How long do you have to be in business to get a loan?
You can get a business loan with as little as 3–6 months in business, from the right lender. Alternative lenders routinely fund companies that young, provided revenue is around $10K+ per month. Banks are a different story: most want 2+ years of history before pricing you at their roughly 7% median rates, and SBA approvals are strongest at the 2-year mark too. So the real question isn't "am I old enough?": it's "which lenders fund businesses my age, and at what cost?" Quordx Capital answers that in one application instead of twenty.
Last updated · Reviewed by Cody Dreis
50+ Lenders|Funding in as little as 24 hours
Time-in-Business Thresholds, Lender by Lender
0–3 months.: The hardest window. Realistic options are business credit cards (underwritten on your personal credit), equipment financing with a down payment, and SBA startup loans for well-prepared founders with ~10% down and 650+ credit.
3–6 months.: Alternative lending opens. Working capital loans, revenue-based products, and some lines of credit become available if monthly deposits run ~$10K+. Pricing is higher than bank rates: that's the toll for youth.
2+ years.: Bank term loans, bank lines of credit (median ~7.2% fixed), and full-strength SBA eligibility. Time in business stops being the constraint; credit and cash flow take over.
A useful rule: each milestone you cross doesn't just add options. It cuts your cost of capital.
Options by Business Age
Working capital loans:: available from ~3–6 months in business with $10K+ monthly revenue. Best for young businesses needing operational cash.
Equipment financing:: open to newer businesses because the asset is collateral. Best for funding gear at any age.
Business lines of credit:: online LOCs reachable earlier; bank LOCs at 2+ years. Best for flexible, recurring needs.
SBA loans:: strongest with 2+ years of history, though startups can qualify with a plan and down payment. Best for the lowest long-term cost.
How Quordx Capital Works
Enter your business details once, the application takes roughly 5 minutes, and our AI matches your time in business, revenue, and credit against 50+ vetted lenders. You get 3–7 matches ranked by approval likelihood, so you're never applying to a lender whose minimum you don't meet. Decisions usually arrive in 24–48 hours; funding follows in 3–7 business days.
What to Expect
If you're under 6 months in business, expect fewer matches and honest pricing context, not a hard sell on the one expensive product you'd qualify for. If you're close to a threshold that changes your options, we'll tell you whether waiting is worth it. The whole process is free to you, with no obligation at any step.
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Important Disclosures
Quordx Capital is a business funding broker, not a lender. We facilitate introductions between U.S. small and medium-sized businesses and lenders or capital providers in our network. All credit decisions, funding amounts, rates, fees, repayment terms, and timelines are determined solely by individual lenders based on their own underwriting criteria.
Funding figures and timelines shown on this page are illustrative and represent ranges within our lender network, they are not guarantees and individual outcomes may vary based on business profile, industry, time in business, revenue, credit history, and lender availability. Not all applicants qualify for every product.
The initial inquiry does not impact your personal credit score. Some lenders may perform a hard credit pull during underwriting; Quordx only authorizes such checks with your specific consent for the lender presenting an offer. Applicants are protected under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) from discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or because all or part of an applicant's income derives from any public-assistance program.
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