Funding products
Merchant Cash Advance: Funding Built on Your Sales, Not Your Credit Score
A merchant cash advance (MCA) is not a loan: it’s a purchase of a fixed amount of your future revenue in exchange for a lump sum today, repaid through small daily or weekly payments sized to your sales rather than a monthly bill. It’s the fastest, most credit-flexible product Forwardfy arranges, with funding available the same day.
No credit impact to check options · Same-day funding available · Bad credit considered
How a Merchant Cash Advance Works
An MCA is not a loan: it’s a purchase of future receivables. The funder we match you with advances a lump sum now; in return, a fixed total amount is collected from your future revenue in small daily or weekly payments. Three numbers define the whole deal, all fixed before you sign:
- The advance: the lump sum that hits your account (often the same day you accept).
- The factor rate: multiply it by the advance to get your total payback. $50,000 × 1.25 = $62,500. No compounding, no rate surprises. Run your own numbers free →
- The payment: a small fixed amount each banking day or week, sized to your revenue so it flexes with how your business actually earns.
Why it approves when banks decline: underwriting reads your last 4 months of bank deposits (proof of a living business) instead of leaning on a credit score that remembers your hardest year. That’s why bad-credit businesses get funded here.
What Is a Factor Rate?
A factor rate is the multiplier that sets the entire cost of a merchant cash advance. Multiply the advance by the factor rate and you have the total payback, every dollar of it, before you sign. A $50,000 advance at a 1.25 factor rate means $62,500 to repay: the $50,000 you received plus $12,500 as the cost of the capital.
That’s the fundamental difference from an interest rate. Interest compounds on a balance over time, so what a loan ultimately costs depends on how long you carry it. A factor rate is a fixed total set at signing: no compounding, no rate resets, no meter running. $62,500 stays $62,500 whether your term runs short or long, which is exactly why the number is worth understanding before you compare offers.
For the full math, including what moves your rate up or down and how to line up competing offers, read how factor rates actually work, or plug your own numbers into the merchant cash advance calculator to see your exact payback, payment size, and annualized cost.
What Businesses Use MCAs For
Anything that pays back faster than it costs: grabbing bulk inventory at a discount, bridging a slow-paying GC, covering payroll in a shoulder season, emergency equipment for a restaurant kitchen, or marketing ahead of your busy season. Strong-revenue, card-heavy, and seasonal businesses get the most out of the structure.
How Much Can You Get - and What You Need
Advances are sized on what your business actually deposits each month, so the answer is different for every applicant. The ranges and requirements, though, are simple:
- $10,000 to $6 million: the advance is sized on your monthly revenue, not on collateral or a credit score.
- Last 4 months of bank statements: the main thing underwriting reads. Consistent deposits carry the application.
- Bad credit considered: no effect on your credit score to check.
The fastest way to know your real number is to apply in under 3 minutes: free, no commitment, and an advisor calls with an actual offer within hours.
60-Second Match Check
Three questions, instant estimate: nothing submitted, nothing stored.
Strong, consistent deposits can push real offers above this range.
Illustrative estimate, not an offer. Checking for real never affects your credit.
An Honest Word: When an MCA Isn’t the Answer
MCAs price for speed and flexibility. If you have one planned purchase and steady cash flow, a term loan may cost less. If you want a standing safety net, look at a line of credit. If your cash is trapped in unpaid B2B invoices, factoring attacks the actual problem. And if you’re already carrying payments on more than one advance, MCA consolidation can replace several daily payments with a single one. We put all three structures side by side (repayment rhythm, cost logic, best-fit scenarios) in our worked comparison of MCAs, term loans, and lines of credit. Our advisors will tell you which fits, even when the answer isn’t an MCA. That’s the partnership part of how we work.
Apply in under 3 minutes
Free, no commitment, no effect on your credit rating: just your basic business profile.
Offer within hours
Advance, factor rate, payment: every figure explained in plain English by a real advisor.
Funded same day
Accept, sign, and the transfer is initiated, often before the close of business.
Real people pick up.
You’ll talk to a funding advisor, not a phone tree. Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET.
Merchant Cash Advance FAQs
What exactly is a merchant cash advance?
An MCA is not a loan: it's a purchase of future receivables. You receive a lump sum today in exchange for a fixed amount of your future revenue, collected as small daily or weekly payments. Because it's underwritten on your sales rather than your credit score, approval is faster and far more flexible than a bank loan.
How is the cost calculated?
MCAs use a factor rate instead of an interest rate. Multiply the advance by the factor rate to get your total payback: for example, $50,000 at a 1.25 factor is $62,500, fixed up front with no compounding. Try real numbers in our free funding calculator.
How fast can I get an MCA?
This is the fastest product we arrange: apply in under 3 minutes, get a personalized offer within hours, and (after accepting) funds are initiated the same day in many cases.
Can I qualify with bad credit?
Yes, MCAs are the most credit-flexible funding type because repayment comes from your revenue. Consistent deposits in your last 4 months of bank statements matter far more than your score.
How does repayment work day to day?
A small fixed amount is collected each banking day or week, spelled out in your agreement before you sign. Many businesses prefer this rhythm: hundreds of small automatic payments instead of one large bill at month's end.
When is an MCA the wrong choice?
If you have a single planned purchase and predictable monthly cash flow, a term loan may cost less. If you need a standing safety net, consider a line of credit. If slow-paying B2B invoices are the problem, invoice factoring fits better. We'll tell you straight: compare options or ask your advisor.
Still comparing? See every funding option side by side.
Related Tools & Guides
MCA Calculator
See total payback, payment size, and annualized cost on an advance.
Open the tool →What Is a Factor Rate?
How factor rates work and how to compare offers.
Read the guide →MCA vs. Term Loan vs. Line of Credit
How three funding structures repay, compared.
Read the guide →Bad Credit Business Funding
Options evaluated on revenue, not just your credit score.
Read the guide →Compare Funding Options
MCA, term loans, lines of credit, and factoring side by side.
Read the guide →Loan Comparison Calculator
Put two offers side by side by total cost and annualized rate.
Open the tool →Your Sales Already Earned This Capital
Find out what your revenue qualifies for, free, in 3 minutes, with zero credit impact.
Checking your options has no effect on your credit score · Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. ET