Independent since 2015
New York City small business financing
NYC small business loans and startup funding, with the real cost shown.
The factor rate is not the cost. A 1.4 factor rate sounds like 40%. On a nine-month advance with daily remittances, it is closer to 95% APR. New York has made funders show an estimated APR since August 2023; in most states the number never appears on the offer. So we put the calculator on the homepage.
Startups #nofilter is an independent guide to how small businesses and startups in New York City get funded: SBA loans by borough, nonprofit lenders, grants, venture rounds and merchant cash advances, with what each one costs and what to do if you have already signed something you regret.
Assumes remittance every business day across the stated term, the standard merchant cash advance structure. APR solved by internal rate of return, then annualized over 260 business days. Estimate only, based on the numbers you enter; your actual cost depends on your contract. Not an offer of financing. Full methodology and worked examples
Looking for financing? Send one short request and a funding partner will tell you what your business may qualify for. No credit check from us, no fee, no obligation.
- Publishing since 2015
- 7,597 NYC SBA loans analyzed
- 30+ on-record founder interviews
- No lender owns this site
- Every commercial relationship disclosed
What we cover for NYC small businesses and startups
Financing is the main subject: loans, grants and advances, and what each costs. The New York pages cover the state and city rules, and the founder interviews go back to 2016.
Small business financing
Merchant cash advances, term loans, lines of credit, SBA and EIDL, with what each one costs and who can get it.
Founder interviews
Long-form conversations with founders who built something in New York and elsewhere. On the record, named, unedited questions.
New York rules and resources
The state disclosure law, confessions of judgment, and where NYC businesses find cheaper money.
If you have an advance right now
Have a merchant cash advance? Read these four, in order.
If you have already signed, read these in order: first what the contract says, then what it costs, then your options.
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01
How a merchant cash advance works
Factor rates, holdback percentages, daily remittance, and why an advance is legally not a loan.
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02
What your advance is costing you
Put your own numbers in. Compare the advance against a term loan and a line of credit at the same amount.
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03
Confessions of judgment in New York
Who the 2019 law protects, and how to find the clause in your own agreement.
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04
Getting out of an advance
What to try first, what costs more, and which offers of help to turn down.
Our data: every SBA 7(a) loan in the five boroughs
Small business loans in NYC, borough by borough
We counted all 7,597 SBA 7(a) loans made to New York City businesses from October 2019 to June 2026, $3 billion in total, from the SBA’s own loan file. Each borough page shows who lends there, the typical loan and rate, a payment calculator and free local help.
Brooklyn small business loans
2,930 SBA loans since 2019; median $150k at 11.25%. TD Bank, M&T and Chase lead.
Manhattan small business loans
2,104 loans; median $150k at 11.00%. Restaurants get the largest median loans.
Queens small business loans
1,669 loans; median $115k at 11.00%. Construction and trades get the most loans.
Bronx small business loans
495 loans; median $100k at 11.25%. Retail stores get the most loans.
Staten Island small business loans
399 loans; median $100k at 11.25%. Construction and trades get the most loans.
NYC SBA lender finder
Pick your borough, industry and loan size and see which lenders made loans like yours.
On the record
Founder interviews, on the record
Named founders and real companies, interviewed between 2016 and 2019. Two samples:
“Decide early what you’re doing this for. If you’re doing it to become a viable business, then know what you’re getting into.”
Read the interview
“I was very aware how much money I was losing to the exchange points, on average 10 to 12 percent of my exchange… I’ve been off to the races ever since.”
Read the interview
Who writes this
One editor, named, reachable.
I’ve run Startups #nofilter since 2015, mostly as founder interviews and startup coverage. Financing became the focus because it’s where I kept seeing the same thing: business owners signing merchant cash advances without anyone showing them the real annualized cost first. I’m not a lender or a broker. The site may be paid when a reader sends a financing request through it, and the disclosure page spells that out.
No lender pays for coverage on this site, and no ranking here is for sale.
How we work
Editorial standards.
We show the arithmetic
Every cost claim is reproducible. Where we quote a rate, we say when we checked it and how we calculated it.
We disclose every relationship
We may be paid when you send a financing request through this site and it is referred to a funding partner. The disclosure page describes the arrangement, and it does not change what we write.
We do not promise approvals
No lender can guarantee approval, and any site that says otherwise is selling your details. We do not run those offers.
We correct in public
Corrections are noted at the foot of the article with the date. Nothing is quietly edited away.
Recent NYC financing and startup coverage
Every NYC startup round we could verify this year
66 New York City startup rounds from 2026, worth $12.3 billion, with investors, neighborhoods and SEC filings. Updated every week.
How to finance an AI startup in NYC
SBIR and NSF grants, New York matching grants, NY Ventures, R&D tax credits and the city’s AI programs.
NYC startups directory: 74 companies
Every company with its sector, borough and latest funding, sortable, plus sector lists from AI to climate tech.
Small business loans in NYC: real lenders, rates and who qualifies
19 city, state and community loan options, plus the banks making the most SBA loans in the five boroughs.
SBA loans in NYC by borough
7,597 loans and $3 billion since October 2019, counted from the SBA’s own loan file.
NYC small business grants open in 2026
Only programs confirmed on an official page, with amounts, who qualifies and whether each one is open now. Checked monthly.
When a merchant cash advance counts as a loan in New York
The usury caps, the three-factor test, and the $1.065 billion Yellowstone judgment.
How to read a merchant cash advance term sheet before you sign
What each line means, and the number most term sheets leave out.
Why merchant cash advance stacking happens
How a second advance ends up covering the first one, and how to stop it before it starts.
SBA loans vs. merchant cash advances
When the SBA’s lower cost is worth the weeks-long wait, and when it is not an option at all.
NYC small business funding: common questions
How do I get a small business loan in New York City?
Start with the free NYC Business Solutions Center in your borough (call 311), which helps with loan applications. Banks that make the most SBA loans in the city are TD Bank, JPMorgan Chase and M&T Bank; nonprofit lenders such as BOC Capital, Ascendus and Renaissance lend to newer businesses and owners with thinner credit. Our SBA lender finder shows which lenders made loans like yours.
What is a typical SBA loan in NYC?
From October 2025 to June 2026, the median SBA 7(a) loan to a New York City business was $175,000 at a 9.75% interest rate. Since October 2019, medians range from $100,000 in the Bronx and Staten Island to $150,000 in Brooklyn and Manhattan. See SBA loans by borough.
Are there small business grants in New York City?
Yes, but they are small and competitive, usually $1,000 to $25,000. Programs open in October 2026 include Verizon Small Business Digital Ready ($10,000) and the Amber Grant for women-owned businesses ($15,000 a month). Our NYC grants page is checked monthly.
Is a merchant cash advance legal in New York?
Yes. A merchant cash advance is a purchase of future sales, not a loan, as long as the funder takes real risk that sales fall short. Since August 2023 New York requires funders to show an estimated APR on the offer, and since August 2019 a funder cannot file a confession of judgment against a business outside New York. Read when an advance counts as a loan.
Who runs Startups #nofilter, and how does it make money?
The site is run by its editor, Solomon (Shlomo) Wiesen, and has published since 2015. It is not a lender or broker. It may be paid when a reader sends a financing request that is referred to a funding partner; no lender pays for coverage or rankings. Details are on the disclosure page.