Infographic: What Is a Business Line of Credit?

There is one brief bit of business wisdom that small business owners should be repeating to themselves over and over like a mantra: be flexible. This is true whether you are just starting up your company or if you’ve been open for decades. A flexible approach will help you overcome the unknowable challenges of the future far better than a rigid vision of your company.

You can bring your belief in flexibility into how you take out small business loans, too. A business line of credit is a highly flexible way to pay for whatever your business requires over a long period. A business line of credit is how you can smooth out your ride through bumpy waters.

This type of funding usually comes in amounts ranging from $1,000 to $500,000 depending on your business needs. What makes a business line of credit so appealing is that the money can be used for almost any business expense. Other lending products, like startup loans or equipment financing, often come with narrow parameters for how you can use the money. A business line of credit is far looser—you could use the money to pay invoices, maintain inventory, and best a cash crunch all in the same month if necessary.

The interest rates can range from 8% to 24%, and the line of credit usually has between 1 and 2 years maturity. Conveniently, you can often gain access to these funds within 1 or 2 weeks of applying, all without the headache of filling out the intense paperwork required for a term loan.