Senior Writer & Content Strategist | Small business, business banking, business loans
Randa Kriss is a senior writer and NerdWallet authority on small business. She has nearly a decade of experience in digital content. Prior to joining NerdWallet in 2020, Randa worked as a writer at Fundera, covering a wide variety of small-business topics and specializing in the lending and banking spaces. Her work has been featured by The Washington Post, The Associated Press and Nasdaq, among others. Randa earned a bachelor's degree in English and Spanish at Iona University (formerly Iona College).
Senior Writer & Content Strategist | Small business, business banking, business loans
Randa Kriss is a senior writer and NerdWallet authority on small business. She has nearly a decade of experience in digital content. Prior to joining NerdWallet in 2020, Randa worked as a writer at Fundera, covering a wide variety of small-business topics and specializing in the lending and banking spaces. Her work has been featured by The Washington Post, The Associated Press and Nasdaq, among others. Randa earned a bachelor's degree in English and Spanish at Iona University (formerly Iona College).
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
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NerdWallet's small-business loans content, including ratings, recommendations and reviews, is overseen by a team of writers and editors who specialize in business lending. Their work has appeared in The Associated Press, The Washington Post, MarketWatch, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur, ABC News, MSN and other national and local media outlets. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet's strict guidelines for editorial integrity to ensure accuracy and fairness in our coverage.
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Senior Writer & Content Strategist | Small business, business banking, business loans
Randa Kriss is a senior writer and NerdWallet authority on small business. She has nearly a decade of experience in digital content. Prior to joining NerdWallet in 2020, Randa worked as a writer at Fundera, covering a wide variety of small-business topics and specializing in the lending and banking spaces. Her work has been featured by The Washington Post, The Associated Press and Nasdaq, among others. Randa earned a bachelor's degree in English and Spanish at Iona University (formerly Iona College).
Senior Writer & Content Strategist | Small business, business banking, business loans
Randa Kriss is a senior writer and NerdWallet authority on small business. She has nearly a decade of experience in digital content. Prior to joining NerdWallet in 2020, Randa worked as a writer at Fundera, covering a wide variety of small-business topics and specializing in the lending and banking spaces. Her work has been featured by The Washington Post, The Associated Press and Nasdaq, among others. Randa earned a bachelor's degree in English and Spanish at Iona University (formerly Iona College).
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
NerdWallet's content is
fact-checked for accuracy, timeliness, and relevance by humans.
It undergoes a thorough review process involving writers and editors to ensure
the information is as clear and complete as possible. Learn more by checking
our
Editorial Guidelines.
Content was accurate at the time of publication.
Why trust NerdWallet
250+ small-business products reviewed and rated by our team of experts.
80+ years of combined experience covering small business and personal finance.
50+ categories of the best business loan selections.
NerdWallet's small-business loans content, including ratings, recommendations and reviews, is overseen by a team of writers and editors who specialize in business lending. Their work has appeared in The Associated Press, The Washington Post, MarketWatch, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur, ABC News, MSN and other national and local media outlets. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet's strict guidelines for editorial integrity to ensure accuracy and fairness in our coverage.
Advertiser disclosure
You’re our first priority.
Every time.
We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with
confidence. And while our site doesn’t feature every company or
financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance
we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are
objective, independent, straightforward — and free.
So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us. This may influence
which products we review and write about (and where those products
appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or
advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Our
partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products
or services. Here is a list of our partners .
Giggle Finance - Merchant cash advance
Overview
The bottom line:
Giggle Finance offers small amounts of capital to contractors, self-employed individuals and other small-business owners. Giggle is a standout option for borrowers with bad credit — as the company does not check your credit as part of the application process. Funding is fast, but may be expensive.
Loan details
Min. Loan Amount
$0
Max Loan Amount
$10,000
Qualifications
Min. credit score
300
Min. Time in Business
3 months
Min. Annual Revenue
$18,000
Pros & Cons
Pros
No minimum credit score requirement.
Same-day funding available.
Offers prepayment discounts.
Cons
Funding maxes out at $10,000 ($20,000 for repeat customers).
Charges an origination fee.
Factor rate and origination fee details not available on website. (NerdWallet collected this information from a company representative.)
Not available in California, New York or Oregon.
Giggle Finance doesn’t provide small-business loans — instead, it offers merchant cash advances. When you get funding from Giggle, you’re selling your future revenue in exchange for an advance of capital. Then, you repay that advance (plus fees) on a weekly basis as a percentage of your incoming revenue. Borrowers can use funds to manage cash flow, purchase inventory and supplies, pay rent and utilities and cover emergency expenses, among other purposes.
❗ Nerdy Tip: Merchant cash advances (MCAs) are typically one of the most expensive types of business financing. In general, you should consider all other small-business funding options before an MCA.
Consider Giggle Finance if you:
✔️ Need same-day access to funds.
✔️ Don’t meet the eligibility requirements of other lenders.
Giggle Finance offers a merchant cash advance, called the Giggle Advance, in amounts up to $10,000. Here’s what you can expect from the Giggle Advance:
Funding amount
Up to $10000. (Repeat customers in good standing can access up to $20,000).
Estimated interest rate
Giggle quotes interest as a factor rate; factor rates range from 1.15 to 1.52. Average factor rate is 1.42.
Fees
Origination fee of 7.25%.
No additional fees or prepayment penalties.
Prepayment discounts available if you can repay your balance within the first 30 days.
Terms
Payments are based on your business’s revenue. You’ll make weekly payments until you repay the full advance amount.
Repayment schedule
Weekly.
Funding speed
Approval and funding as fast as the same day.
Giggle Finance requirements
To qualify for a Giggle Advance, you’ll need to meet the following minimum requirements:
Time in business : 3 months.
Annual revenue: $18000 (At least $1,500 per month).
Credit score: No minimum requirement. Giggle Finance does not check your personal credit as part of the underwriting process. Approval is solely based on your business income and revenue streams.
You’ll also need a business bank account with online access that you can connect to the Giggle platform.
Giggle Finance doesn’t currently fund borrowers in California, New York or Oregon.
Giggle offers a streamlined application process that it says takes only eight minutes to complete. You’ll provide basic information about your business and connect your bank account to the Giggle platform. Giggle Finance can approve applications almost instantly, showing your approved amount and terms.
Once you agree to the offer, Giggle deposits the funds directly into your business bank account. Usually, funds are available within minutes.
Flexible qualification requirements
Giggle is designed to provide financing for independent contractors, self-employed individuals and similar small-business owners. As a result, the company has much more flexible qualification requirements compared with other business lenders.
You’ll only need 3 months in business and $1,500 per month in revenue to qualify — making this a good option for both startups and businesses that are still growing their revenue.
Plus, unlike most small-business lenders, Giggle doesn’t check your credit as part of the application process.
Most lenders require a personal guarantee to secure your business financing. A personal guarantee holds you personally liable for the debt in the event your business can’t pay.
Giggle Finance doesn’t require a personal guarantee — making it a good option if you’re hesitant to put your personal assets at risk. If you start to miss payments, however, Giggle will file a UCC lien on your business. A UCC lien allows the company to claim your business assets to recover its losses if you can’t repay.
Where Giggle Finance falls short
May be expensive
Merchant cash advances, like the Giggle Advance, are often one of the most expensive forms of business financing — with annual percentage rates that can reach triple digits.
Say, for example, you have a $5,000 advance with a factor rate of 1.4. You’re going to repay the advance weekly with 10% of your incoming revenue. This percentage, also called the holdback, typically ranges from 5% to 20%, but varies based on your lender, advance amount and sales volume.
So, if you make $10,000 in monthly sales, you’ll be repaying $233.31 per week. It will take you just over 30 weeks to repay the advance, with an APR of 125.01%. For such a small amount of financing, you’re paying significantly in fees — and the frequent payments can easily impact your cash flow .
Plus, in addition to its standard fees, Giggle charges a 7.25% origination fee. Using the same $5,000 advance example, this means you’d be paying an extra $362.50 to cover that fee.
If you need more than $10000 in funding (or $20,000 for repeat customers), you’ll have to look for an alternative to Giggle Finance. Plus, keep in mind that not all customers will qualify for the maximum amount.
Poor customer service
One of the most common complaints among Giggle Finance reviews online is the company’s lack of customer service. Borrowers say that customer service representatives aren’t responsive and lament that they’re unable to talk to anyone on the phone. When NerdWallet tried calling the number listed on Giggle’s website, an automated message directed us to send them a text instead, and then hung up.
Giggle even states on its website that most of its customer support is done through text and AI technology. Although this may not bother some business owners, it seems most borrowers would prefer to be able to speak to a representative directly, especially in the case of questions or issues.
Alternatives to Giggle Finance
Uplyft Capital
If you need more than $10000 in financing, Uplyft Capital offers a different merchant cash advance you might consider. Uplyft issues MCAs of up to $500000 with repayment terms up to 18 months.
Like Giggle, Uplyft Capital is a good option for both startups and borrowers with bad credit. To qualify, you'll need at least 6 months in business and a minimum credit score of 475. You will need more revenue ($102000) than Giggle requires, however.
Headway Capital
Headway Capital offers business lines of credit up to $100000. Like Giggle Finance, this line of credit can be a good option for fast access to working capital. Headway can approve your application in just minutes and issue funding in as little as 24 hours.
Although Headway’s qualifications aren’t quite as flexible as Giggle’s, it still can be a good option for startups and borrowers with bad credit. To qualify, you’ll need a minimum credit score of 625, at least 6 months in business and a minimum of $50000 in annual revenue.
And while Headway’s APRs are higher than more traditional lenders, they’ll likely be lower than what you’ll pay for a Giggle Advance. APRs on Headway’s business line of credit range from 35% to 80%.
SBA microloans
If you don’t need financing immediately, an SBA microloan is a more affordable alternative to a Giggle Advance. SBA microloans offer funding up to $50000. They have long repayment terms — up to 84 months — and interest rates that generally range from 8% to 13%.
SBA microloans are designed for traditionally underserved businesses, including startups, borrowers with bad credit and those located in low-income areas. As a result, the qualification requirements are more flexible than other SBA loans (although they’ll vary by lender).
SBA microloans are issued by nonprofit and community lenders. In addition to financing, these lenders usually offer business support services, such as training, mentorship and educational resources.
Frequently asked questions
Frequently asked questions
Giggle Finance doesn’t have a minimum credit score requirement. In fact, Giggle doesn’t check your credit as part of the underwriting process; instead, approval is based on your business income and revenue streams.
Once you’re approved, Giggle Finance sends funds to your bank account within minutes.