# Small business loans in Cambridge, MA

**Short answer:** The most active SBA lenders in Cambridge, MA since FY2024 are Eastern Bank (11 loans) and Cambridge Savings Bank (5). The median loan was $121,100, and half fell between $50,000 and $281,250. For free help, see the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network. Source: SBA 7(a) loan data.

Canonical page: https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/cambridge/
Data as of: 2026-06-30

## Lenders making SBA loans in Cambridge

No lender made more than 21% of the loans in Cambridge, and Eastern Bank made the most. The three largest lenders together made 40%.

**Lenders with five or more SBA loans in Cambridge, MA, FY2024 to June 2026**

| Lender | Loans | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Eastern Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/eastern-bank/) | 11 | 21.2% |
| [Cambridge Savings Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/cambridge-savings-bank/) | 5 | 9.6% |
| [TD Bank](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-lenders/td-bank/) | 5 | 9.6% |

Share is the percent of all Cambridge loans in that period. Each name links to that lender's page for Massachusetts where one exists.

Cambridge has three lenders with five or more loans since FY2024. Others had fewer, and the Massachusetts page counts 180 lenders with at least one approved loan statewide.

## Local help near Cambridge

Cambridge borrowers can start with SBA's district office for Massachusetts, an SBDC or SCORE.

31% of Cambridge borrowers since FY2024 were startups or businesses two years old or younger. SBDCs provide counseling and training, and SCORE mentors give advice at no cost, according to SBA.

SBA has one district office for Massachusetts. Its page points to state and federal resources and to lenders in the area. The Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network gives free counseling across Massachusetts.

- [SBA Massachusetts District Office (Boston): SBA district office](https://www.sba.gov/district/massachusetts)
- [Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network: Small Business Development Center](https://www.msbdc.org/)
- [SCORE mentors in Massachusetts: Business mentoring](https://www.score.org/ma/)

Alongside SBA loans, Massachusetts runs three loan programs. The [Massachusetts page](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/#loan-programs-in-massachusetts) describes each, and the official pages are linked here.

- [MassDevelopment Working Capital](https://www.massdevelopment.com/products-and-services/financing/loans/working-capital/)
- [MassDevelopment Equipment Loan](https://www.massdevelopment.com/products-and-services/financing/loans/#equipment-loan)
- [MassDevelopment Real Estate Enhancement Financing Program](https://www.massdevelopment.com/products-and-services/financing/loans/#real-estate-enhancement-financing-program)

## Loan counts and sizes in Cambridge

Cambridge ranks 9th by loans since FY2024 among the 10 Massachusetts cities with 100 or more SBA loans since FY2020. Nationally it is the 516th busiest of the 580 cities that reach 100 loans.

The 52 loans, 1.2% of the 4,396 in Massachusetts, were approved for $16.5 million in all. The median loan was $121,100, 19% below the national median of $150,300. Half of the loans fell between $50,000 and $281,250. The Cambridge median is 21% above the Massachusetts median of $100,000.

**Cambridge, MA compared with Massachusetts and the nation, loans from FY2024 to June 2026**

| Measure | Cambridge | Massachusetts | U.S. |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Loans | 52 | 4,396 | 162,355 |
| Median loan | $121,100 | $100,000 | $150,300 |
| 25th percentile | $50,000 | $50,000 | $50,000 |
| 75th percentile | $281,250 | $255,125 | $500,000 |
| Via SBA Express | 46.2% | 59.2% | 35.8% |
| Lines of credit | 32.7% | 38.1% | 28.1% |
| Startups | 17.3% | 10.1% | 16.1% |
| Ownership changes | n/a | 7.9% | 10.4% |
| Median term | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years |
| Median spread | 2.75 | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Charged off | Fewer than 5 | 2.5% | 3.6% |

A quarter of loans were smaller than the 25th percentile loan and a quarter were larger than the 75th. Median spread is in percentage points over Prime. Charged off is the share of FY2020 to FY2022 loans a lender wrote off as a loss. It is shown only for groups of 30 loans or more. Fewer than 5 marks a share that would stand for 1 to 4 loans, which we do not publish. U.S. covers every loan in the file.

46.2% of all loans went through SBA Express, above the national 35.8%. Lines of credit were 32.7% of loans, above the national 28.1%.

SBA loans in Cambridge, MA by size, FY2024 to June 2026

- $50,000 or less (37%): 19
- $50,001 to $150,000 (25%): 13
- $150,001 to $350,000 (19%): 10
- $350,001 to $500,000: Fewer than 5
- $500,001 to $1,000,000: Fewer than 5
- $1,000,001 to $2,000,000: Fewer than 5
- Over $2,000,000: Fewer than 5

Labels show each size's share of all loans. The highlighted bar is the size band that contains the median.

SBA loans in Cambridge, MA by fiscal year

- FY2020: 12
- FY2021: 13
- FY2022: 10
- FY2023: 13
- FY2024: 25
- FY2025: 20
- FY2026 (through June 30): 7

Fiscal years run October to September. The last bar covers nine of its twelve months.

Volume fell 20% from FY2024 (25 loans) to FY2025 (20), the two latest full years. The busiest full year in the file was FY2024, with 25 loans. FY2026 already shows 7 loans through June 30.

Of the 35 loans Cambridge borrowers received in FY2020 to FY2022, fewer than 5 were charged off by June 30, 2026, against 3.6% nationally. Lenders reported 471 jobs supported across the 52 loans since FY2024, about 9.1 per loan. SBA does not audit these estimates.

## What businesses in Cambridge borrow for

Full-Service Restaurants was the largest borrower group in Cambridge, with 10 loans or 19.2% of the total.

Full-Service Restaurants stands out: its 10 loans are 19.2% of Cambridge loans, against 4.6% nationally, 4.2 times its national share.

**Industries with the most SBA loans in Cambridge, MA, FY2024 to June 2026**

| Industry | Loans | Share | U.S. share |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Full-Service Restaurants](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/full-service-restaurants/massachusetts/) | 10 | 19.2% | 4.6% |
| [Custom Computer Programming Services](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/industries/custom-computer-programming-services/) | 5 | 9.6% | 0.5% |

Share is the percent of all Cambridge loans in that period. Industry is the NAICS code on each loan. A name links to the Massachusetts page for that industry where one exists.

## A typical loan payment in Cambridge

The median Cambridge loan was $121,100 with a median term of 10 years.

The median variable-rate loan in Cambridge was priced at Prime plus 2.75 percentage points at approval. At today's Prime that spread works out to 9.75%. On $121,100 over 10 years, principal and interest would come to about $1,584 a month. That is arithmetic on past loans, not a rate a lender is offering.

**Payment at today's rate on three Cambridge loan sizes over 10 years**

| Loan | Amount | Monthly payment |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 25th percentile loan | $50,000 | $654 |
| Median loan | $121,100 | $1,584 |
| 75th percentile loan | $281,250 | $3,678 |

Principal and interest only. Fees, a different term or a fixed rate change the payment. This is an illustration from SBA's file, not an offer.

SBA's rate ceiling for this loan size

SBA's maximum for a loan of $121,100 is Prime plus 6.0 percentage points, or 13.00% today. The median variable-rate loan here was priced 3.2 points under that ceiling. Source: 13 CFR § 120.214(d)(2); SOP 50 10 8.1, App. 18, Para. A.2 (p. 395).

Cambridge loans approved since FY2024 had a median starting rate of 10.5% at approval, against 10.25% nationally. Prime changed during those years, so use the spread above, not that rate, as the guide to today's cost.

Run your own numbers: [payments on a $125,000 loan](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/loan-amounts/125000-business-loan/) and [SBA Express payment calculator](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/sba-express-payment-calculator/).

## SBA 504 loans near Cambridge

Cambridge has 7 SBA 504 loans since FY2020, with $3.4 million in SBA and CDC dollars.

Fewer than five of them came in FY2024 or later, so no recent median is published. The bank's share of each project is separate and is not counted in these figures.

No Certified Development Company (CDC) is named on five or more 504 loans in Cambridge, so the list below is Massachusetts's. Bay Colony Development Corporation is named on the most there, 201 loans since FY2024.

**CDCs named on five or more 504 loans in Massachusetts, FY2024 to June 2026**

| Certified Development Company | 504 loans |
| --- | --- |
| Bay Colony Development Corporation | 201 |
| Granite State Economic Development Corporation | 188 |
| New England Certified Development Corporation | 85 |
| South Eastern Economic Development Corporation | 31 |
| Cape & Islands Community Development, Inc. | 30 |

How a 504 loan is split

A standard 504 project is 50% third party lender, 40% CDC debenture, 10% borrower. 504 money pays for major fixed assets such as land, buildings and long-term machinery and equipment, not working capital or inventory. Source: SOP 50 10 8.1, Sec. C, Ch. 1, Para. B (p. 221). SBA keeps a [list of Certified Development Companies](https://www.sba.gov/loans/504-loans/list-of-certified-development-companies/).

## Massachusetts cities near Cambridge

Cambridge made up 1.2% of Massachusetts's SBA loans since FY2024.

Cambridge is one of 10 Massachusetts cities with 100 or more SBA loans since FY2020. The [Massachusetts page](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/) covers all 4,396 loans in Massachusetts. The closest come first, ranked by county and ZIP code on their loans.

- [Woburn: 47 loans, median $128,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/woburn/)
- [Boston: 185 loans, median $150,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/boston/)
- [Quincy: 61 loans, median $117,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/quincy/)
- [Salem: 67 loans, median $60,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/salem/)
- [Peabody: 64 loans, median $74,500](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/peabody/)
- [Plymouth: 63 loans, median $115,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/plymouth/)
- [Beverly: 62 loans, median $100,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/beverly/)
- [Lawrence: 57 loans, median $80,000](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/massachusetts-small-business-loans/lawrence/)

## Common questions about SBA loans in Cambridge

### Which lenders make the most SBA loans in Cambridge?

Eastern Bank leads with 11 loans in Cambridge since FY2024. Cambridge Savings Bank (5) and TD Bank (5) follow. Only lenders with five or more Cambridge loans are counted.

### Which industries get SBA loans in Cambridge?

Full-Service Restaurants leads with 10 loans in Cambridge since FY2024. Custom Computer Programming Services (5) follows.

How to read this

Counts come from SBA's 7(a) loan-level data release, as of June 30, 2026. The file lists loans SBA approved. It does not list declined applications, so it cannot show approval odds. We do not publish any figure built on fewer than 5 loans. Location is the borrower's address in the file, and city names are as SBA recorded them. Recent means FY2024 through June 30, 2026. Charge-off rates use FY2020 to FY2022 loans, the only years old enough to have had time to go bad. Jobs supported are lender-reported estimates. [How we build these pages](https://www.sbaexpress.loans/method/).

## Sources

- [SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan-level data, as of June 30, 2026](https://data.sba.gov/dataset/7a-504-foia)
- [SBA, 504 loans](https://www.sba.gov/loans/504-loans/)
- [SBA, resource partners: SBDCs and SCORE](https://www.sba.gov/counseling/local-assistance/resource-partners/)
- [SBA Massachusetts District Office (Boston)](https://www.sba.gov/district/massachusetts)
- [Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network](https://www.msbdc.org/)
- [SCORE, Massachusetts](https://www.score.org/ma/)
- [SOP 50 10 8.1, Sec. C, Ch. 1, Para. D.1 (p. 241); 13 CFR § 120.931](https://legacy.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2026-10/SOP%2050%2010%208.1%20Technical%20Policy%20Updates%20effective%20%2010.1.2026.docx)
- [SOP 50 10 8.1, Sec. C, Ch. 1, Para. B (p. 221)](https://legacy.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2026-10/SOP%2050%2010%208.1%20Technical%20Policy%20Updates%20effective%20%2010.1.2026.docx)
- [sba.gov/loans/504-loans; SOP 50 10 8.1, Sec. A, Ch. 3, Para. A (p. 51)](https://www.sba.gov/loans/504-loans/)
- [SOP 50 10 8.1, Sec. B, Ch. 2, Para. B.1 (p. 126)](https://legacy.sba.gov/sites/default/files/2026-10/SOP%2050%2010%208.1%20Technical%20Policy%20Updates%20effective%20%2010.1.2026.docx)
- [13 CFR § 120.214(d)(2); SOP 50 10 8.1, App. 18, Para. A.2 (p. 395)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-13/section-120.214)