Draw, repay, and draw again.
A line of credit gives you a committed limit rather than a lump sum. You draw part of it when you need cash, you are charged only on the drawn balance, and as you repay that balance the room opens back up to draw again. Each draw usually carries its own repayment window, so a busy month can leave you running several draws at once. The two channels revolve differently: a bank line is typically renewed on a periodic review, often once a year, while an online line tends to revolve continuously as you repay, with no scheduled sit-down. Neither is wrong, but knowing which one you hold tells you when the line can be pulled or repriced.
Why the headline APR is not the costUtilization and repayment speed move the real cost.
The real cost of a line depends on two things the headline APR hides: how much of it you draw, and how fast you repay. A line you barely touch still carries its flat annual fee, and that fee spread over a small drawn balance annualizes to a high effective cost. A per-draw fee re-incurs on every draw, so tapping the line often costs more than tapping it once. A non-refundable or front-loaded fee costs you more the faster you repay, because you pay the same fee but hold the money for less time. A simple-interest line, or one that waives remaining fees when you pay early, does not work that way. The tell is whether the fee is refundable, not which channel wrote the line.
Typical utilizationHow much of a line most owners draw.
Across the market, owners draw roughly 40 to 45 percent of a committed line. The regulator survey that measures it puts median usage near 40 percent, split between fixed lines around 53 percent and variable lines around 37 percent, with variable lines the larger population. The practical read is that a line sized well above what you draw is normal, while a line run near its full limit is both more expensive, because the drawn-balance charge dominates, and a signal a lender reads as stress. Size the line to the gap you need to cover, not to the largest number on offer.
Which channel fitsWho each channel is built for.
The figures below are minimum door thresholds, the point at which a channel will look at you at all. Approved paper skews well above these doors, so clearing a minimum is not the same as pricing at the floor. Read them as the entry point, not the expected outcome.
Bank and SBA
A bank or SBA line looks for a personal credit score roughly 670 to 700 (Wells around 680, Bank of America around 700), about two years minimum in business for the unsecured line, and near $100,000 minimum annual revenue. The bank line-of-credit revenue door, near $100,000, sits below the bank term-loan door near $250,000, so a line can open a bank that a term loan would not. Market data, not an OpenQuote quote.
Prime-online
The prime-online tier opens around 625 to 660 credit, about 12 months in business, and revenue roughly $36,000 to $120,000. It sits between the bank floor and the subprime ceiling on both price and paperwork. Market data, not an OpenQuote quote.
Subprime-online
At the subprime-online door, credit can run as low as 580 to 600, time in business as little as three to six months, and revenue thresholds that vary widely by lender, roughly $100,000 to $200,000. These files are reviewed on a shorter timeline than a bank, and priced the highest. Market data, not an OpenQuote quote.
Three line-size numbers, not one.
A line offer carries three different size numbers, and confusing them is easy. The advertised ceiling is the largest and the least useful: online lines advertise up to about $250,000, bank lines to $500,000 or more, and an SBA CAPLine, the SBA’s line-of-credit program, reaches $5,000,000. The typical approved limit sits far below that, with median offers around $16,000 for a newer business and about $73,000 for an established one. And the typical drawn balance is lower still, around $22,565, consistent with owners using a little over 40 percent of the line. The ceiling is the number lenders advertise. You pay only on the balance you draw.
The questionsEight questions to ask before you sign.
The all-in APR on the drawn balance, in writing
Inclusive of every fee, and computed on what you actually draw, not on the full limit. This is the one number that lets you compare two lines on the same footing.
The draw fee, and whether it re-incurs
Ask the percentage, commonly 2 to 3 percent, and whether it is charged on every draw or only the first. A fee that comes back on each draw changes the cost of a line you tap often.
Any annual, monthly, or maintenance fee
Ask what it is and, crucially, whether it is charged when the line sits unused. A flat fee on an idle line is pure cost with nothing drawn against it.
Whether early payoff waives remaining fees
Some lines waive the remaining weekly or monthly fees when you repay early; others keep charging them. Get the answer before you sign, because it decides whether paying fast saves you anything.
The credit limit versus what you will draw
The limit is the ceiling; the drawn balance is what you pay on. Size the line to what you will realistically use, not to the largest number offered.
Factor or APR
Ask plainly whether the quote is a factor or an APR. If it is a factor, ask for the converted all-in APR so you can compare it to everything else.
Personal guarantee and collateral
Ask whether a personal guarantee or specific collateral is required, and what happens on a missed payment or default, including any late fees. A line of credit can carry a personal guarantee just as a term loan can, and it is the highest-stakes fine print you sign, so get it in writing before you commit.
Whether the lender can reduce or freeze the line
Ask under what conditions the lender can cut your limit or freeze new draws, and how much notice you get. A revolving line can be reduced or suspended: lenders routinely cut or freeze lines during a downturn, after a periodic review, or on a covenant slip, so know the triggers before you rely on the line for working capital.
Some answers only arrive with an offer.
A few of these questions wait on underwriting. Your exact APR, your limit, and your fee schedule follow from your real revenue, your time in business, and your credit profile, so no honest number exists before a partner reviews your file. A line is priced on how you draw it, so the numbers settle only once that review is done. Applying is how you get them. Any offer we bring back is put on a single page with the limit, the drawn-balance cost, and the fee layer in plain figures, and reading it or walking away costs you nothing.
Every figure on this page is general US market data as of Jul 2026, not OpenQuote pricing and not an offer. It is here so you can read a quote with clear eyes. Any real offer, and the partner paperwork behind it, governs. This page is education, not legal or financial advice.