SBA loan programs
SBA 7(a) loan: what it costs and how it is built
The 7(a) is SBA’s main loan: up to $5,000,000, made by a bank and partly guaranteed by SBA. Type a quote below to see the fee, the cap and the payment.
Independent site, not a lender and not affiliated with the U.S. Small Business Administration. Loans are applied for only with an SBA lender.
SBA 7(a) loan: fee, maximum rate, payment and total cost
Example, not your result yet· change a figure to see yours
Monthly payment
$4,680
| SBA guaranty fee, added to the loan | $7,875 |
| SBA cap (highest rate) | 11.50% |
| Interest, all years | $203,718 |
| Total: fee + interest | $211,593 |
| True yearly cost, fee included | 10.28% |
| Your rate vs. last year’s loans | about the median for this size |
Prime rate 7.00% on November 2, 2026. SBA fee for loans approved from October 1, 2026. Your rate is compared on its margin over prime, so the change in prime since last year does not count against you. Last year’s loans: the 7(a) loans SBA approved from October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026 (fiscal year 2026), in SBA’s public loan file of September 30, 2026.
An SBA 7(a) loan is a business loan made by a bank, credit union or licensed lender and guaranteed in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The loan can reach $5,000,000; SBA guarantees 85% of loans up to $150,000 and 75% above, with at most $3,750,000 guaranteed. Terms run up to 10 years for working capital and equipment and 25 years for real estate. The lender sets the rate, but SBA’s lending rules cap it: on a variable loan, prime plus 6.5 points up to $50,000, falling to prime plus 3.0 above $350,000. With prime at 7.00% on November 2, 2026, that is 13.50% to 10.00%. The borrower also pays a one-time guaranty fee, 2% to 3.75% of the guaranteed part under the FY 2027 schedule. In FY 2026, 56,130 7(a) loans were approved, with a median of $220,000.
Fee notices read and loan file counted by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method and sources
How the loan is put together
SBA does not hand out the money. A lender approves the loan on its own credit judgment, and SBA guarantees part of it: if the borrower defaults, SBA repays the lender that share after the collateral is sold. That guarantee is what lets a bank lend to a business it would otherwise turn down, for a longer term or with less collateral. In exchange, the lender must follow SBA’s lending rules, its Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), and charge no more than SBA’s maximum rate.
Most loans are decided by Preferred Lenders, banks that SBA allows to approve loans themselves without sending the file to SBA: 60.9% of FY 2026 approvals. Another 34.3% went through SBA Express, which has a smaller guaranty and a $500,000 ceiling.
The rate ceiling, step by step
The cap depends on the amount, and it gets tighter as the loan gets larger. Most variable loans are pegged to the prime rate in effect on the first business day of the month, 7.00% for November 2026. SBA’s rules also allow a few other base rates, which the loan contract would name.
| Loan amount | Variable cap | Today | Fixed cap | Median rate at approval, FY 2026 | Median rate if priced today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0 to $50,000 | prime + 6.5 | 13.50% | prime + 7 to 8 | 10.99% | 11.15% |
| $50,001 to $250,000 | prime + 6.0 | 13.00% | prime + 6 | 9.75% | 10.00% |
| $250,001 to $350,000 | prime + 4.5 | 11.50% | prime + 5 | 9.75% | 9.75% |
| over $350,000 | prime + 3.0 | 10.00% | prime + 5 | 8.75% | 9.00% |
The last two columns are what borrowers actually got, then and on today’s prime. Across all sizes, 11.0% of variable loans were priced at the ceiling, but the share is 31.0% for loans of $50,000 or less. Read more on the rates page.
What the cap is worth on a real loan
Take $350,000 over 10 years with the $7,875 fee added to the balance. At the maximum, 11.50%, the payment is $5,032 a month and the interest $245,912. At the FY 2026 median margin for that size, on today’s prime, 9.75%, it is $4,680 and $203,718: $42,194 less over the life of the loan for the same SBA guarantee.
Fees the borrower pays, and one it does not
The guaranty fee is the only fee SBA charges the borrower. Under FY 2027 it is 2% of the guaranteed part up to $150,000, 3% up to $700,000, then 3.5% and 3.75% above $1,000,000 guaranteed; manufacturers, food supply chain businesses and rural businesses pay nothing up to $700,000. Lenders also pay SBA 0.55% a year on the guaranteed balance, and the notice forbids passing it to the borrower. Details are on the guaranty fee page.
Lenders may charge some fees of their own, such as packaging help, within limits set by SBA; ask for them in writing with the quote. A loan of 15 years or more also carries a prepayment fee in its first three years.