SBA Loan Rates and Fees
What an SBA loan actually costs — the rate ceilings SBA sets, the guaranty fee most borrowers underestimate, and the lender and third-party charges that show up later. Current figures, with every number sourced.
Every rate on this page is a maximum allowable rate set by the SBA — a ceiling, not a quote and not a typical offer. Lenders routinely price below these caps. Fundur is a financing marketplace, not a lender and not affiliated with the SBA; we don't set these rates or guarantee any of them.
- $50,000 or less
- 13.25%
- $50,001 – $250,000
- 12.75%
- $250,001 – $350,000
- 11.25%
- Over $350,000
- 9.75%
Fixed-rate maximums differ and use different loan-size breakpoints — see below.
What SBA loan rates are right now
An SBA 7(a) rate is a base rate plus a lender spread. SBA caps the spread; the lender sets it within that cap. So the numbers below are ceilings — the highest a lender is permitted to charge — not what you should expect to be offered.
Variable-rate maximums
| Gross loan amount | Maximum spread | Maximum rate today |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 or less | Base + 6.5% | 13.25% |
| $50,001 – $250,000 | Base + 6.0% | 12.75% |
| $250,001 – $350,000 | Base + 4.5% | 11.25% |
| Over $350,000 | Base + 3.0% | 9.75% |
SBA caps the spread; lenders set the actual spread within it. Most lenders use the WSJ Prime Rate as base; SBA permits certain alternative base rates. Rates shown are ceilings, not offers.
Source: SBA, 7(a) terms, conditions and eligibility. Prime: Federal Reserve H.15, August 19, 2026.
Fixed-rate maximums
| Gross loan amount | Maximum fixed rate |
|---|---|
| $25,000 or less | 14.75% |
| $25,001 – $50,000 | 13.75% |
| $50,001 – $250,000 | 12.75% |
| Over $250,000 | 11.75% |
SBA publishes these monthly. The August 2026 schedule uses a 6.75% fixed base rate. Loan-size breakpoints differ from the variable schedule.
Source: SBA Fiscal Transfer Agent, Maximum Allowable Fixed Rate for 7(a) Loans, published August 7, 2026.
Fixed-rate maximums break at $25,000, $50,000 and $250,000. Variable-rate maximums break at $50,000, $250,000 and $350,000. A $300,000 loan is capped at 9.75% variable but 11.75% fixed — same loan, a two-point difference, purely because the two schedules are drawn differently. Worth asking your lender about directly.
Why your actual rate is usually lower
Lenders compete on spread. A borrower with strong cash flow, real collateral and a clean credit history is often priced well under the cap, while a marginal file gets pushed toward it. Loan size matters to the ceiling too: the SBA maximum spread drops from 4.5% to 3.0% once the loan amount exceeds $350,000. That changes the allowable ceiling — not necessarily the rate a lender will actually offer.
Nothing here is a quote. The only way to know your rate is to see actual offers on your actual file.
What SBA 7(a) borrowers actually paid
Everything above describes what the SBA allows a lender to charge. This section is different: it is what lenders actually recorded. Fundur analysed 302,513 SBA 7(a) loans approved in fiscal years 2020–2025 from the SBA’s own loan-level FOIA dataset. The figure SBA records for each loan is the initial note rate at approval — the base rate plus the lender’s spread on the day the loan was approved. It is not an APR, and it does not include the guaranty fee or closing costs described above.
Smaller approvals carried higher rates — in every year we analysed
In fiscal year 2025 the median initial note rate was 10.99% on approvals of $50,000 or less and 9.50% on approvals over $350,000 — a gap of 1.49 percentage points. The same direction held in all six fiscal years, and in all 24 individual calendar quarters we tested.
| Gross approval amount | SBA maximum spread | Median initial note rate | Loans |
|---|---|---|---|
| $50k or less | Base + 6.5% | 10.99% | 15,255 |
| $50k-$250k | Base + 6.0% | 10.50% | 22,325 |
| $250k-$350k | Base + 4.5% | 10.25% | 5,471 |
| Over $350k | Base + 3.0% | 9.50% | 21,040 |
The size bands are SBA’s own regulatory spread tiers, not bands we invented. SBA permits a wider spread on smaller loans — a 3.5-point difference between the smallest and largest tiers. The observed gap within a single year is roughly 0.75 to 1.5 points, so lenders are using well under half of the extra headroom the rules allow. This is an observed association in approval records; it is not a statement about why any individual loan was priced as it was.
The rate cycle, as approvals recorded it
Median initial note rates moved from 5.50% in FY2021 to a peak of 11.25% in FY2024, easing to 10.25% in FY2025. The shaded band shows the middle half of loans in each year.
| Fiscal year | Median | Middle half (25th–75th percentile) | Loans |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | 6.00% | 5.25% – 7.50% | 36,483 |
| FY2021 | 5.50% | 4.75% – 6.00% | 45,329 |
| FY2022 | 6.00% | 5.35% – 7.50% | 42,246 |
| FY2023 | 10.25% | 9.00% – 11.25% | 51,747 |
| FY2024 | 11.25% | 10.25% – 11.50% | 62,617 |
| FY2025 | 10.25% | 9.49% – 10.75% | 64,091 |
SBA fiscal years run October to September. FY2026 is not shown: the snapshot we analysed ends 2026-06-30, which is only nine of its twelve months, and a partial year is not comparable with complete ones.
Why the “average” SBA loan looks bigger than a typical one
In FY2025 the median approval — the midpoint, where half of loans are smaller and half larger — was $180,000. The mean was $500,273, or 2.78 times the median. Both are correct; they measure different things. SBA 7(a) approvals run from a few thousand dollars up to the $5 million program cap, and that long upper tail pulls the mean well above the midpoint. If you want to know what a loan like yours might look like, the median is the more useful number.
| Fiscal year | Median approval | Mean approval | Mean ÷ median |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $200,000 | $534,689 | 2.67× |
| FY2021 | $330,000 | $710,282 | 2.15× |
| FY2022 | $200,000 | $550,167 | 2.75× |
| FY2023 | $150,000 | $476,454 | 3.18× |
| FY2024 | $150,000 | $439,456 | 2.93× |
| FY2025 | $180,000 | $500,273 | 2.78× |
Most SBA 7(a) loans are variable-rate
SBA records whether each loan was fixed or variable. In FY2025, 86.5% of approvals were variable-rate. A variable initial rate is a starting rate that moves with its benchmark afterwards, so it is not directly comparable with a fixed rate over the life of a loan.
| Rate type | Loans | Share | Median initial note rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Variable | 55,408 | 86.5% | 10.25% |
| Fixed | 8,683 | 13.5% | 8.28% |
Fixed and variable loans differ in size, term and product mix as well as in rate structure, so the difference between these two medians is not a like-for-like comparison of what fixing a rate costs.
The data behind this section
These are the aggregate tables this section is built from. They contain no borrower-level records.
- Median initial rate by fiscal year (CSV)
- Median initial rate by loan size and fiscal year (CSV)
- Approval amount, mean vs median, by fiscal year (CSV)
- Median initial rate by fixed vs variable (CSV)
You are welcome to cite or reproduce these figures and charts with attribution to Fundur and a link to this page. Suggested citation: “Fundur analysis of SBA 7(a) FOIA loan-level data, snapshot 2026-06-30.”
How we did this
Source. SBA’s 7(a) & 504 FOIA dataset, 7(a) file covering FY2020 to present, snapshot dated 2026-06-30. SBA publishes it as loan-level records and replaces it roughly quarterly. Analysis run August 2026.
Population. 7(a) only. Complete fiscal years FY2020–FY2025. We required a valid approval date, a positive approval amount, and a recorded rate between 0% and 25%. We excluded cancelled approvals — 12.9% of approvals in this window carry a cancelled status and never funded, so including them would describe something other than what borrowers paid. That leaves 302,513 loans.
The rate figure. SBA records one rate per loan: the initial note rate at approval, base rate plus lender spread. We report the median rather than the mean, because loan sizes and rates are both skewed and the median is the more honest description of a typical loan.
Size bands. SBA’s own maximum-spread tiers, so the comparison lines up with the rules rather than cutting across them.
Privacy. The SBA file contains borrower names and addresses. Those fields are discarded before analysis and appear nowhere in our outputs, which are aggregate only.
What this analysis cannot tell you
- These are approvals, not completed loans. 12.9% of approvals in this period were cancelled. Even among the rest, an approval is not proof of disbursement.
- The rate is a note rate, not an APR. It excludes the guaranty fee, packaging, closing and third-party costs covered earlier on this page.
- It is SBA 7(a) lending only — not conventional bank lending, and not small-business lending generally.
- It describes associations, not causes. Smaller approvals showed higher median rates; this data cannot establish why, and we do not claim to know.
- SBA does not record which base rate a loan used. Lenders may use prime or certain permitted alternatives, so a loan’s rate cannot be decomposed into a base and a spread here.
- It is administrative data. Fields are reported by lenders to SBA for programme administration, not collected for research.
- The size of the gap is not uniform. It varies by SBA program and by lender — from roughly a third of a point to about two points, depending on which loans you compare.
Source: Fundur analysis of SBA 7(a) & 504 FOIA loan-level data, U.S. Small Business Administration, snapshot 2026-06-30. Regulatory spread tiers: SBA, 7(a) terms, conditions and eligibility.
The SBA guaranty fee
This is the one-time fee SBA charges for backing your loan, and it's the cost borrowers most often miscalculate — because it isn't charged on the amount you borrow.
| Gross loan approval amount | Fee rate | Applied to | Example: fee on a typical loan |
|---|---|---|---|
| $150,000 or less | 2% | Guaranteed portion | $150,000 loan → 85% guaranteed ($127,500) → $2,550 |
| $150,001 – $700,000 | 3% | Guaranteed portion | $500,000 loan → 75% guaranteed ($375,000) → $11,250 |
| $700,001 – $5,000,000 | 3.5% | Guaranteed portion up to $1,000,000, plus 3.75% above | $1,500,000 loan → 75% guaranteed ($1,125,000) → $39,687.50 |
| Any amount, maturity 12 months or less | 0.25% | Guaranteed portion | — |
The tier is chosen by gross loan approval amount (guaranteed plus unguaranteed). The percentage applies only to the guaranteed portion. On loans of $150,000 or less the lender may retain up to 25% of the fee; at least 1.5% is remitted to SBA — this does not change what you pay. Fee relief applies to qualifying manufacturing and veteran-owned Express loans (see below). Additional fees apply if a loan is increased or a short-term loan is extended past 12 months.
Source: SBA Information Notice 5000-872051; 13 CFR § 120.220.
Your gross loan amount decides which fee tier you land in. The percentage is then applied only to the guaranteed portion — the slice SBA actually backs, typically 85% on loans up to $150,000 and 75% above that.
A $150,000 loan sits in the 2% tier. But 2% is charged on $127,500, not $150,000 — so the fee is $2,550, about 1.7% of what you borrowed. Read the tier as "which rate applies," never as "what percentage of my loan I'll pay."
When you can finance it into the loan
The lender pays SBA first, then charges you. On loans with maturities over 12 months, that happens after first disbursement — and SBA permits you to use loan proceeds to cover it, so it usually doesn't come out of pocket. If the loan is never disbursed and the lender requests cancellation in writing, SBA refunds the fee.
Fee relief available in fiscal year 2026
Two exceptions are worth checking before you accept a fee quote.
Manufacturers. 7(a) loans of $950,000 or less to businesses in NAICS sectors 31–33 carry a 0% upfront fee through September 30, 2026. On an $800,000 loan that's roughly $21,000 saved. This relief does not apply to MARC loans (Manufacturers' Access to Revolving Credit, SBA's newer revolving facility for manufacturers) — worth confirming which product you're actually being offered. If you're in this category, our manufacturing financing page covers the wider picture.
Veteran-owned businesses. SBA Express loans to businesses owned and controlled by a veteran or a veteran's spouse carry a $0 upfront fee, under section 7(a)(31)(G) of the Small Business Act. Your lender documents the eligibility.
Both are fiscal-year provisions. They expire September 30, 2026 unless renewed.
If you're approved for two or more 7(a) loans with maturities over 12 months within 90 days of each other — including loans to your affiliates, and including loans from different lenders — SBA combines them to determine both the guaranty percentage and the upfront fee. Splitting a request across loans to land in a cheaper tier doesn't work, and lenders aren't permitted to structure it that way.
Working Capital Pilot loans are priced differently
The 7(a) Working Capital Pilot (WCP) charges by maturity rather than loan size:
| WCP loan maturity | Upfront fee (of guaranteed portion) |
|---|---|
| 12 months or less | 0.25% |
| 13 – 24 months | 0.525% |
| 25 – 36 months | 0.80% |
| 37 – 48 months | 1.075% |
| 49 – 60 months | 1.35% |
WCP is priced by maturity, not loan size. Export Working Capital loans use a similar maturity-based schedule. WCP loans also carry the 0.55% annual service fee.
Source: SBA Information Notice 5000-872051.
Who sets each fee, who pays it, and whether it can reach you
"SBA loan fees" is really three different things wearing one label. One is set by SBA and reaches you. One is set by SBA and is legally barred from reaching you. The rest come from your lender or a third party and vary by transaction. Knowing which is which is most of what protects you at closing.
Upfront guaranty fee
The lender pays SBA first, then may pass it through to you, and it can usually be financed into the loan.
Annual service fee — 0.55%
Lender-paid; it cannot be charged to the borrower.
Lender & third-party costs
Depends on the transaction, and each is capped or limited by regulation.
Source: 13 CFR §§ 120.220–120.221; SBA Information Notice 5000-872051.
These are the third card above, itemised. None is automatic — whether you see them depends on your deal, and several are capped by federal regulation. Ask your lender for its written fee schedule.
- Packaging or service feeLender-set. Must be reasonable and customary for your area, and the lender must tell you in writing that the service is optional.
- Late payment feeLender-set. Capped at 5% of the regular payment.
- Extraordinary servicingLender-set, rare. Up to 2% per year on the portion serviced, and needs prior SBA approval.
- Legal feesBilled hourly at actual cost by the lender's counsel.
- Filing and recordingPaid to government. Actual out-of-pocket cost only.
- Appraisal or valuationThird-party vendor. Situational; price varies by market.
- Business valuationThird-party vendor. Typically acquisitions only.
- Environmental reviewThird-party vendor. Real-estate transactions.
- Title and surveyThird-party vendor. Real estate only.
Where a cost is described as varying, no authoritative national figure exists — these are market-priced and quoted per transaction, so we don't publish invented averages.
Source: 13 CFR § 120.221.
SBA charges lenders 0.55% per year on the outstanding guaranteed balance of every 7(a) loan, including WCP loans. The notice is explicit: lenders may not pass the Lender's Annual Service Fee on to the Borrower. If you see this itemized as a borrower charge, question it.
It's still worth understanding, because it shapes what you're offered. Through fiscal 2025, loans under certain thresholds were exempt — smaller loans carried no annual fee at all. That relief ended March 26, 2025. In fiscal 2026 every 7(a) loan carries it, which puts quiet pressure on lender spreads at the small end of the market.
What your lender and third parties can charge
Federal regulation limits what a lender may collect from an SBA borrower, but within those limits there's real variation. These are the charges to ask about in writing before you sign.
Under 13 CFR § 120.221 a lender may charge a reasonable packaging or service fee — reasonable meaning customary for similar lenders in your area — but is required to inform you in writing that the service is optional. A packaging fee presented as mandatory is a question worth asking twice.
How intermediary compensation gets disclosed
When someone is paid for packaging, referring, or brokering an SBA loan, that compensation has to be disclosed on SBA Form 159 — whether the applicant or the lender pays it, and aggregating across multiple services or applications toward a $2,500 threshold. Not every SBA loan involves a paid intermediary, so not every borrower will see one.
We mention it because the section above is about scrutinizing intermediary fees, and we're an intermediary. If a paid intermediary is involved in your loan — us or anyone else — ask your lender for the Form 159 covering it. It shows who was paid, how much, and by whom.
For how these costs compare across financing types generally — interest rates, factor rates, APR and total cost — see business loan rates and costs.
Can you pay an SBA loan off early?
Usually yes, without penalty. SBA's prepayment charge — formally the subsidy recoupment fee — only reaches loans with long maturities, and only when you pay down a large chunk fast.
| Loan maturity | Trigger | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | After year 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 years or more | Voluntary prepayments over 25% of highest outstanding principal, within that 12-month period | 5% | 3% | 1% | None |
| Under 15 years | — | None | None | None | None |
Percentages apply to the prepaid amount. Periods run from initial disbursement. Lenders may set separate prepayment terms not governed by this rule.
Source: 13 CFR § 120.223.
Three conditions must all be true for the fee to apply: the loan's maturity is 15 years or more, you make voluntary prepayments totalling more than 25% of the highest outstanding principal balance, and you do it within one of the first three 12-month periods after initial disbursement. Miss any one and there's no SBA fee.
In practice this means most 10-year working-capital and equipment loans can be prepaid freely. It's real-estate loans — 25-year terms — where an early refinance gets expensive.
Your lender may have its own prepayment terms. Those are separate from SBA's rule and separate from this table. Check the note in your loan agreement, not just this page.
What this actually costs
Four scenarios at SBA's maximum allowable rate. Every SBA-defined figure is calculated from the published fee schedule and rate caps. Payments are illustrative arithmetic, not offers — and because they're computed at the cap, a real offer priced below the cap will come in lower.
$150,000 working capital
10-year term · variable rate · 7(a) Small Loan
- Guaranty percentage85%
- Guaranteed portion$127,500
- Fee tier ($150,000 or less)2%
- Upfront guaranty fee$2,550
- That's about 1.7% of the amount borrowed. Annual service fee of 0.55% is paid by the lender and cannot be charged to you. No SBA prepayment fee on a 10-year term.
Varies: packaging fee, filing and recording costs.
$500,000 expansion
10-year term · variable rate · Standard 7(a)
- Guaranty percentage75%
- Guaranteed portion$375,000
- Fee tier ($150,001–$700,000)3%
- Upfront guaranty fee$11,250
- No SBA prepayment fee on a 10-year term.
Varies: packaging, legal, filing.
$1,500,000 owner-occupied real estate
25-year term · variable rate
- Guaranty percentage75%
- Guaranteed portion$1,125,000
- 3.5% on first $1,000,000$35,000
- 3.75% on remaining $125,000$4,687.50
- Upfront guaranty fee$39,687.50
- A 25-year maturity triggers the prepayment rule: repaying more than $375,000 in year one would cost 5% of the prepaid amount.
Varies: appraisal, environmental review, title, survey, legal.
$800,000 manufacturing equipment
10-year term · variable rate · NAICS 31–33
- Guaranty percentage75%
- Guaranteed portion$600,000
- Fee tier ($700,001–$5,000,000)3.5%
- Standard fee would be$21,000
- FY 2026 manufacturing waiver$0
- The waiver does not apply to MARC loans, and expires September 30, 2026.
Varies: equipment appraisal, filing.
How SBA costs compare with other business financing
SBA loans can offer lower rates and longer repayment terms than many conventional small-business financing options, but typically require more documentation and take longer to close. That trade-off is the whole decision.
| Financing type | Cost structure | Typical term | Speed to funding |
|---|---|---|---|
| SBA 7(a) | Base rate + capped spread, plus one-time guaranty fee | 10 yrs; 25 yrs for real estate | Weeks to months |
| Business term loan | Interest rate, fixed payments | 1 – 5 yrs | Days |
| Business line of credit | Interest on the drawn balance only | Revolving | Days |
| Equipment financing | Rate secured against the asset | Tied to equipment life | Days |
Deliberately high-level. Structures aren't directly comparable by headline number.
Comparing across products means comparing structures, not headline numbers: an interest rate and a factor rate aren't the same measurement, and a shorter term can cost less in total while costing far more per month. We break that down in detail on business loan rates and costs.
If the SBA timeline doesn't fit — and for a lot of urgent needs it doesn't — the realistic alternatives are a working capital loan, a business line of credit, or equipment financing.
SBA rate and fee questions
What's the interest rate on an SBA loan right now?
As of August 20, 2026, with Prime at 6.75%, SBA's maximum allowable variable rates run from 9.75% on loans over $350,000 to 13.25% on loans of $50,000 or less. Those are ceilings. Well-qualified borrowers are frequently priced below them, and the actual rate depends on your lender, your file, and whether you choose fixed or variable.
Is the SBA guaranty fee charged on my whole loan?
No. It's charged on the guaranteed portion — typically 85% of loans up to $150,000 and 75% above that. Your gross loan amount only determines which percentage tier applies. That's why a $150,000 loan in the "2%" tier produces a $2,550 fee rather than $3,000.
Can I roll the guaranty fee into the loan?
Generally yes. SBA permits borrowers to use loan proceeds to pay the guaranty fee, and the lender charges it to you only after paying SBA — on longer-maturity loans, after first disbursement.
What is the 0.55% annual service fee and will I be charged it?
It's SBA's ongoing fee to your lender, calculated on the outstanding guaranteed balance. Lenders are prohibited from passing it on to you. You shouldn't see it as a line item on your bill.
Do SBA loans have a prepayment penalty?
Only loans with maturities of 15 years or more, and only if you prepay more than 25% of the highest outstanding balance within the first three years — 5% of the prepaid amount in year one, 3% in year two, 1% in year three, nothing after. Most 10-year loans have no SBA prepayment fee, though your lender may impose its own terms.
Are there any fee waivers available in 2026?
Two. Manufacturing businesses in NAICS 31–33 pay no upfront fee on 7(a) loans of $950,000 or less (excluding MARC loans), and SBA Express loans to veteran-owned businesses carry a $0 upfront fee. Both run through September 30, 2026.
Does Fundur set these rates?
No. SBA sets the rate ceilings and the guaranty fee; your lender sets the spread and its own permitted fees. Fundur is a financing marketplace — we help you compare offers from multiple lenders. We're not a lender, not the SBA, and not affiliated with it.
Where these numbers come from
Rate and fee figures on this page come from SBA and Federal Reserve primary sources, not from third-party summaries. We re-check them on the schedule shown at the top of the page.
Last factual review: August 20, 2026 · Next scheduled review: October 1, 2026, when SBA's fiscal year 2027 fee schedule takes effect.
See what SBA lenders would actually offer you
Published maximums only tell you the ceiling. The rate and fee package on your file depends on the lender — which is exactly why comparing more than one matters. Fundur is a financing marketplace: one application, compared across SBA lenders in our network.
Compare SBA offers from multiple lendersNot sure SBA is the right fit? See how SBA compares with other financing →