PayPal Working Capital and Business Loan: Fast Cash at a Low Barrier to Entry

If you process payments through PayPal, you may qualify for PayPal Working Capital or PayPal Business Loan. One is a merchant cash advance, and both require frequent payments.

PayPal Working Capital Loan

Overview

The bottom line:

PayPal Working Capital is a fast-cash option for PayPal users with bad credit and/or low revenue. But repayment schedules can be aggressive, and the fixed fee structure makes it tricky to compare with other financing options.

Loan details

Min. Loan Amount

$1,000

Max Loan Amount

$300,000

Qualifications

Min. credit score

Min. credit score

300

Min. Time in Business

Min. Time in Business

3 months

Min. Annual Revenue

Min. Annual Revenue

$15,000

Pros & Cons

Pros

    pros icon
    No credit check required.
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    Low minimum revenue requirements based on PayPal sales.
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    Funding available within minutes after approval.

Cons

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    Automatic daily repayments deducted as a percentage of your PayPal sales.
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    Minimum payment of 5% or 10% of your total loan amount every 90 days.
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    Fixed fee structure can make it difficult to compare costs to other loans.
PayPal offers two financing products for business owners: PayPal Working Capital and PayPal Business Loan. If you process payments through PayPal, you may be able to turn to the company for either option.
PayPal Business Loan is a short-term small-business loan. This loan could be helpful if you need quick financing to get you through a short-lived slump — just make sure you’re confident that your sales will recover so you can keep up with weekly repayments.
PayPal Working Capital may be a good fit for new or smaller businesses with inconsistent cash flow. But note that this is not a business loan. PayPal Working Capital is a merchant cash advance. This means you repay the amount borrowed from PayPal through a percentage of your sales. Payments are automatically deducted on days you have sales volume. But MCAs are almost always the most expensive form of financing, and the frequent repayments can impede cash flow.
» LEARN more about merchant cash advances.

How much do you need?

See Your Loan Options

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We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.

Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.

Consider PayPal financing options if you:

  • Have bad credit. PayPal does not consider your credit score for PayPal Working Capital. A sales representative informed us that the minimum credit score requirement for the PayPal Business Loan is typically around 620.
  • Don’t have enough revenue to qualify for other business loans. At $15,000 for PayPal Working Capital and $33,300 for PayPal Business Loan, minimum revenue requirements are among the lowest compared with other business loan products. (Check out our list of the best low-revenue business loans.)
  • Need funding fast. PayPal Business Loan funds can be available the next business day after approval, and the timeline for PayPal Working Capital loans is even shorter.

PayPal financing details

You need a PayPal Business account to be eligible for either of PayPal’s financing options. Both options involve a single, fixed fee over the life of the loan rather than interest. Note that neither of these financing options is available in North Dakota or South Dakota.

PayPal Working Capital

Loan amount
$1,000 to $200,000 (up to $300,000 for repeat borrowers).
Qualification requirements
  • 90 days of PayPal Premier or Business account history.
  • At least $20,000 in PayPal sales in the last year if you have a Premier account or $15,000 in PayPal sales if you have a Business account.
Fees
Fixed fee paid over the life of the advance (in place of interest).
Terms
Vary depending on your sales. You’ll need to pay at least 5% of the total loan amount every 90 days if your loan is estimated to last 12 months or more, and 10% every 90 days if you’re expected to pay it off faster.
Repayment schedule
PayPal deducts a fixed percentage each day you have sales until the loan is repaid.
Funding speed
Within minutes.

PayPal Business Loan

Loan amount
$5,000 to $100,000 (up to $150,000 for repeat borrowers).
Qualification requirements
  • At least nine months in business.
  • Annual revenue of at least $33,300.
Fees
  • Fixed fee paid over the life of the loan (in place of interest).
  • $20 returned item fee.
Terms
17 to 52 weeks.
Repayment schedule
PayPal automatically withdraws weekly repayments from your business bank account.
Funding speed
As fast as the next business day.

Where PayPal Working Capital and Business Loans stand out

Fast funding

With PayPal Working Capital, you can receive funds within minutes once approved. PayPal Business Loan funds can be available as soon as the next business day after approval. That makes both options some of the fastest business loans available.

Easy to qualify for

The annual revenue requirements to qualify for both PayPal financing products are significantly lower than many other online lenders. For comparison, MCA companies like Backd, Forward Financing, Fundomate and Rapid Finance require $100,000 or more in annual revenue.
Plus, your credit score isn’t considered if you apply for PayPal Working Capital. You need only three months of PayPal account history in addition to the low annual revenue requirement.

Where PayPal Working Capital and Business Loans fall short

Aggressive repayment schedule

For PayPal Business Loans, the lender will automatically withdraw the same amount from your business checking account every week, regardless of whether your sales are up or down. Frequent repayments can be risky if you have to borrow additional funds to keep up.
For PayPal Working Capital, your repayment percentage is fixed for the life of the loan. If you start out with an aggressive repayment plan and then realize you’d prefer to put cash toward other expenses, you can’t make changes.

Fixed fee structure is less straightforward

Instead of a traditional interest rate, PayPal Working Capital and Business Loans both charge a fee spread out over the life of the loan. In practice, this isn’t that different from making loan payments that include both principal and interest. But it does make it hard to compare the costs of a PayPal financing product with other products.

Alternatives to PayPal Business Loans

A merchant cash advance should be a last-resort option for your financing needs. But if you feel that it’s the right (or only) option for your business, then compare the best merchant cash advance companies before moving forward.
If you’re interested in a short-term online business loan but not sure that PayPal Business Loan is your best option, then consider some of these alternatives:
SBA microloan
SBA microloan
U.S. Small Business Administration

SBA microloan

Min Credit  

620

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Apply now

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If you only need a small loan, an SBA microloan may provide the flexible capital you’re looking for. Through this program, you can borrow up to $50,000 from a community-based nonprofit lender and have up to seven years to pay it off. The average SBA microloan is around $13,000. While interest rates vary depending on the lender, they generally fall within a range of 8% to 13%, which is much more reasonable than the interest rates you’ll find with many online lenders. An SBA loan of any kind, however, typically takes longer to fund than an online loan.
OnDeck
OnDeck - Online term loan
OnDeck

OnDeck - Online term loan

NerdWallet Rating  
4.8
Min Credit  

625

Read Review
Apply now

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OnDeck offers a loan with terms of up to 24 months, while PayPal Business Loan terms max out at one year. You can also get up to $250,000 with a loan from OnDeck, versus the $100,000 max with a PayPal loan. But you’ll still have to make weekly repayments, and some OnDeck customers even make daily repayments. You’ll also need minimum annual revenue of $100,000 and a credit score of at least 625 to qualify.
QuickBridge
QuickBridge - Online term loan
QuickBridge

QuickBridge - Online term loan

NerdWallet Rating  
4.1
Min Credit  

600

Read Review
Apply now

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For a larger loan amount, QuickBridge offers up to $500,000. Like PayPal, QuickBridge's loan terms are still relatively short (up to 18 months), but you can get funding in as fast as 24 hours after approval. QuickBridge also offers discounts for repaying your loan early. But you will need significantly higher annual revenue, $250,000, to qualify.