Quick summary
Loot and Fundbox are both business lines of credit, but they're built for different stages. Loot skips the credit score minimum and rewards paying off early, made for businesses that have been running a year or more. Fundbox offers a bigger limit and an easier bar for newer businesses. This guide compares cost, requirements, and speed side by side, using real numbers from both.
How Loot and Fundbox are similar
Both are lines of credit, not lump-sum loans. You draw what you need, pay for what you draw, and your available credit opens back up as you repay.
Both are unsecured too, so neither one requires collateral to qualify.
Loot vs. Fundbox: side by side
| Loot | Fundbox | |
|---|---|---|
| Credit limit | $5,000 to $100,000 | Up to $250,000 |
| Minimum credit score | None | 600 |
| Time in business | 1+ year | 3 months (6 recommended) |
| Minimum annual revenue | $200,000 | $100,000 |
| Collateral | Unsecured | Unsecured |
| How cost is calculated | Variable rate, priced per draw, plus a 5% draw fee deducted upfront | Weekly fee: 4.66% over 12 weeks or 8.99% over 24 weeks, roughly 36% to 99% effective APR |
| Repayment | Choose your term, fixed weekly payment, pay off early with no penalty and save up to 50% on remaining fees | Fixed weekly payments over 12 or 24 weeks |
| Credit check | Soft pull only, never a hard pull | Soft pull to apply, hard pull when you draw funds |
| Decision speed | As fast as a few minutes | As fast as a few minutes, up to 24 hours |
| Funding speed | Up to 2 business days, or same day for a small admin fee | 1 to 2 business days after approval |
Where Loot and Fundbox are really different
Credit score
Loot doesn't set a minimum credit score. Instead, Blackbeard, Loot's underwriting engine, looks at your business's actual cash flow, so a personal credit score that isn't where you'd like it doesn't automatically close the door. Fundbox looks for a minimum score of 600.
If your credit has taken a hit but your business is healthy, that's exactly where Loot's approach opens a door Fundbox's can't.
How each one checks your credit
Loot's eligibility check is a soft pull, so checking what you qualify for never affects your credit score, no matter what happens next. Fundbox also does a soft pull to apply, but moves to a hard pull once you actually draw funds, which can have a small impact.
Cost
Loot's line of credit uses a variable rate priced per draw, so your cost scales with how much you actually take out, not a flat rate on your full limit. There's no maintenance fee. Loot does charge a 5% draw fee, taken out of the funds before they hit your account, so a $50,000 draw nets $47,500 before any other fee.
Fundbox charges a weekly fee instead: 4.66% over a 12-week term or 8.99% over a 24-week term, which works out to an effective APR of roughly 36% to 99% depending on your terms. There's no origination or inactivity fee, and an optional $99 a month plan lowers fees by 20% if you draw often.
Your real cost with either lender depends on your specific business and draw, so the clearest comparison is the actual number each one gives you when you check.
Repayment
Loot lets you choose your term when you draw. Each option comes with a fixed weekly payment and a locked-in total cost, shown upfront before you accept, so there's no guessing what you'll owe. Pay it off faster than scheduled and there's no penalty, you'll save up to 50% on the fees you would have owed.
Fundbox works on a similar structure: fixed weekly payments over 12 or 24 weeks, also with no prepayment penalty.
Speed
Loot decides in as little as a few minutes and gets funds to you in up to two business days, or same day for a small admin fee if you need it sooner. Fundbox's decision is also fast, as little as a few minutes, though it can take up to 24 hours, with funds arriving one to two business days after approval.
Credit limit and business requirements
Loot's limit runs $5,000 to $100,000, for businesses with at least a year in operation and $200,000 in annual revenue. Fundbox goes higher, up to $250,000, with an easier bar for newer businesses: three months in business and $100,000 in revenue.
If you've been running a year or more, Loot is built for you. If you're newer or need a bigger line right now, Fundbox's lower bar might fit better today.
Which one fits your business?
Loot fits best if you've been in business a year or more, your credit score isn't where you'd like it to be, or you want the option to pay off a draw early and save on the fees.
Fundbox may fit better if you're a newer business that needs a bigger limit right now.
Bottom line
Loot is built for businesses that are past the startup phase and want a lender that doesn't gatekeep on credit score, and rewards you for paying early. If you're newer or need a bigger limit right now, Fundbox is worth a look while you grow.
No minimum credit score, and checking your eligibility won't affect your credit score.
Blackbeard
Senior Content Strategist · Small Business Finance · Loot
Blackbeard writes about cash flow, lending, and financial planning for small business owners, drawing on eight years of covering SMB finance. Blackbeard holds a B.S. in Finance and has contributed to several small-business banking publications.
FAQ
No. Checking what you qualify for with Loot is a soft pull, so it never affects your credit score.
Applying is a soft pull, which doesn't affect your score. Drawing funds triggers a hard pull, which can have a small impact.
It depends on what's holding you back. Loot has no minimum credit score, so that's never the blocker. Fundbox's revenue and time-in-business minimums are lower, which helps if you're newer.
It depends on your business and how you use it. Loot's rate is variable and priced per draw, plus a 5% upfront draw fee. Fundbox publishes a weekly fee that works out to a wide APR range. The real comparison is the actual number each one gives you, not the sticker rate.
Most lenders don't prohibit it, but check each agreement's terms on outstanding debt before combining lines from different lenders.
Blackbeard is Loot's AI underwriting engine. It reviews your application against more than 2 million data points to reach a decision in minutes, and it's also built into the customer portal, where you can ask it questions about your account or request a limit increase
Share article
