Cash advances and payday loans have been around for a while now, however some people, who could benefit from these loans, don't know much about them, don't understand the process of getting a loan, or are not sure where they can go to get a payday loan.

The traditional way of taking up a payday loan involved going up to a payday loan counter, or calling them up. In such a scenario, in order to check your credit-worthiness, companies would want you to fax them your credit record and history, or any such information that may be required by you. This information was then checked and verified by the company and your loan approved. This would take anywhere between one to ten days, beating the whole purpose of taking a payday loan, which was to pay for an emergency.

Cash advances and payday loans were traditionally available from stores and business where you walked up to the counter or could call them. In order to check your credit-worthiness you needed to fax them your credit record and history, your latest payroll check, drivers license and a check copy. The information on your application was then checked and verified and your loan was either approved or rejected. This entire process took one day to a number of days before you got an answer or got the cash you needed.

You'll be happy to know that now days you can easily apply payday loans from the comfort of your home, office, or anywhere that you have access to a computer and the Internet.

When you apply online most companies need nothing more from you than your bank account and employment information. You won't need to fax them anything such as your latest payroll check, your drivers license, or anything else, and they don't run your credit report.

When applying online you can get rapid approval, sometimes in only a few minutes. However, as they are depositing the money you're borrowing into your bank account, you probably, depending on your bank, will not be able to access the money until the next day.

If you need the money today, and can't wait until tomorrow, there are still many payday loan stores and business that you can walk into, they are much, much faster than it used to be. Simply look in your yellow pages for the store(s) closest to you. You can even call them as they may have an online application or one that they can fax to you that will speed up the application process.

Even if you do decide to go into a store it would be a good idea for you to go online and research payday loans; comparing rates and learning about the terms, fees, customer service.