$1,500,000 SBA loan: monthly payment, fees and programs

Monthly payment at today's maximum rate

A variable-rate 7(a) loan of $1,500,000 can carry a rate up to Prime plus 3.0 percentage points (13 CFR 120.214(d)). WSJ PrimeWSJ PrimeThe base interest rate most U.S. banks use, as published by The Wall Street Journal. is 7.00% as of Nov 10, 2026, so the ceiling is 10.00% today.

Your lender sets the actual rate, at or below that ceiling. The payments below use the ceiling. They show the most a variable-rate loan this size can cost at today's Prime.

Each payment is for a fully amortizing term loan. A variable rate can adjust no more often than monthly (13 CFR 120.214(a)), so your payment moves when Prime moves. A fixed rate has its own SBA ceiling, which SBA publishes separately.

SBA sets the longest term by use of proceeds (SOP 50 10 8.1, Appendix 17):

• Working capital: 10 years.
• Equipment: 10 years, or up to 15 years if the IRS asset class useful life supports it.
• Real estate: 25 years, plus any reasonable construction or renovation period.

SBA guaranty fee at $1,500,000

SBA charges its upfront guaranty feeguaranty feeA fee SBA charges on the guaranteed part of a loan. The lender pays it and may pass it to you. Full definition on the guaranteed part of the loan, not on the whole loan. The fee rate depends on the gross loan size (SBA Information Notice 5000-881797).

At this size the fee is about $39,688 on a 7(a) loan.

SBA also charges the lender an annual service fee of 0.55% of the outstanding guaranteed balance. Lenders may not pass it on to you (SBA Information Notice 5000-881797, page 1).

Try a different amount

The calculator starts at $1,500,000 and 10 years. Change the amount or the term to see a new payment and a new fee.

Which SBA programs fit $1,500,000

Size alone allows Standard 7(a) and CAPLines at this amount. A 504 loan fits only when the money buys fixed assets. Size is the first test. The lender decides whether your business qualifies.

Why each program fits or does not

• SBA Express. Above the $500,000 maximum, so a loan this size goes through standard 7(a).
• Standard 7(a). SBA guarantees 75%, up to $3,750,000 for a borrower and its affiliates. Minimum debt service coverage is 1.15:1.
• CAPLines. A 7(a) line of credit. The four types are Working Capital, Contract, Seasonal and Builders.
• 504. A 504 loan finances major fixed assets such as land, buildings and long-term machinery and equipment, not working capital or inventory. The usual split is 50% third party lender, 40% CDC debenture, 10% borrower.
• Microloans. Above the $50,000 maximum.

Sources: SBA Express, SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. B, Ch. 2, Para. B.1; Standard 7(a), SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. B, Ch. 1; App. 16, Para. A.1; Sec. B, Ch. 1, Para. C; 13 CFR § 120.151; 13 CFR § 120.210; CAPLines, SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. B, Ch. 4, Para. B.1; Sec. B, Ch. 4, Para. A; App. 19, Para. B.5; 504, SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. C, Ch. 1, Para. D.1; Sec. A, Ch. 3, Para. A; Sec. C, Ch. 1, Para. B; 13 CFR § 120.930(b); 13 CFR § 120.931; sba.gov/loans/504-loans; Microloans, 13 CFR § 120.707(b); sba.gov/loans/microloans.

What changes at $1,500,000

Loan size moves seven rules. The table shows each one and where $1,500,000 falls. Dollar edges are inclusive at the top: a loan of exactly $150,000 is in the lower group.

The next rule change comes at $5,000,000. No 7(a) loan can be larger. The maximum is $5,000,000.

The last change was at $700,000. The upfront fee is 3% of the guaranteed portion up to $700,000. Above it, the upfront fee is 3.5% of the guaranteed portion up to $1,000,000, plus 3.75% of the guaranteed portion over $1,000,000. The fee waiver for manufacturers, listed food supply chain businesses and rural businesses ends.

Sources: No-collateral line, SOP 50 10 8.1: App. 19, Para. B.3; Maximum variable rate, 13 CFR § 120.214(d); 7(a) guaranty, SOP 50 10 8.1: App. 16, Para. A.1; Upfront fee, SBA Information Notice 5000-881797, p. 2; 7(a) Small and Standard 7(a), SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. B, Ch. 2, Para. B.1; Sec. B, Ch. 1, Para. C; SBA Express maximum, SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. B, Ch. 2, Para. B.1; App. 16, Para. B.2; 7(a) maximum, SOP 50 10 8.1: Sec. B, Ch. 1, Para. B.1; 13 CFR § 120.151.

CollateralCollateralProperty a lender can take and sell if a loan is not repaid. above the line. The rule depends on the program.

• Standard 7(a): the collateral rules are in SOP 50 10 8.1, Appendix 19.
• Any program: a loan request must not be declined solely because collateral is inadequate.

Loans SBA approved near $1,500,000

SBA approved 3,797 loans near $1,500,000 from the start of FY2024 through June 30, 2026, and 9,022 since FY2020. A loan counts as near when its amount is $1,369,306 to $1,732,051. We split the range between two neighboring sizes at their geometric mean, so each loan counts under one size. 280 of the recent loans were for exactly $1,500,000.

The median rate at approval was 9.25%. That is the rate on the middle loan when it was approved, so it is a past rate and not an offer. Among variable-rate loans, the median loan was priced 2 percentage points over Prime at approval. The ceiling at this size is Prime plus 3.0 percentage points.

0.0% of these loans went through SBA Express or Export Express, and 1.2% were lines of credit.

A lender's past loans do not describe its current credit policy.

Other loan sizes

• $1,000,0005,549 loans since FY2024
• $1,250,0003,386 loans since FY2024
• $2,000,0003,341 loans since FY2024
• $2,500,0002,250 loans since FY2024
• All loan sizes32 sizes from $5,000 to $5,000,000