If you want to make a success of your small business, you’ll need more than just a great idea. Companies can’t operate on dreams and thin air, after all, and there’s sure to come a time when you’ll want to prioritize funding.

This is true even if you’ve emptied your entire savings pot into your business vision, as there’s always another expense waiting around the entrepreneurial corner. Hence, for many business owners, small business administration (SBA) loans are an absolute must.

Designed specifically to help small businesses secure the funding they need, SBA loans, which are most often issued by banks or lenders, are well-suited for investments such as commercial real estate or product expansion. Unfortunately, with the need for extensive documentation and sometimes complex or lengthy approval processes, they’re not something you can simply sort at a moment’s notice.

Instead, you’ll need to consider your lending options in detail to secure an SBA loan, with a specific focus on what each lender offers, and who would be best suited to take that option. In this article, I’ll consider five of the high-performing SBA lenders worth considering in 2025.

1. SbaloansHQ - Best for Fast Approval

It’s easy to jump in with big bank loans when looking at your SBA options, but in many cases, banks aren’t actually the best option. In fact, a lack of SBA-specific knowledge means that going down this route can lead to lengthy submission processes with no guarantee of approval. SbaloansHQ provides an alternative, non-bank free loan brokering service that aims to break that tradition.

Fronted by a team of experts with detailed knowledge of SBA loans as well as other small business essentials, SbaloansHQ works with a wide range of SBA lenders across the market. Unlike many other lending marketplaces, however, they don’t require you to submit paperwork to potentially hundreds of lenders in the hopes your application will stick.

Instead, they’ll put in the work to pair you with the ideal lender, both for your niche and for your chances of approval. This ensures speedy submission processes, simplified applications, and a far higher chance of receiving precisely the approval you need to start growing your vision.

2. NewtekOne - Best for Established Brands

As well as offering traditional banking solutions, NewtekOne provides a range of business and financial solutions through its subsect, NewtekLending, which funded the most SBA loans for the fiscal year 2024. Here, business owners can secure flexible financing for a variety of business growth needs, with SBA loans that range from $1,000-$15 million for use in circumstances such as business acquisition and commercial real estate purchases.

Newtek lending experts are on-hand to help with the completion of SBA forms, and will also help you to combine multiple financing options for the best overall lending solutions. However, NewtekOne doesn’t tailor their SBA loans to brand-new businesses, meaning this might be the best option for entrepreneurs just getting started. Instead, NewtekLending is solely reserved for established businesses with at least two profitable years under their belts, who can easily prove their ability to meet loan repayments.

3. Live Oak Bank - Best for Big Loans

Live Oak Bank is a premier SBA lender in the US, and comes second only to Newtek in the amount of SBA loans funded last year. Live Oak Bank’s offerings are especially standout for benefits including transparent closing costs and streamlined applications that require only simple documentation. Live Oak Bank loans are also provided with limited collateral requirements, as well as no balloon payments and no prepayment penalties for loan terms that are under 15 years.

However, the best selling point for Live Oak Bank SBA loans is undeniably the generous term amounts on offer. When combined with other financial products, Live Oak Bank’s SBA offerings can well exceed the standard $5 million financing you’ll find elsewhere. A higher starting point does mean these loans might not be best for businesses at the beginning of their journeys, but it doesn’t get much better than this for companies with high financial requirements.

4. Huntington Bank - Best for Flexible Financing

Huntington Bank is a full-service banking provider with SBA loan offerings that range up to $5 million, and have down payments as low as 10%. They provide a variety of SBA lending options, including -

SBA 7 (a) loans for purposes including acquisition, expansion, and refinancing
SBA Express loans for expedited loan approval, typically on smaller loan amounts
SBA 504 loans that provide long-term fixed financing for equipment purchases

As well as providing a variety of lending options, Huntington Bank puts flexibility at the forefront, with nationwide offerings that appeal to business owners at every stage of their entrepreneurial journeys. Huntington Bank loans also tend to lack loan covenants, providing a new level of flexibility when it comes to what that money goes towards within your company.

5. Readycap Lending - Best for Financing Challenges

Readycap Lending is a non-bank subsidiary of Ready Capital, and is a top five lender by both total loan amount and number of loan approvals. They provide SBA 7 (a) loans up to $5 million for industries including healthcare, hospitality, logistics, and beyond, all with the benefit of responsive lending that ensures the ideal loan for your purposes.

Readycap’s lending approach is also on hand to help any companies that have failed to secure a loan via conventional routes, whether that’s because of poor credit or an otherwise high level of risk. That makes Readycap SBA lending ideal for companies that have either been refused loan approval in the past or have avoided applications for fear of failure.

Conclusion

Securing an SBA loan with the right lender at a key stage in your business journey can make a huge difference to overall company outcomes, and can be just the thing to get your idea off the ground. Simply consider your options, and understand which would be best for your business in the long run.

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