Current business funding rates.
Indicative ranges across the most common funding types, plus the benchmarks that move them. Your real rate depends on your profile — we help you land at the low end.
SBA 7(a) — variable
Lowest costThe flexible workhorse — working capital, acquisition, refinance, or real estate up to $5M.
SBA 504
Lowest costOwner-occupied commercial real estate and major equipment, with low down payments.
Conventional term loan
BalancedA lump sum for a defined purpose when you want predictable payments.
Business line of credit
BalancedFlexible, revolving access for recurring or seasonal cash needs.
Equipment financing
BalancedBuy vehicles, machinery, or tech while preserving working capital.
Merchant cash advance
FastFastest cash and easiest approval, but the most expensive — compare before signing.
Five things that decide where you land in the range.
The strongest lever. Higher scores move you toward the bottom of every range; weak credit pushes you up or into costlier products.
More operating history lowers a lender's perceived risk. Two-plus years opens the best programs and rates.
Healthy, consistent cash flow with a DSCR around 1.25× signals you can comfortably carry the payment.
Pledging assets or putting more money down reduces lender risk — and often the rate.
Variable loans move with the prime rate. When the Fed cuts, your payment can fall; when it hikes, it rises.
Want your actual rate, not a range?
A 2-minute pre-qual gives you real numbers from lenders that fit your profile — with no impact to your credit.
See what you qualify for →Understanding business loan rates
A business loan's true cost is rarely one number. Most SBA and bank loans are priced as a benchmark (usually the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate) plus a margin the lender adds for risk and overhead. On variable-rate SBA 7(a) loans, that margin is capped by SBA rules, so even a higher-risk borrower can't be charged an unlimited spread. Fixed-rate options — including the CDC portion of an SBA 504 loan — lock your payment for the life of the loan, while variable rates rise and fall with the Fed. Beyond the headline rate, fees, term length, and how interest is calculated all change what you actually pay. Our Decode Your Offer tool translates any quote into a true APR so you can compare apples to apples, and the qualification estimator shows the range you're likely to see before you ever apply.
Frequently asked questions
Most bank and SBA loans are priced as a benchmark plus a margin. The benchmark is typically the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate; the margin is the spread a lender adds based on your risk profile, the loan size, and the term. On SBA 7(a) loans the spread is capped by the SBA, which keeps pricing within a defined band rather than letting it run unchecked. The stronger your application looks, the closer you land to the bottom of that band. You can see the typical structure for each product on our compare funding types page.
A fixed rate stays the same for the life of the loan, so your payment never changes — useful for budgeting and common on SBA 504 and many equipment loans. A variable rate is tied to a benchmark like Prime, so it moves up when the Fed hikes and down when the Fed cuts. Variable loans, including most SBA 7(a) loans, often start lower but carry the risk of rising payments. Which is better depends on your cash-flow stability and how long you'll hold the loan. Our guide to SBA rates walks through the trade-off in detail.
Five things move you within the range: personal and business credit, time in business, cash flow and debt-service coverage (DSCR), the collateral or down payment you bring, and the prevailing benchmark rate. Lenders generally want a DSCR around 1.15x to 1.25x, meaning your cash flow comfortably covers the new payment. Two or more years in business and clean financials open the best programs. To see where you'd likely fall before applying, try the what can I qualify for tool or check SBA eligibility first.
The interest rate is only part of the cost. SBA loans carry a guaranty fee tied to loan size, and conventional loans may include origination, packaging, underwriting, or servicing fees. Lines of credit can add draw fees or maintenance charges, and merchant cash advances use a factor rate plus fees that translate to a much higher effective APR than the number suggests. Always compare the total cost over the full term, not just the headline rate — our Decode Your Offer tool converts any offer into a true APR so hidden costs surface clearly. Learn the metric lenders watch in our DSCR explainer.
Strengthen the levers lenders price on: raise your personal and business credit scores, build a longer track record of steady deposits, reduce existing debt to improve your DSCR, and offer collateral or a larger down payment where it makes sense. Applying to lenders that actively fund businesses like yours matters too — a strong file at the wrong lender still gets a mediocre offer. As an advisory firm with eight years of experience, we help you present your profile in its best light and match you to fitting lenders. See the full prep list in our SBA loans explained guide.
Two businesses with the same revenue can land far apart because lenders weigh credit, cash-flow consistency, industry risk, collateral, and how the application is packaged. A weak or incomplete file is one of the most common reasons an otherwise solid business gets a high rate or a decline — see the patterns in our breakdown of why applications get denied. Explore the range of options on our funding solutions page, then pre-qualify to get real numbers with no impact to your credit.