Kapitus Review: Costs, Rates & Requirements (2026)

The short version: the biggest check in revenue-based lending, behind the highest bar

Kapitus is the lender established businesses call when the check needs to be big. Direct term loans run $10,000 to $750,000, and merchant cash advances and revenue-based financing reach up to $5 million through its lender network — the largest ceiling in the revenue-based market. The price is a factor rate, reported by third-party reviewers at roughly 1.10 to 1.45, with an origination fee of 2.5% to 5% deducted from your proceeds. The price of admission is the highest bar in its class: a 650 personal credit score, two years in business, and $250,000 in annual revenue. Approval can come in as little as 4 hours, with funding in as little as 24 hours. On a $100,000 loan at an illustrative 1.25 factor rate, the total repayment is $125,000 — and at a 5% origination fee, only $95,000 of the $100,000 ever lands in your account. This Kapitus review works through the costs in dollars, using published figures and 2026 third-party reviews.

What Kapitus is

Kapitus is the operating name of Strategic Funding Source, Inc., founded in 2006 and based in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the oldest direct funders in the online lending space, and it reports having provided more than $10 billion in growth capital to over 65,000 small businesses as of July 2026. Kapitus lends directly on its two flagship products, term loans and revenue-based financing, and sources the rest of its shelf through a network of partner lenders, some funded through WebBank. Its comparison tool, KapitusPLUS, returns up to six competing offers on a single application. Customer review signals are mixed: Trustpilot shows 4.5 stars across roughly 796 reviews as of July 2026, while the Better Business Bureau picture is reported differently across sources — Finder lists an A- rating and a November 2026 review records an F rating — so weigh the Trustpilot record and the twenty-year operating history over any single rating.

What Kapitus offers

Small business term loans: the flagship direct product, $10,000 to $750,000 in working capital, repaid over 6 to 24 months with daily, weekly, or monthly payments. This is the product most borrowers mean when they say "a Kapitus loan."

Revenue-based financing: Kapitus's name for its advance product, up to $5 million. Kapitus itself says this is not a loan: it buys a fixed amount of your future sales for a smaller lump sum now, and repayment runs as a percentage of revenue, so slow months shrink payments and lengthen the term. NerdWallet classifies the same structure as a merchant cash advance, and for cost purposes that is the right way to think about it — the price is a factor rate, not an interest rate.

Equipment financing and invoice factoring: equipment financing covers machinery, vehicles, and other business equipment, with the equipment itself typically serving as collateral. Kapitus does not publish a separate amount or rate range for equipment deals, so the terms arrive on your offer. Invoice factoring sells unpaid invoices to get cash faster instead of waiting on customer payment terms, and it runs slower than a term loan — LendEDU reports five to ten days to process an application, with funds in 24 to 48 hours after approval — because the funder underwrites your customers as well as your business.

Lines of credit, SBA loans, and purchase order financing: the rest of the shelf, sourced through the lender network rather than funded directly by Kapitus. Lines of credit give a revolving facility for businesses that draw as needed. SBA loans are the cheapest money on the shelf but the slowest — LendEDU reports around 14 days for an SBA Express loan and three to six months for a 7(a) loan — and carry a higher credit bar, reported at 680 in one 2026 review. Purchase order financing covers the cost of fulfilling a large customer order before you have been paid for it. In total, Finder counts seven product types on the Kapitus shelf, the broadest of any revenue-based lender.

Kapitus costs: factor rates, fees, and the $100,000 example

Kapitus does not publish its factor rates. That is the first thing to understand about its pricing: you do not know your price until you apply and receive an offer. Third-party reviewers report a range of roughly 1.10 to 1.45 — NerdWallet estimates 1.10 to 1.45 on term loans, while Finder reports a narrower 1.12 to 1.26 — and Kapitus's own illustration uses a 1.15 factor rate. The factor rate is a multiplier, not an interest rate: a $100,000 advance at a 1.25 factor rate costs $125,000 total, whatever the term. Always convert the offer to dollars before signing.

The origination fee is reported at 2.5% to 5% of the loan amount, plus a wire fee, and it is deducted from your proceeds — it never reaches your account. On a $100,000 approval at 5%, that is $5,000 gone before the money lands, so the real amount you receive is $95,000 while repayment is calculated on the full $100,000. At 2.5%, $97,500 lands. Compare every offer on the amount that lands and the total you repay, not on the headline approval amount.

To put the factor rate in APR terms: at Kapitus's own example rate of 1.15 repaid over 12 months, the cost works out to about 28.5% APR, according to LenderList's 2026 review — and it is far higher if you repay faster, because the factor fee is fixed while the term shrinks. That is the honest frame for the price: fast, large, and expensive, with the cost front-loaded into a fixed fee rather than spread as interest.

The $100,000 example, worked in dollars

Take a fictional business — illustrative, not a real file. "Harbor City Logistics": $85,000 a month in revenue (about $1 million a year), 665 personal credit, 5 years in business, needs $100,000 for a second delivery truck plus a working-capital cushion. The file clears every Kapitus minimum with room to spare, so it should be quoted toward the low end of the range rather than the top.

At an illustrative 1.25 factor rate — the middle of the reported 1.10 to 1.45 range — the $100,000 costs $125,000 total. The origination fee takes $2,500 at 2.5%, so $97,500 lands; at 5%, $95,000 lands. At the best reported rate of 1.10, the same $100,000 costs $110,000; at the top of the range, 1.45, it costs $145,000. Repaid over 12 months, the 1.25 illustration works out to about $2,404 a week. The same $100,000 can cost anywhere from $110,000 to $145,000 depending on the offer — a $35,000 spread, which is why the offer in writing matters more than anything on the website. And because the fee is fixed, paying the loan off early does not reduce it — Finder notes there is no benefit to paying a Kapitus loan off early, since the full factor fee stays owed regardless of when you repay, though published reports differ on prepayment terms across Kapitus products, so get the exact early-payoff language in writing before you sign.

Who qualifies for Kapitus

Credit score: 650 minimum for its small business financing, according to the Kapitus website as checked in November 2026. NerdWallet's December 2025 review cites 625 for term loans, so treat 650 as the published floor. Kapitus's own revenue-based financing page lists a lower 550 credit minimum for that product, with a higher $325,000 annual revenue requirement — the minimums move by product, and the 650 / $250,000 pairing is the headline bar for term loans.

Time in business and revenue: two full years for directly funded term loans and revenue-based financing, and at least $250,000 in annual revenue. Kapitus does not fund startups, and the two-year bar is the one that disqualifies the most applicants. Some network products carry different floors, and the revenue-based financing page lists $325,000, so confirm the floor for the product you actually want.

Other requirements: a US-based business with a business bank account, and 3 to 6 months of business bank statements. SBA loans carry a higher credit bar, reported at 680 in one 2026 review. The minimums are floors, not guarantees — clearing them gets your file read, not approved, and the rate you are quoted depends on the strength of the file behind them.

How fast is it, and what does the application take?

Kapitus's own pages say applications can be approved in as little as 4 hours, and qualified businesses can receive funds in their accounts in as little as 24 hours. Third-party reviews put the typical funding window at 24 to 72 hours after acceptance for most products. Two exceptions run slower: SBA loans take weeks to months, and invoice factoring takes five to ten days to process. The online application takes about 5 to 10 minutes for most products. The steps are the same across the shelf: complete the short online application, upload 3 to 6 months of bank statements, meet your financing specialist by phone, discuss terms, and finalize the agreement. Kapitus uses a soft credit pull during prequalification, but once you choose an offer and complete the full application, expect a hard pull.

Three months of bank statements is the core of the file, and Kapitus reads them for pattern, not just totals: steady deposits with a weekly rhythm, a balance that survives the daily or weekly debit in the slow month, and revenue that clears the bar for the product you want. Show the revenue pattern up front — the seasonality, the concentration, the slow month — because a funder that discovers the concentration itself will price it worse than one that is told about it. Tax returns and a profit-and-loss statement enter the picture for larger loans. Bank statements are required, and photo ID and a voided check are optional.

Pros and cons

Pros: the largest funding ceiling in the revenue-based market — $750,000 direct, $5 million through the network. The broadest product shelf of any revenue-based lender, seven product types from term loans to SBA and factoring, so one application can surface more than one kind of money. Approval in as little as 4 hours and funding in as little as 24 hours. KapitusPLUS returns up to six competing offers on one application. Twenty years in business and more than $10 billion provided. Flexible repayment on revenue-based financing, where slow months shrink payments instead of triggering a missed fixed debit.

Cons: Kapitus does not publish its factor rates, so you cannot price the loan before applying — the range of 1.10 to 1.45 comes from third-party reviewers, not from Kapitus. No benefit to paying off early, per Finder: the full factor fee stays owed, so a strong quarter does not buy a discount the way it does at some competitors. The qualification bar is the highest in its class — 650 credit, two years, $250,000 revenue — and it disqualifies startups and younger businesses outright. The origination fee of 2.5% to 5% plus a wire fee comes out of your proceeds, so the amount that lands is always less than the approval. Daily or weekly debits do not flex on the term loan, so a slow month still takes the same payment.

Who Kapitus fits — and who should skip it

Kapitus fits an established business with two years in business, $250,000 or more in annual revenue, and a credit score of 650 or better that needs a large lump sum — $100,000 to $5 million — in about a day. It is the biggest single check in the revenue-based market for a business that clears its bar, and the combination of a high ceiling and a broad product shelf is the reason merchants ask about it by name.

Kapitus is the wrong call for a business under two years old, under $250,000 in revenue, or under 650 credit — the application will not clear the door, and the time is better spent with a lower-bar funder. It is the wrong call for a business that needs the cheapest money: a bank term loan or an SBA loan costs a fraction of Kapitus's factor-rate pricing, but takes 30 to 90 days and requires far stronger credit. It is the wrong call for a business whose deposits cannot cover a daily or weekly debit in the slow month, because the term loan's schedule is fixed. And it is the wrong call for a business that expects a strong quarter and wants to retire the advance early for a discount — that discount does not exist at Kapitus the way it does at some competitors.

How Kapitus compares to the field

Against OnDeck, the comparison turns on price transparency and the bar: OnDeck publishes average APRs and takes files at 625 credit, one year in business, and $100,000 in revenue, but its term loans top out at $400,000 — Kapitus writes the bigger check behind the higher bar, in factor-rate pricing rather than APRs. Against Fora Financial, the comparison turns on the exit: Fora's early-payoff discount can cut the effective factor rate to about 1.05, the most generous early exit in the MCA market, while Kapitus's full factor fee stays owed — so a business that can pay down early gets a better price at Fora, while a business that needs more than Fora's $1.5 million ceiling has only Kapitus. Against BlueVine, the comparison is lump sum against line of credit: BlueVine's revolving line runs up to $250,000 with a 625 FICO and $10,000 a month in revenue, which suits a business that draws as needed, while Kapitus suits a business that needs one large check now. Credibly and Rapid Finance are the usual next stops when Kapitus's bar is out of reach — both work with younger businesses and lower credit scores, at smaller amounts. The pattern is simple: Kapitus is the biggest check behind the highest bar, and every alternative trades some of the ceiling for a lower bar or a cheaper exit.

FAQ

How much does a Kapitus loan cost? Kapitus does not publish its rates. Third-party reviewers report factor rates of roughly 1.10 to 1.45, with Finder reporting a narrower 1.12 to 1.26, plus an origination fee of 2.5% to 5% and a wire fee, deducted from your proceeds. On a $100,000 loan at an illustrative 1.25 factor rate, the total repayment is $125,000, and $95,000 to $97,500 lands in your account after the origination fee. Get the total repayment in dollars in writing before you sign — that number, not the factor rate, is the price.

What credit score do I need for Kapitus? 650, according to the Kapitus website as checked in November 2026, with two years in business and $250,000 in annual revenue. NerdWallet's December 2025 review cites 625 for term loans, and Kapitus's own revenue-based financing page lists a 550 minimum for that product with a higher $325,000 revenue requirement. The minimums move by product — confirm the floor for the product you actually want, and remember the minimums are floors, not guarantees.

How much can I borrow from Kapitus? Term loans run $10,000 to $750,000 direct, and merchant cash advances and revenue-based financing reach up to $5 million through the lender network. Other products on the shelf — lines of credit, equipment financing, SBA loans, invoice factoring, purchase order financing — carry their own limits, and Kapitus does not publish ranges for all of them, so the ceiling arrives on your offer.

How fast is Kapitus funding? Approval in as little as 4 hours, with funds in as little as 24 hours for the flagship products; third-party reviews put the typical window at 24 to 72 hours after acceptance. SBA loans and invoice factoring run slower — around 14 days for an SBA Express loan, three to six months for a 7(a), and five to ten days to process a factoring application.

Can I pay a Kapitus loan off early? There is no published benefit to doing so. Finder notes the full factor fee stays owed regardless of when you repay, so an early payoff does not reduce the total cost — though published reports differ on prepayment terms across Kapitus products, so get the exact early-payoff language in writing before you sign. If an early-payoff discount is central to your plan, Fora Financial's discount to about a 1.05 effective factor rate is the market's best version of it.

Is Kapitus legit? Yes. Kapitus is the operating name of Strategic Funding Source, Inc., founded in 2006 and based in Arlington, Virginia, and it reports more than $10 billion provided to over 65,000 small businesses. Trustpilot shows 4.5 stars across roughly 796 reviews as of July 2026.

Apply once and compare competing offers side by side on total cost, not on speed alone — speed is table stakes in this market, and every serious funder offers it. The businesses that get the best terms from Kapitus are not the ones that borrow the most. They are the ones that know the published price is a range, the origination fee comes out of the proceeds, and the total repayment in dollars — not the rate on the homepage — is the number that decides.

Figures in this guide are summarized from the Kapitus website and 2026 third-party reviews (NerdWallet, Finder, LendEDU, United Capital Source, LenderList, Finanso), paraphrased in our own words. Kapitus does not publish its factor rates — the ranges above are third-party reported. Lenders change terms without notice, and published minimums are floors, not guarantees — always verify the exact product terms on the offer you receive before signing.

MCA vs. loan vs. line of credit

The rule of thumb: the longer the need lasts, the worse an MCA fits it. An advance is priced for speed and short duration. A need that will still be there in a year — a second location's rent, a permanent hire, an ongoing marketing budget — should be financed with a product priced for a year, not one priced for months.

When an MCA makes sense — and when it does not

It makes sense when the need is short, specific, and tied to revenue: a bulk inventory buy at a discount that expires this month, equipment that lets you take a contract you have already won, a bridge to a contracted receivable, a seasonal push with a clear end date. In each case the advance pays for itself from the revenue it unlocks, and the total cost is known before you sign.

It does not make sense when the business is losing money month after month and the advance covers the loss, when the debit only fits in good weeks, when you already carry two or more positions, or when the need is really a bank loan in disguise — a property purchase, a multi-year expansion, a refinance of long-term debt. In those cases the advance does not solve the problem; it rents time at the highest price in the market, and the renewal offer that follows usually costs more than the first advance did.

Five checks before you sign any MCA

• Total dollars in writing. Advance amount, factor rate, total repayment, and any fees — all four, before signature. If a funder quotes only a daily payment, ask for the rest.
• The dead-week test. Confirm the debit fits your worst normal week, not your average week.
• The reconciliation clause. Confirm in writing how the debit adjusts if revenue drops, and what you must submit to trigger it.
• Existing positions disclosed. Tell the funder about every open advance. Undisclosed positions surface in underwriting anyway, and hiding one can void the deal or trigger default terms.
• The exit. What does early payoff cost — is there a discount, and how much? Does the funder terminate its UCC filing promptly after payoff? A lien that lingers blocks your next financing.

An MCA is a legitimate tool that has funded millions of small businesses, and a dangerous one when it is used as a substitute for a business that cannot cover its costs. The difference is rarely the product — it is the match between the product, the need, and the calendar. Get that match right, in writing, before the money moves.

Educational information only; this guide is not financial, legal, or tax advice. Factor rates, terms, and qualification standards vary by funder and by file. Talk to a CPA or attorney about the accounting and tax treatment of any advance for your business.

Why some lenders ask to connect your bank account — and why MCA funders ask for statements instead

If you shop more than one kind of funding, you will run into two very different document asks, and it is easy to read the difference as one lender being modern and the other being old-fashioned. It is usually the product, not the lender, that decides which one you get.

Lines of credit are the connect-first products. BlueVine, Fundbox, and American Express's Business Line of Credit (the former Kabbage product) all underwrite primarily from a live connection to your business bank account — and, in Fundbox's case, optionally your accounting software as well. The lender reads cash flow in real time instead of asking you to gather files, which is how decisions land in minutes rather than days, and why statements appear only as a fallback when the connection cannot verify something. American Express goes one step further: the connection stays live after approval, so your available credit can move with your latest business performance rather than being fixed at application time.

MCA funders ask for statements because the advance is underwritten on the statements themselves. Three months of deposits show what a live bank connection alone does not settle for this product: how steady deposits are across the week and the season, how often the account goes negative, and whether other advances are already debiting the account every day. Those are the facts the offer is priced on, so the upload is the underwriting — not paperwork for its own sake.

Term lenders sit at the heavy end of the same spectrum. A lender writing a multi-year term loan at a lower price needs a deeper file — typically bank statements plus filed accounts or tax returns, a longer time in business, and a higher credit bar — because it is carrying the risk for years rather than months. The document list grows with the term and falls with the price of the money.

The practical takeaway: pick the friction that matches the product you actually want. If you want revolving credit you can draw and repay, expect to connect your bank and keep it connected. If you want an advance priced on your deposits, expect to upload statements — and treat a funder that prices an MCA without ever looking at them with suspicion, not gratitude. Either way, check what access you are granting, whether it stays live after approval, and whether the lender's written offer matches what the application promised.

Frequently asked questions

What is a merchant cash advance?

A merchant cash advance is a lump sum a funder provides in exchange for a fixed amount of your business's future sales. The funder collects that amount from your daily or weekly revenue until it is repaid. It is structured as a purchase of future receivables, not as a loan, so it has a factor rate instead of an interest rate.

How does a merchant cash advance work?

You apply with business bank statements, the funder offers an advance amount and a factor rate, and you repay the total (advance times factor rate) through a percentage of daily card sales or fixed daily or weekly debits from your bank account. Funding usually arrives in 24 to 72 hours.

How much does a merchant cash advance cost?

The cost is the factor rate minus one, times the advance. A $50,000 advance at 1.30 costs $15,000, for $65,000 total repayment. Real factor rates vary by file; ask for the total repayment in dollars before signing, and compare offers on that number.

Is a merchant cash advance a loan?

Legally, no — it is a purchase of future sales, which is why it carries a factor rate rather than an interest rate and why repayment flexes with revenue in percentage-split deals. Practically, it behaves like short-term financing, and most contracts include a personal guarantee.

Do you need good credit to get a merchant cash advance?

No. MCA underwriting is primarily revenue-based: steady deposits, time in business, and bank-account health matter more than a credit score. Weaker credit usually means a higher factor rate, not an automatic decline.

How fast can you get a merchant cash advance?

Typically 24 to 72 hours from a complete application. Same-day decisions are common; funding speed depends on how quickly statements are verified and the contract is signed.