Best SBA Lenders of 2025
The best SBA loan lenders can typically make final credit decisions on your application because they are members of the SBA’s preferred lenders program.
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Most SBA loans are issued by banks, credit unions and other financial institutions, not the government. The best lenders have substantial experience with these small-business loans, so you get effective help during the application process and hopefully increase your chances of approval.
Here are the best SBA lenders by loan program, as well as tips on how to find the right SBA lender for your business.
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Best SBA 7(a) lenders
Many national, regional and local banks are SBA 7(a) lenders, including big-name institutions like Bank of America, Chase and Wells Fargo. You’ll want to find an SBA 7(a) lender that works with small businesses in your area and offers competitive interest rates and loan terms. The best SBA 7(a) lenders have an established history of issuing these loans with a streamlined application process and dedicated loan specialists. These lenders are often members of the SBA preferred lenders program (PLP).
SBA preferred lenders can make final credit decisions without sending applications to the SBA, allowing them to speed up the loan approval timeline. As an example, SBA preferred lender Citizens Bank says it can approve and close SBA loans in about 45 days, which is much faster than the typical 60- to 90-day timeline.
So far in the 2025 fiscal year (which started on Oct. 1, 2024), preferred lenders approved over 18,000 SBA 7(a) loans, worth more than $10 billion and making up more than 60% of all loans approved.
Here are 10 of the best SBA 7(a) lenders based on their loan processing volume, loan approvals and availability.
SBA 7(a) loan
$5,000,000
Newtek Bank
Newtek is currently the most active SBA lender by total loan amount, having already issued over $1 billion in funding across over 2,000 SBA 7(a) loans, in fiscal year 2025. The company markets itself as a business and financial solution provider, offering banking, business loans, payment systems, web solutions, insurance and more.
Through the SBA 7(a) program, Newtek lends to for-profit, U.S.-based businesses with two to three years of tax returns and the ability to repay loans through business revenue. In addition, when applying for one of these government small-business loans through Newtek, you’ll work with the same lending specialist throughout the process and Newtek will complete all required documents and forms for you.
Huntington National Bank
Huntington National Bank approved the most 7(a) loans of any SBA lender in fiscal year (FY) 2024, with over 7,500 loans for a total of over $1.5 billion. So far in FY 2025, it has approved over 2,000 7(a) loans totalling over $575 million.
The bank offers SBA loans of up to $5 million, down payments as low as 10% and dedicated SBA specialists who work directly with borrowers to help them start and complete the application process.
Huntington Bank is also an SBA Express loan lender. A subset of the SBA 7(a) loan program, SBA Express loans offer a faster turnaround time but smaller loan amounts.
Additionally, Huntington administers the Lift Local Business Program, which supports minority-, women- and veteran-owned businesses. Through the program, small-business owners can receive financial education courses and other resources, as well as SBA loan assistance.
SBA loans from this program range from $1,000 to $150,000, have no origination fees and have lower credit score requirements. Additionally, Huntington pays the government fees for the borrower.
Northeast Bank
With over 3,000 approved SBA 7(a) loans so far in FY 2025, Northeast Bank is currently the top lender by number of loans approved. And with over $500 million in loan dollars approved in FY 2025, it is also a top five lender by total loan amount and number of loan approvals combined.
Based in Portland, Maine, Northeast Bank is a full-service bank and SBA preferred lender that offers SBA 7(a) loans up to $500,000, along with equipment loans, commercial real estate loans and business lines of credit. It works with a third-party lender service provider to help streamline the 7(a) application process so you can apply entirely online, with fewer documents.
Readycap Lending
Readycap Lending, LLC — a subsidiary of Ready Capital and a non-bank preferred lender — has approved over 1,500 loans under the 7(a) program in fiscal year 2025 for almost $550 million, making it a top five lender by both total loan amount and number of loan approvals.
Readycap provides SBA 7(a) loans in amounts from $350,000 to $5 million. Funding can be used for business acquisition and expansion, equipment purchase, working capital or to refinance existing business debt.
Under the 7(a) loan program, Readycap also funds commercial real estate loans that can be used for the purchase of buildings, new construction, renovation and other purposes.
Live Oak Banking Company
Live Oak Banking Company is the second-most active SBA 7(a) lender by dollar amount, having approved over $800 million in loans so far in the 2025 fiscal year.
Based in Wilmington, North Carolina, Live Oak Bank offers an online-based, streamlined application to small businesses across the U.S. and is part of the SBA PLP.
Live Oak offers SBA 7(a) loans of up to $5 million with up to 90% bank financing and typically a 10% down payment. The bank accepts a minimum credit score of 650.
Additionally, Live Oak is an SBA 504 lender, providing loans of up to $15 million. Using its combination debt financing solution, the bank is able to fund larger 504 projects compared with other lenders.
Read our full Live Oak SBA loans review.
JPMorgan Chase Bank
JPMorgan Chase Bank is a PLP that has approved over 850 SBA 7(a) loans totaling over $245 million in fiscal year 2025.
The largest bank in the country by asset size and the third-largest by commercial loan amount, JPMorgan Chase offers SBA 7(a) loans up to $5 million for small-business owners looking to launch or expand their business, buy new equipment, consolidate high interest debt and more.
Business owners seeking a smaller amount can apply for an SBA Express loan or line of credit for quicker access of up to $500,000. JPMorgan Chase also offers SBA 504 loans to fund bigger equipment and real estate purchases.
Read our full Chase Business loans review.
Lendistry
Lendistry is a top 10 lender for total SBA 7(a) loan approvals, having issued more than 900 loans so far in FY 2025.
Lendistry is a minority-led community development financial institution based in Los Angeles that provides loans to small-business owners in underserved communities.
As an SBA preferred lender, Lendistry offers 7(a) loans between $25,000 and $5 million. You can apply entirely online, but you can also call their customer service line for additional assistance.
TD Bank
In fiscal year 2024, TD Bank ranked second in SBA 7(a) approval count with nearly 4,000 approved loans. In FY 2025, it’s still a top 5 lender by loan approval count, having approved over 1,300 loans totaling nearly $175 million, so far.
TD Bank offers a slew of business loans, including SBA 7(a) loans, with maximum loan amounts of $5 million, and 504 loans with the potential for even higher loan amounts. SBA Express loans are available in amounts up to $350,000.
BayFirst National Bank
BayFirst National Bank has approved almost 800 SBA 7(a) loans so far in FY 2025 for a total of nearly $135 million.
Located in St. Petersburg, Florida, BayFirst offers a fast funding program called SBA Bolt Loan with loan amounts up to $150,000 and funding within days instead of weeks. An in-house team handles these SBA loans and borrowers with good credit can potentially be prequalified in hours. BayFirst also offers standard 7(a) loans up to $5 million.
Celtic Bank
Celtic Bank has approved over $190 million in SBA 7(a) loans so far in FY 2025 making it the ninth-most active SBA lender by loan amount. It is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, and offers a range of small-business financing products that include equipment financing, real estate and construction loans and more.
Celtic Bank’s SBA loan offerings include 7(a) loans that max out at $5 million, Express loans that offer up to $150,000 in financing, construction loans up to $5 million and SBA loans that can fund projects over $5 million.
Best SBA 504 lenders
Unlike SBA 7(a) loans, SBA 504 loans are funded in three parts. Typically, 50% is funded by a bank or credit union, 40% is funded by a Certified Development Company (CDC) and the final 10% is funded as a down payment, or equity injection, by the business owner.
Many banks, credit unions, and other private financial institutions that offer SBA 7(a) loans are also SBA 504 lenders. Again, like 7(a) loans, some of the biggest national banks offer 504 loans, including Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and U.S. Bank.
These institutions provide the “bank” portion of the loan and can often help you find a local CDC in your area to fund that portion of the loan.
So far in fiscal year 2025, CDCs in the U.S. have approved over 2,000 loans under the SBA CDC/504 loan program for almost $2.5 billion. If you want to find a CDC to work with first, you can use the search tool on the SBA website to find a CDC lender near you.
You might also be able to find a list of CDCs ranked and published by your local SBA office or released in a local business publication.
» MORE: SBA 7(a) vs. 504 loans
Best SBA microloan lenders
SBA microloans are distributed by non-bank, intermediary lenders — nonprofit community-based organizations that have been approved by the SBA.
Unlike other SBA lenders, microloan intermediaries receive funds directly from the SBA. Then, these lenders manage their own programs and issue SBA microloans to eligible borrowers.
The best SBA microloan lenders largely vary based on region similar to the way CDC lenders work. As of February 2025, there are 163 active microloan intermediaries serving all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. You can find an intermediary in your state using the microloan list of lenders search tool on the SBA website.
SBA microloan
$50,000
» MORE: Can you have multiple SBA loans?
How to choose an SBA lender
Follow these tips to find and choose the best SBA lender for your needs.
Start with a financial institution you know
Banks and credit unions often prioritize borrowers they have an existing relationship with, so contacting a financial institution where you have a business account (or have worked with before) can be a great place to begin your search.
If you’re a customer at your local bank, even better. According to a 2023 report from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, although the majority of growth in small-business lending has traditionally come from larger banks, smaller banks actually lend a higher share of their assets to small businesses.
Similarly, FDIC’s Small Business Lending Survey 2024 found that 94% of small banks made loans to small businesses in 2021, compared with 90% of large banks that did the same.
» MORE: How to apply for an SBA loan
Connect with lenders through the SBA lender match system
Through the SBA website, you’ll answer a few brief questions about your business and in two business days you’ll receive an email with possible lender matches. Then, you can contact the lenders for more information, or the lenders may reach out to you directly.
Make sure it’s a good fit
Before choosing a lender, ask about interest rates, loan amounts, repayment terms and prepayment penalties, as well as its SBA loan requirements, such as minimum credit score and time in business criteria.
It can also be helpful to ask about how the application process works. Does the lender assign a loan specialist to assist you throughout the process? What is the timeline for applications and approvals — is it faster than the typical 60 to 90 days? Is the lender an SBA preferred lender?
This information can help you get a better sense of whether a particular SBA lender is right for your business.
Frequently Asked Questions
Methodology
To come up with our list of the best SBA lenders of 2025, NerdWallet analyzed loan approval data for the first four months of the current 2025 fiscal year from the U.S. Small Business Administration. (Note that the SBA’s 2025 fiscal year started on Oct. 1, 2024.)
We analyzed companies that offer SBA 7(a) loans based on the following criteria:
Number of loans approved. The total number of SBA 7(a) loans a lender has approved so far in fiscal year 2025.
Total loan amount. The total value of all SBA 7(a) loans a company lent small-business owners so far in fiscal year 2025.
Availability. The number of states a company does business in.
We weighed these factors based on our assessment of which are the most important to small-business owners and how meaningfully they impact borrowers’ experiences.NerdWallet does not receive compensation from companies in exchange for being included in our list of best SBA lenders. Read more about our editorial guidelines.
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