SBA 7(a) Down Payment Calculator

This calculator shows what SBA requires you to put into a 7(a) deal, and how much of that has to be your own money. Simply enter the purchase price, the other costs it takes to get to closing, and any seller note, then pick what the loan is for.

One quick note: the answer turns on the use of proceeds, not on the loan size. A standard 7(a) loan for working capital or equipment carries no set percentage at all.

Estimates only. SBA sets a floor. Your lender sets its own requirement on top of it, and that one is usually what binds.

How the calculator works

It adds your purchase price to the rest of the project cost and takes 10% of that total, where SBA requires a minimum. Then it credits a seller note against the requirement, but only if you tell it the note is on full standby. What is left is the cash you have to bring. The 7(a) loan is whatever the project still needs after your cash and the full seller note.

Pick the use of proceeds carefully. Only two of the four options carry a percentage. A partner buyout or a partial sale runs a debt-to-worth test instead, so the tool routes you there rather than printing a number that does not apply to your deal.

SBA equity injection rules

Does an SBA 7(a) Loan Require a Down Payment?

Not always. There is no blanket minimum injection for a standard 7(a) loan. 13 CFR 120.150 treats equity as one credit factor among several and sets no percentage. Neither does 13 CFR 120.202, the regulation on loans for changes of ownership, which runs one sentence and names no number.

Every percentage on this page comes from the SOP instead. That matters, because SBA can revise the SOP by notice.

SOP 50 10 8 puts a number on it in two situations only. Outside those two, the lender decides whether your equity position, any required contribution, and your pro forma debt to worth are acceptable for that type of business.

When Does the 10% Minimum Apply?

Two cases. A start-up, which SBA defines as a business that has been generating revenue from its intended operations for one year or less. And a complete change of ownership, meaning a transaction that results in a new owner. Both carry a minimum injection of at least 10%.

Timing matters if you are taking more than one loan. SBA treats 7(a) loans approved more than 90 days apart as separate projects, so two approvals inside that window count as one project for the start-up test.

Is the 10% Based on the Purchase Price?

No, and this is where most estimates go wrong. SBA measures against total project cost: all costs required to complete the change of ownership, regardless of the source of funds, other than amounts funded by a line of credit or a 504 loan.

So working capital and closing costs move the requirement. On a $1,000,000 purchase price with $150,000 of other project costs, the minimum is $115,000, not $100,000.

Can a Seller Note Count as My Down Payment?

Partly. SOP 50 10 8 says seller debt may not be considered part of the equity injection unless it is on full standby for the life of the SBA loan, and it does not exceed half of the SBA-required injection.

Do the arithmetic on a 10% requirement and the seller note tops out at 5% of total project cost. Everything the seller lends above that line is ordinary seller debt.

What Does Full Standby Mean?

No payments of principal or interest for the term of the 7(a) loan. The lender documents it on SBA Form 155 or its own equivalent standby agreement, with a copy of the note attached.

Interest may accrue and be added to the standby balance, then amortize once the 7(a) loan is paid in full. The standby creditor also subordinates its lien rights and agrees to take no action against the borrower or the collateral without the lender's consent. Sellers do not always sign that.

What Changed in SOP 50 10 8?

The seller note rules tightened on June 1, 2025. Under SOP 50 10 7.1 a seller note could qualify on either full standby or partial standby with interest-only payments, and the standby had to run for only the first 24 months.

SOP 50 10 8 removed both options. Standby now runs the life of the loan, and the old test that asked for at least a quarter of the injection from a non-seller source became the flat 50% cap. Any page still describing the 24-month version is describing policy that was replaced. Check the date on whatever you are reading.

How Much Cash Does the Buyer Really Need?

On a complete change of ownership with a full-standby seller note at the cap, half the requirement, or 5% of total project cost. That figure gets its own line in the calculator because it is the number that decides whether a deal closes.

So, for example, on a $1,000,000 purchase with $150,000 of working capital and closing costs:

1,150,000 x 0.10 = $115,000 required injection

115,000 / 2 = $57,500 from a full-standby seller note, leaving $57,500 in buyer cash

Watch what happens when you switch the note off standby. The credit drops to zero and your cash requirement doubles, on the same deal, with the same seller.

What if I Am Buying Out a Partner?

Different test entirely, and the 10% formula does not apply. On a complete partner buyout, the trigger is whether the 7(a) loan finances more than 90% of the purchase price. Above that line, the remaining owners have to certify at least 24 months of active participation at the same or an increasing ownership interest. The balance sheets also have to show debt to worth no worse than 9:1 before the change.

Miss either one and they contribute cash equal to the lesser of what it takes to reach 9:1 or 10% of the purchase price. Partial changes of ownership run the same 9:1 test. Both call for cash, so a seller note will not satisfy them.

Are There Deals With No Required Injection?

Three of them. A loan to an ESOP buying a controlling interest of at least 51% in the employer small business is not subject to the SBA injection requirement. The requirement is waived, not reduced.

Neither is a business expansion, where an existing business starts or acquires a business in the same 6-digit NAICS code with identical ownership and the two are co-borrowers. And on SBA Express, whether to require an injection at all is left to the lender's business judgment.

Where Else Can the Injection Come From?

SBA's list is specific. Cash that is not borrowed. Cash from a personal loan, if you can show repayment will come from something other than the business's cash flow. Grants with no repayment or clawback during the life of the 7(a) loan. Assets other than cash, which need an independent third-party appraisal if you carry them above net book value. Verified prepaid expenses too.

Equity counts too, as long as no agreement lets an investor recover the investment before the guaranty is released. Salary the business pays you is not an outside repayment source, and SBA says so directly.

When Does the Lender Verify It?

Before any money moves. Lenders have to verify the SBA-required injection prior to disbursing any loan proceeds and keep the evidence in the file, and SBA can repair or deny the guaranty if they did not. Plan on bank statements, wire confirmations, and a signed standby agreement rather than a promise.

Where Can I Get a 7(a) Quote?

Answer a few questions and we route your deal to SBA lending partners. It is free and there is no obligation. Once you know the loan amount, our SBA 7(a) loan calculator will show the payment, and the business acquisition calculator will test whether the cash flow covers it.

Rules confirmed against SOP 50 10 8 (effective June 1, 2025), SBA Procedural Notice 5000-872764 (effective September 30, 2025), 13 CFR 120.150, and 13 CFR 120.202 on Jul 30, 2026. SBA can change the SOP by notice, so confirm any figure with your lender before you sign.