How we make money: The Business Funding Club is a referral service, not a lender and not a broker. We refer businesses that ask for capital to ROK Financial. ROK and the lenders it matches you with make every funding decision. ROK pays us when a business we refer receives funding. It is free to you, and nothing here is an offer of credit. Read the full disclosure.

Illustration of a warehouse being restocked

Financing types

Repaid from your sales, so it moves with your revenue. Read the total cost before anything else.

Revenue-based financing gives you a lump sum that you repay as a share of your sales, so payments rise and fall with revenue. Its cost is set differently from a loan's, which makes it hard to compare. The Business Funding Club refers you to ROK Financial. ROK and the lenders it matches you with review every request and make every funding decision.

Start your application

A referral club, free to apply. ROK Financial and its lenders review every request and make all funding decisions. How we’re compensated.

Prefer to go straight to the funder? You can apply on ROK's own site. It carries our referral ID.

By Marcus L. Barber, Publisher · Reviewed by Marcus before publishing · Updated · How we write and check facts

What it is

Revenue-based financing is repaid over time as a percentage of your sales or revenue, so the payment can rise or fall with sales volume. Some versions take a fixed payment and adjust it later, in a process called a true-up, to match a share of revenue[1]. Collection is typically daily or weekly[2]. The cost is often a fee set at the start rather than interest that builds over time, and New York's disclosure rules include specific wording for financing priced that way[3].

Where it fits

  • A short, specific opportunity where the profit clearly exceeds the total cost, such as stock for a signed catering contract.
  • Revenue that swings, where a payment tied to sales is easier to carry than a fixed one.
  • A business that doesn't yet meet a bank's time-in-business or document requirements, and has priced the alternatives first.

When it’s the wrong tool

  • Long-term needs. Equipment, buildings and expansion are better matched with equipment financing, a term loan or an SBA loan.
  • Covering a loss. Daily or weekly collections from a business that is already short make the shortfall worse.
  • Paying off one advance with another. Renewing or stacking to cover the last one compounds the cost.
  • Low-margin work. If the job's margin is thinner than the cost of the capital, the financing eats the profit.

Ask before you sign

  • What is the total amount I will repay, and what is the finance charge in dollars?
  • What share of my sales or deposits will be collected, and how often?
  • If my sales drop, does the payment drop too? How do I ask for a true-up?
  • If I pay early, do I save anything, or is the full fee still owed?
  • Is there a lien on business assets, a personal guarantee, or a confession of judgment?

How repayment works

  1. The provider reviews your sales history, usually from bank statements or card processing records.
  2. It offers a lump sum and states the total amount to be repaid.
  3. A set share of your sales is collected, typically daily or weekly, until the total is repaid[2].
  4. When sales are high, you repay faster. When they slow, collections slow too[2].

That last step cuts both ways. Because the fee is often fixed at the start, repaying faster means the same dollar cost over a shorter time, which makes the yearly cost higher.

Why its cost is hard to compare

Pricing set as a fee, repaid on an estimated schedule, is hard to compare against a loan. That is why New York requires providers of sales-based financing to disclose the finance charge, the total repayment amount, an estimated term, projected payments, other fees, what happens if you pay early, collateral requirements, and an estimated yearly cost figure based on projected sales[4]. California requires similar disclosures with commercial financing offers[5].

Owners notice the difference. In the Federal Reserve's 2024 survey, net satisfaction among applicants to online lenders fell to 2%, and those applicants reported problems more often than applicants at other lenders, most often high borrowing costs, as reported in the Fed survey, and unfavorable repayment terms[6].

Compare total cost before you sign

Put the finance charge from this offer next to the finance charge for a line of credit or term loan of the same amount, and ask each provider for its estimated yearly cost figure. If a lower-cost option fits, use it.

What ROK lists for this product

ROK describes this product as working capital repaid through a set percentage of future sales, typically daily or weekly, with repayment moving faster when sales are high and slower when they are slow[2]. The minimums ROK lists for it match its general application: 4 or more months in business and $10,000 or more in monthly gross sales[2,7]. ROK and its lenders review every request and make every funding decision. The Club does not. Lenders commonly review several months of bank statements and card processing statements.

Industries where it comes up

ROK Financial lists this product on its own site. Read ROK’s page

Common questions

Is revenue-based financing a loan?

It is often set up differently from a loan. New York treats it as its own category, sales-based financing, with its own disclosure rules[1,4]. Whatever a provider calls it, ask for the total repayment amount and the finance charge in dollars, and compare those with any loan you're considering.

Will paying early save me money?

Often it doesn't. If the full fee is owed no matter when you finish, early payoff saves nothing. Some providers offer a discount for early payoff. New York requires the offer to say whether you would still owe finance charges if you pay early[4]. Get that answer in writing.

Is this the right choice if I'm behind on bills?

Usually not. Frequent collections from a business that is already short tend to deepen the gap. Revenue-based financing fits best when it pays for something that brings in more than it costs, such as stock for a confirmed order. If the need is to catch up, talk to your accountant first.

Does it cost anything to apply through The Business Funding Club?

No. The Business Funding Club is a free referral club, not a lender or a broker. We refer your request to ROK Financial. ROK and the lenders it matches you with review it and make the decision. ROK pays Digital Solomon when a referred business is funded. You never pay the Club anything, and you don't have to accept any offer.

Sources

  1. New York Financial Services Law Section 801: Definitions (Commercial Financing) New York State Senate, checked October 16, 2026
  2. Working capital product page (revenue-based) ROK Financial, checked October 16, 2026
  3. 23 NYCRR 600: Disclosure Requirements for Certain Providers of Commercial Financing Transactions New York State Department of Financial Services, checked October 16, 2026
  4. New York Financial Services Law Section 803: Sales-based financing disclosure requirements New York State Senate, checked October 16, 2026
  5. California Financial Code, Division 9.5: Commercial Financing Disclosures California Legislative Information, checked October 16, 2026
  6. 2025 Report on Employer Firms: Findings from the 2024 Small Business Credit Survey Federal Reserve Banks, checked October 16, 2026
  7. Business Financing application (ROK Financial partner page) ROK Financial, checked October 16, 2026

Before you start

What ROK looks for.

Stated plainly so you don’t spend time on a form that isn’t built for your business yet. These are the minimums ROK lists on its partner application. Meeting them is the starting line, not a decision.

  • 4 monthsminimum time in business
  • $10,000minimum monthly gross sales
  • U.S.based and operating

Credit history is one input among several. ROK reviews the whole picture: revenue, deposits, time in business, and what the money is for. What to have ready.

Start your application

A referral club, free to apply. ROK Financial and its lenders review every request and make all funding decisions. How we’re compensated.

Prefer to go straight to the funder? You can apply on ROK's own site. It carries our referral ID.