Merchant Cash Advance Calculator
Estimate your payment based on funding amount, factor rate, term and payment frequency.
What a merchant cash advance actually is
A merchant cash advance is financing priced with a factor rate rather than an interest rate. You'll see the same structure called revenue-based financing or simply, working capital — the industry uses several names for what is fundamentally the same thing. At LimeLyne we generally refer to it as working capital, but if you've been offered a merchant cash advance, this calculator shows you exactly how that offer works.
The defining feature is how the cost is set: a factor rate is applied to your funding amount once, upfront, to determine your total payback. Total Payback = Funding Amount × Factor Rate. At a 1.20 factor rate on $100,000, your total payback is $120,000 — fixed the moment you're funded. There's no interest accruing over time and no amortization.
To find your payment, that total is divided evenly across your term, so every payment is the same size; daily payments use 21.67 business days per month (Monday through Friday), weekly payments roughly 4.33 weeks. The frequency changes the size and number of payments, never the total.
For a full walkthrough of how factor-rate financing works — cost of capital, what affects your rate, prepayment discounts, and how to keep costs down — see our Working Capital Calculator.
Fixed-payment financing vs. a credit card split
This is the most important distinction to understand, because two different structures are often both called a "merchant cash advance," and they don't work the same way.
A fixed-payment structure — what this calculator models — collects the same amount on a set schedule, daily or weekly, until the total payback is met. Your payment doesn't change from one collection to the next, and you know the exact amount and number of payments from day one.
A credit card split (sometimes called a holdback) works differently: instead of a fixed amount, the provider takes a set percentage of your daily card sales. When sales are strong the payment is larger; when sales are slow it's smaller. The total payback is still based on a factor rate, but the timing flexes with your revenue, so there's no fixed payment or fixed payoff date.
This calculator estimates the fixed-payment structure. If your offer is a card-split arrangement, the factor-rate payback still applies, but your individual payments would rise and fall with your sales rather than staying level. Either way, it's worth confirming which structure your offer uses before you sign.
Using this calculator
Enter your funding amount, an estimated factor rate, and your repayment term, then choose daily or weekly payments to match how your provider collects. The results show your estimated payment, total payback amount, cost of capital, total number of payments, and an estimated payoff date.
These figures are estimates for planning. Your actual factor rate, term, and approved amount depend on your business's profile and the specific provider — and if your offer includes a prepayment discount, paying off the remaining balance early may reduce your total payback below what's shown here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about how the calculator works and what the numbers mean.
A merchant cash advance is financing priced with a factor rate rather than an interest rate. The same structure is also called revenue-based financing or, simply, working capital — the industry uses several names for what is fundamentally the same thing. A factor rate is applied to your funding amount once, upfront, to set your total payback.
A fixed-payment structure — what this calculator models — collects the same amount on a set schedule, daily or weekly, until the total payback is met. You know the exact payment and number of payments from day one. A credit card split (or holdback) instead takes a set percentage of your daily card sales, so the payment is larger when sales are strong and smaller when they're slow. The factor-rate payback still applies, but a split has no fixed payment or fixed payoff date. It's worth confirming which structure your offer uses.
A factor rate is a simple multiplier used to set your total payback, instead of an interest rate. You multiply your funding amount by the factor rate to get the total you'll repay. For example, $100,000 at a 1.30 factor rate means you repay $130,000. Unlike interest, it doesn't accrue over time — the full cost is set the moment you're funded.
Your total payback (funding amount × factor rate) is divided evenly across all your payments. Every payment is the same size. The number of payments depends on your term and how often you pay — daily or weekly — so those two inputs determine the size of each individual payment.
It depends on your specific offer. Because a factor rate isn't interest, paying early doesn't automatically reduce your cost the way it would on a traditional loan. However, many offers include a prepayment discount that can lower your total payback if you pay off the remaining balance early. Always ask your provider whether yours includes one.
An APR expresses cost as an annual percentage that accrues over time on your remaining balance. A factor rate sets your total cost upfront as a fixed multiple, regardless of how long you take to repay. Because they're calculated differently, the two can't be compared directly on the rate number alone — comparing them requires looking at the total dollar cost.
See your options in minutes
No impact to your credit. No obligation. Just real offers matched to your business.
See Your Options →Secure & encrypted. Takes 2–3 minutes