Business funding in Florida: options, requirements and what it costs

583,685 independent businesses in Florida across 1,305 cities and towns are listed on CheckThisBiz, with chains and franchises excluded. That is the base of owner-operated businesses in this state, and it is who the funding below is built for.

What you need to qualify

An operating business with revenue running through a business bank account.
Three to six months of bank statements. Deposits matter more than anything on your tax return.
Consistency. Steady months beat one big month and five weak ones.
Clean recent banking. Repeated overdrafts are the fastest decline there is.

Credit matters, but for revenue-based products it matters far less than most owners expect. See what lenders actually see in your bank statements.

Options that fit

Working capital — payroll, inventory, seasonal gaps
Business line of credit — draw what you need, pay for what you use
Equipment financing — secured by the equipment itself
Invoice factoring — if you bill other businesses and wait to get paid
Revenue-based financing — underwritten on deposits, not credit
Merchant cash advance — fastest, and the most expensive

The Florida business mix

The most common kinds of independent business in the state, which is a fair guide to what gets funded here.

Industry	Independent businesses
Real Estate Agent	17,504
Restaurant	12,545
Beauty Salon	9,712
Real Estate Service	8,261
Automotive Repair	8,055
Hair Salon	7,958
Professional Service	6,778
Contractor	6,263

Business funding by city in Florida

The Florida cities we cover, each with that city's own business mix and the funding that fits it.

Miami — 45,834 businesses
Orlando — 30,915 businesses
Tampa — 27,925 businesses
Jacksonville — 24,303 businesses
Fort Lauderdale — 12,998 businesses
Sarasota — 12,036 businesses
Naples — 10,791 businesses
Boca Raton — 10,238 businesses
Fort Myers — 10,031 businesses
West Palm Beach — 9,043 businesses
Pensacola — 7,827 businesses
St Petersburg — 7,618 businesses
Tallahassee — 7,306 businesses
Clearwater — 6,820 businesses

Where the businesses are

Miami (45,834), Orlando (30,915), Tampa (27,925), Jacksonville (24,303), Fort Lauderdale (12,981), Sarasota (12,036).

What an underwriter checks first

Average monthly deposits, across three to six months. This sets the size of any offer.
Negative days and NSFs. The quickest route to a decline.
Existing positions. Payments to other funders are plain to see in the statements.
Time in business and industry, both of which move pricing before credit is even pulled.
Credit, last, and it weighs least on revenue-based products.

Questions Florida owners ask

What do I need to qualify for business funding in Florida?

An operating business with revenue running through a business bank account, bank statements that show it, and ideally no recent overdrafts. Time in business and credit both help, and they matter most for the longest and cheapest products. Revenue-based options weigh deposits far more heavily than your credit score.

How fast can a Florida business get funded?

Working capital, revenue-based financing, factoring and advances commonly fund in days once the file is complete. Equipment financing takes days to a couple of weeks. Longer term loans take longer because the underwriting is deeper.

Are there funding options in Florida for bad credit?

Often yes, when the deposits are there. Revenue-based financing and merchant cash advances are underwritten mainly on bank deposits rather than credit history.

Business funding in other states

All business funding options ›

One application, matched to the right product, beats twenty applications and twenty phone calls. Merchant Fund Express offers the full range in one place and underwrites in house, so a single file gets looked at properly.

Funding subject to approval.