What we are — in one paragraph

The Broker Shop is a licensed small business loan and funding broker. We’re not a lender. We don’t hold your loan, set its rate, or service it after funding. What we do is shop your application across a curated network of 50+ direct lenders — banks, alternative lenders, SBA preferred lenders, equipment-finance specialists — in parallel, then negotiate and present you with the strongest 2 to 3 offers. You pick the one you like; we close it.

The whole service is free to you. The lender pays our referral fee when your deal closes, the same way mortgage brokers and insurance brokers get paid. The factor rate or APR you see in the offer is the rate you sign. We can’t mark it up, even if we wanted to. Want the deeper version of how this all works? Read the full explainer.

Broker vs. direct — the actual difference

People sometimes ask why not just go to one bank or one MCA company directly. Here’s what changes when you do:

Through a Broker
Direct to Lender
Applications you fill out
1 (2 minutes)
1 per lender, can be 30+ min each
Offers you see
Top 2–3 from 50+ lenders shopping in parallel
One, at that lender’s pricing
Credit pulls during pre-qual
1 soft pull (no impact)
1 hard pull per lender (5–10 pts each)
Negotiation leverage
Competing offers force rates down
None — you take what they offer
Cost to you
$0 (lender pays broker fee at close)
$0 directly, but worse pricing
Time to first offer
Same day, often 2–4 hours
Same day to several days, lender-dependent

The short version: brokers don’t cost more — they usually cost less, because the competitive shopping forces the lender’s pricing down by more than the broker’s fee. Going direct is the equivalent of buying car insurance from one company without checking the others.

How it actually works — 3 steps

1

You apply (2 minutes)

One short form: business name, monthly revenue, time in business, funding need. Soft credit pull, no impact on your score. No bank statements required to start.

2

We shop your file

Within hours, your application goes to the lenders most likely to compete for your specific situation. Best-fit lenders return offers. We negotiate factor rates and terms.

3

You pick. We close.

We send you the strongest 2–3 offers in plain English. You pick. The chosen lender funds — 24 hours for MCAs, 3–7 days for term loans. You pay $0 to us; the lender pays our fee at close.

What you can fund through us

We work across the full small business funding menu. You don’t need to pre-decide which product fits — we match you to whichever option performs best for your situation. Each product below links to a deeper page.

Our lender network

Our network includes a mix of large national lenders, regional banks, alternative finance companies, and specialty lenders focused on specific industries (restaurants, trucking, contractors, healthcare, retail). Mixing those types is what makes the broker model work — one big lender can’t cover every situation, but a network of 50+ specialists can.

50+
Direct Lenders
$500M+
Capital Deployed
1,200+
Businesses Funded
All 50
States Served

Industries we fund

We work with small business owners in nearly every industry. The most common we see weekly:

Don’t see yours? See the full industry list or just apply — we work with ~95% of business types.

What we don’t do (and how to spot a bad broker)

What we don’t do — and what no legitimate broker should

  • No upfront fees — not for application, not for “processing,” not for “underwriting.” If a broker asks for money before you fund, walk away. Always.
  • No hard credit pulls without your consent — we pre-qualify with soft pulls only. A hard pull happens only on offers you actively accept.
  • No selling your data — your application is shopped only to lenders in our actual network. We don’t resell to lead-broker aggregators.
  • No guaranteed approval — no honest broker can promise this. Anyone who does is either misinformed or lying.
  • No pressure tactics — the offer is good for a few business days. We don’t force you to sign in 30 minutes.
  • No hidden markup — the rate and terms on your offer are exactly what you sign. Our fee comes from the lender at close, not from your loan amount.

What our clients say

$180K Funded
★★★★★

I’d been turned down by three banks. The Broker Shop got me $180K in 48 hours. Transparent, no hidden fees, no surprises.

MR
Marcus R.
Restaurant Owner · Brooklyn, NY
$85K Funded
★★★★★

Needed capital fast for equipment before a big job. They did everything — I just signed. Funded same day. Sent four contractors their way since.

DT
David T.
General Contractor · Long Island, NY
$320K Funded
★★★★★

We needed to expand our fleet. Traditional financing was taking forever. The Broker Shop gave us three offers in 24 hours. 8 trucks to 14.

SL
Sandra L.
Trucking Owner · New Jersey

Frequently asked questions

How much does a business loan broker cost?
Legitimate brokers cost the business owner nothing. We’re paid a referral fee by the lender (typically 1–10% of the funded amount, built into the lender’s pricing). Same model as mortgage and insurance brokers. If a broker asks for an upfront fee, walk away.
Will using a broker hurt my credit score?
No. Pre-qualifying with us is a soft pull, zero score impact. Hard pulls happen only on offers you actively accept. Going to multiple lenders directly causes multiple hard pulls — the broker model is the safer credit path.
Is using a business loan broker safe?
Yes when working with a reputable broker. Red flags to watch for: upfront fees, guaranteed-approval promises, vague answers about who the actual lender is, or pressure to sign within hours. None of those should happen with a legitimate broker.
Why use a broker instead of going direct?
Competing offers lower your rate. A single direct lender has no incentive to discount. Multiple lenders shopping for the same deal create downward price pressure on factor rates and APRs. Most owners save more on rate than the broker costs — and the broker costs you nothing.
How long does the whole process take?
Application: 2 minutes. Pre-qualification: same day. Offers: same day to 24 hours. Funded: 24 hours for MCAs, 3–7 days for term loans, 30–90 days for SBA. Fastest borrowers go from application to funded in under 24 hours.
Can you help me if I have bad credit?
Yes. We have lenders who underwrite primarily on revenue and time in business rather than personal credit. Bad-credit funding guide. We’ve placed funding at credit scores down to 500.
What’s the difference between The Broker Shop and Fundera or Lendio?
Fundera and Lendio are marketplaces — you fill out a form, your info is shared with multiple lenders who contact you directly, you sort through cold calls yourself. The Broker Shop is a direct broker. We screen offers across our network and present you with the strongest 2–3 personally. One point of contact from application to close, not a queue of competing sales calls.