Guides
SBA loan guides, grouped by the decision in front of you
Each guide answers one question completely: what lenders require, what a loan really costs, how the application runs, and how the arithmetic works. The tools are linked from every page, because at some point reading becomes estimating, and estimating is faster.
Requirements and eligibility
SBA loan requirements
The full stack: SBA-side rules and the six things lenders check.
Read the guide →How to qualify for an SBA loan
A 90-day preparation sequence, with the math that decides it.
Read the guide →SBA loan eligibility
The three gates: SBA rules, lender policy, your fundamentals.
Read the guide →SBA loan down payment
How much equity you need and which sources count.
Read the guide →SBA loans for startups
What is realistic before two years, and the paths that work.
Read the guide →SBA 7(a) loan requirements
The workhorse program, requirement by requirement.
Read the guide →SBA 504 loan requirements
The 50/40/10 structure for real estate and equipment.
Read the guide →Cost, rates and fees
SBA loan interest rates
Prime plus a capped spread, built and priced.
Read the guide →SBA 7(a) rates and fees
Rate, guarantee fee, service fees and closing costs as one picture.
Read the guide →SBA guarantee fees for FY2026
What changed this fiscal year, with a dated update log.
Read the guide →Five fiscal years of guarantee fees
From waived to full price: the 2023–2027 timeline.
Read the guide →The application
How long approval takes
Stage-by-stage timelines and what actually slows deals.
Read the guide →The application checklist
What to have ready, in the order lenders ask.
Read the guide →SBA loan documents needed
Every document, what it proves, where to get it.
Read the guide →Why SBA loans get denied
The ranked decline causes and the fixes that pay.
Read the guide →Understanding the numbers
Trust and reference
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on these pages carries a source and a verification date; fee tables are versioned files cited to SBA notices, and the prime rate is stamped with the day it was checked. Last reviewed September 27, 2026.
The fastest way in is usually the SBA loan cost calculator: payment, guarantee fee and first-year cost in about a minute, then come back for the guide behind whichever number surprised you.
Or start with the tools themselves
Four calculators, a readiness check and a printable document checklist. Everything runs in your browser; nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
Estimates only. Not lending advice. Aigeen is not a lender, broker, or financial advisor. Approval decisions are made solely by lenders.