Merchant Cash Advance Calculator
Calculate an advance's total cost, estimated annualized rate, and payment burden from your quoted factor rate, fees, and repayment schedule.
Daily, weekly or monthly payments · Free CSV export · Runs in your browser
Cash received after upfront fees
- Advance
- $100,000
- Factor rate
- 1.30x
- Upfront fees
- $2,000
- Total repayment
- $130,000
- Total cost including fees
- $32,000
A factor rate describes total payback. Payment timing determines the annualized cost.
- Cash you receive
- $98,000.00
- Total repayment
- $130,000.00
- Total cost, including fees
- $32,000.00
- Estimated APR (nominal)
- 118.2%
- First scheduled payment
- $1,000.00
- Average monthly payment / revenue
- 21.7%
Estimated term: 6 months. First payment one full period after funding. Business daily assumes 260 equal periods per year; weekly 52; monthly 12. Holidays and actual debit dates can change the rate.
Estimated APR is the payment-period IRR multiplied by periods per year. It is a nominal annualized comparison estimate, not a statutory APR disclosure. Revenue-based holdbacks and changing sales need a different schedule. Read the method.
Payment schedule
Remaining balance is the unpaid contracted repayment, including the factor cost.
| Payment | Amount | Paid to date | Remaining |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $1,000.00 | $1,000.00 | $129,000.00 |
| 2 | $1,000.00 | $2,000.00 | $128,000.00 |
| 3 | $1,000.00 | $3,000.00 | $127,000.00 |
| 4 | $1,000.00 | $4,000.00 | $126,000.00 |
| 5 | $1,000.00 | $5,000.00 | $125,000.00 |
| 6 | $1,000.00 | $6,000.00 | $124,000.00 |
Put a real funding offer beside this estimate.
Connect your business data to explore Founderpath funding. Compare cash received, total cost, and the repayment structure before deciding.
Explore my funding optionsBuilt for revenue-generating businesses. Product eligibility varies; see the current product requirements in the guide below.
Read the whole offer, not just the factor rate
What a merchant cash advance costs
A factor rate is a multiplier applied to the advance to determine contracted repayment. In its small business financing overview, the Federal Trade Commission describes the advance plus its factor and the burden of frequent repayments. Upfront deductions also matter because they reduce the cash available to your business.
Use the factor rate and fees from your own offer. The defaults here are a worked example, not a market benchmark or a Founderpath quote. For broader liquidity planning, pair the result with the burn rate calculator and cash runway calculator.
Factor rate formula and example
Net cash = advance - fees withheld
Total cost = repayment - net cash
With a $100,000 advance, a 1.30 factor rate and $2,000 deducted upfront, you receive $98,000 and repay $130,000. The total cost is $32,000, or 32.65% of the cash received. Over 130 equal business-daily payments, each payment is $1,000. These are calculations from the illustrative inputs.
The factor charge stays fixed in this model. A shorter repayment period increases the annualized rate even when the dollar cost is unchanged. If your agreement changes the payoff amount when you settle early, calculate again with the actual payoff terms.
Payment burden and funding decisions
Compare the payment with cash available after payroll, hosting, tax, and other obligations. A payment-to-revenue percentage is a starting point; it does not show affordability or approval. Use the debt capacity calculator to explore cash-flow constraints and the financial model template to test a slower-sales scenario.
In his Founderpath talk about operating cadence, BrightEdge founder Jim Yu describes why cash flow belongs in the regular financial review:
“You also want to keep close eye on finance, understanding the P&L of the business, the cash flow of the business.”
For software founders comparing capital structures, start with revenue financing. For seasonal businesses, review the current merchant cash advance terms. Compare each actual offer's cash proceeds, repayment, fees, and payment structure. This calculator does not predict a funding offer.
Sources and calculation method
Sources reviewed October 16, 2026: the FTC's small business financing overview for the factor and repayment explanation, and the New York Department of Financial Services commercial financing disclosure regulation for the distinction between projected and actual repayment cash flows. This tool provides a comparison estimate; it does not implement a jurisdiction's statutory disclosure method.
We solve net cash = Σ(payment at period t ÷ (1 + r)^t) for the periodic rate r, then multiply r by 260, 52 or 12 to estimate nominal annualized APR. Business-daily periods are evenly spaced for this estimate; holidays and weekends are not modeled as actual calendar dates. The first payment is one full period after funding. Payments are allocated to cents, with any extra cents in the earliest payments. The CSV uses the same cash flows as the rate calculation.
Average monthly payment equals total repayment divided by estimated months. It smooths the payment schedule; actual calendar-month debits can differ. Monthly revenue is held constant. Sales-based holdbacks, variable receipts, missed payments, refinancing, and early-payoff discounts are outside this fixed-payment model.
Founderpath states on its MCA product page, as of October 2026, that its repayments vary with sales. Its factor rate is quoted individually. Accordingly, the fixed-payment example above is not a simulation of Founderpath's MCA. Review the linked product page for its current eligibility requirements.