Our verdict: size and specialists, with pricing you only see late
Live Oak Bank earns 3.5 out of 5. It is an SBA Preferred Lender, which means it can approve your loan without sending it to SBA first, and it says that typically shortens approval by three to four weeks [26]. It organizes its lenders by industry, says it has served 60,000+ small business owners [25], and makes big loans: the median Live Oak 7(a) loan in fiscal 2025 was $500,000 [23]. What holds the score down is that the price of a standard SBA loan appears only in your term sheet, and a share of its own invited reviewers describe friction after closing.
Pros
- Largest SBA 7(a) lender by dollars in FY2025 and FY2026 to date
- 7(a) loans to $5 million and 504 loans to $15 million
- Express loan publishes a 9.50% to 10.50% average APR
- Phones answered until 11:00 p.m. ET on weekdays
Cons
- No published rate or fee list for standard 7(a) and 504 loans
- 680 minimum FICO score
- SBA prepayment fee on loans of 15 years or longer
- Bank may pre-file liens before your loan funds
Live Oak's loans, who qualifies and how long it takes
| Loan | Amount | Main uses | Key rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| SBA 7(a) | Up to $5 million | Buying a business, partner buyouts, real estate, refinancing | Up to 90% bank financing, no balloon |
| SBA 504 | Up to $15 million | Commercial real estate, large equipment | Typically 10% down |
| Live Oak Express (SBA 7(a)) | $10,000 to $350,000 | Working capital, equipment, refinancing | 2 years in business; no real estate, no MCA payoff |
The credit line is clear: a minimum FICO score of 680 to be considered for an SBA loan [3]. Express borrowers also need two years in business, an excellent credit history and current payments on every business and personal debt [8]. Startups can be considered for standard SBA loans, depending on the industry, the business plan and the cash the owner puts in [3].
Speed depends on the product. Express gives a decision in 48 hours on average, and funds can land in as few as 15 days [9][10]. A standard SBA loan runs on Live Oak's own posted timeline: underwriting takes up to 10 business days once your documents are in, then SBA approval and closing take 30 to 45 days [4]. If you are buying a business with a closing date, start at least two months ahead.
What a Live Oak SBA loan costs
Live Oak prices SBA loans as a spread over prime, based on cash flow, time in business, personal credit, existing debt and collateral [5]. SBA caps that spread at 3.0 points over the base rate for loans above $350,000 [21], so with prime at 7.00% [24] the ceiling on a large variable loan is 10.00%. In SBA's file, Live Oak's New Jersey loans from fiscal 2024 to June 2026 had a median starting rate of 9.74%, and all 177 were variable [23].
Express is the one product with a printed price: 9.50% to 10.50% APR on average, with transparent closing costs and no prepayment penalty [6][7]. Live Oak's own comparison puts a 10-year, $150,000 Express loan at about $1,980 a month, against about $10,007 for a two-year short-term loan of the same size [12]. Our check: $150,000 at 10% over 120 months is $1,982 a month, so the bank's number holds.
Ask for these in writing before you sign
The SBA upfront fee and any packaging or closing fees in dollars. Whether the rate is fixed or variable, and how often it resets. Whether the term is 15 years or longer, which brings SBA's prepayment fee. Whether a Live Oak checking account is required.
Paying early, liens and what loan customers report
On a 7(a) loan with a term of 15 years or longer, SBA charges a fee if you prepay 25% or more of the balance in the first three years after the first disbursement: 5% of the prepaid amount in year one, 3% in year two and 1% in year three [19][20]. Eighteen of Live Oak's 177 New Jersey loans ran 300 months, the 25-year real estate term where this fee applies [23]. Shorter loans and Express loans have no such fee [7].
Live Oak's loan disclosure says that once a loan reaches closing, the bank may pre-file UCC liens on the property named in the commitment letter, and will agree to end those filings if the loan does not fund only after you pay any fees and expenses owed [15]. That is legal and common, but it means walking away late can cost you money and leave a lien to clear.
Trustpilot lets you search a profile, so we pulled the first 60 reviews matching "loan" and dropped 2 about savings accounts [16]. The 29 unprompted loan reviews averaged 4.7 stars and none described a post-closing problem. The 29 reviews labeled Verified, which we count as invited, averaged 4.0 and included all 6 post-closing complaints: an account closed days after an SBA disbursement, a lien still on file, a forced checking account, misrouted funds [16]. Ask how payments, liens and accounts will work after funding.
Live Oak's SBA record, nationally and in New Jersey
| Period and area | Loans | Dollars | Rank by dollars |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States, FY2025 | 2,280 | $2.85B | 1st |
| United States, FY2026 to June 30 | 1,564 | $1.66B | 1st |
| New Jersey projects, FY2024 to June 2026 | 177 | $187.7M | 2nd |
In fiscal 2025 all lenders together approved 78,078 SBA 7(a) loans worth $37.29 billion, so Live Oak made about 3% of the loans but about 7.7% of the dollars [23]. That gap is the whole story: it makes fewer, bigger loans. In New Jersey only TD Bank approved more SBA dollars over the same stretch [23]. See every NJ lender on our New Jersey SBA lender list.
Alternatives to Live Oak Bank
- SmartBiz: smaller SBA working capital and refinance loans with its rate formula and fees printed online.
- Lendio: one application shown to many lenders, useful if you are not sure SBA is the right product.
- Balboa Capital or Taycor Financial: equipment-only needs where speed beats rate.
- More options on our best SBA lenders list.