Best Equipment Financing for Small Business

What separates the top picks for business equipment financing?

Four lenders sit on this page, and the gap between them is mostly about cost versus speed. Funding Circle scores 8.5 and prices from 7.49% annual interest, with monthly repayments, no prepayment penalty and terms up to seven years. Lendio scores 8.3 and is free to use — one form, one soft credit pull, offers from a panel of 75+ lenders. SBA 7(a) Loans score 8.2 at Prime + 3–6.5%, capped by statute, but 30 to 90 days from application to funds. National Funding scores 7.8 with factor rates from 1.10 and a $250,000 minimum annual revenue.

Read the liked and disliked lists together. Funding Circle's origination fee runs up to 8.99% taken off the top, and it wants two years of trading and a 660 score. Lendio is a broker, so the commission is priced into the loan somewhere. The SBA route wants tax returns, projections, a debt schedule and collateral. National Funding quotes factor rates, not APRs.

What should I check before choosing a lender?

Our scoring puts 30 points on the true cost of borrowing, 25 on who can qualify, 15 each on speed and process, terms and flexibility, and transparency. Work through those in order.

• Cost: convert every quote to an APR before comparing. National Funding's factor rates from 1.10 are not an APR until you do that.
• Qualification: a 660 score and two years of trading for Funding Circle; a 600 score can still finance a $100,000 machine at National Funding because the equipment is the collateral.
• Speed: Lendio shows you the market in one application; the SBA takes 30 to 90 days.
• Terms: the SBA runs up to 10 years for working capital and 25 for real estate, with no balloon payments and no prepayment penalty under 15-year terms.
• Transparency: ask what comes off the top. Funding Circle's origination fee is the one to watch.

Funding Circle

Best for established businesses that want bank-like rates on a term loan without the bank timetable. Monthly repayments suit cash flow, and paying early genuinely saves interest.

Lendio

Best for borrowers who want to see what the market will offer without filling in eight forms. Expect follow-up calls and emails from multiple lenders.

SBA 7(a) Loans

Best for businesses that can produce the paperwork and wait a month for the cheapest money a small business can borrow.

National Funding

Best for financing a specific machine when credit is softer than an unsecured loan of the same size would allow. Up to $150,000 for equipment with no separate down payment on some deals.

Funding Circle suits established businesses that want monthly repayments and no prepayment penalty. Lendio suits anyone who wants one application sent to 75+ lenders before committing. SBA 7(a) Loans suit borrowers who can wait 30 to 90 days for capped rates, and National Funding suits a 600 score financing a machine against the equipment itself.