
• Annual wellness, technology & ergonomic reimbursement programs
• Social activities including team events and onsites, all-company updates, employee resource groups (ERGs), and other interest groups such as book clubs, fitness, investing, and volunteering
• Catered lunches + snacks & drinks when working in offices

At Upstart, your base pay is one part of your total compensation package. The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the below range. Your actual base pay will depend on your geographic location–with our “digital first” philosophy, Upstart uses compensation regions that vary depending on location. Individual pay is also determined by job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

In addition, Upstart provides employees with target bonuses, equity compensation, and generous benefits packages (including medical, dental, vision, and 401k).

United States | Remote - Anticipated Base Salary Range

$198,700—$275,000 USD

Upstart is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer. We are dedicated to ensuring that underrepresented classes receive better access to affordable credit, and are just as committed to embracing diversity and inclusion in our hiring practices. We celebrate all cultures, backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences, and know that we can only become better together.

If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please email _candidate_accommodations@upstart.com

_https://www.upstart.com/candidate_privacy_policy