How long can you finance equipment?
You can typically finance equipment for 24 to 84 months, two to seven years, with the exact term tied to the asset's useful life: lenders won't write a loan that outlives the machine securing it. A new semi truck or excavator can support the full 84 months; an older used unit might cap at 36 or 48. Choosing the term is a genuine tradeoff, longer terms shrink the monthly payment but raise total interest paid, and getting it wrong means either strained monthly cash flow or years of payments on depreciated iron.
Last updated · Reviewed by Cody Dreis
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How lenders set, and how you should choose, your term
The lender's ceiling: remaining useful life: Underwriters estimate how long the asset holds resale value. New equipment gets the longest terms; used equipment gets terms shortened by its age and hours, so a ten-year-old machine won't see 84 months no matter how strong your credit is.
Your floor: monthly cash flow: Take the payment at each term length and test it against your real monthly margin. A $150K machine at the same rate costs far less per month over 72 months than over 36: the right answer is the shortest term whose payment your business carries comfortably, because within the common 7%-20% rate range, every extra year adds interest.
Match term to earning life: The discipline that keeps businesses healthy: never owe payments on equipment that's stopped producing. If a machine realistically earns for five more years, a 48-60 month term fits; an 84-month term on it is borrowing trouble.
Larger assets, longer horizons: For major fixed assets, SBA 504 loans extend further, 20- and 25-year debentures at fixed effective rates typically in the 5-7% range, built for equipment and facilities with decades of life.
Options across the term spectrum
Equipment financing: 24-84 months, $5K-$5M+, fixed payments, asset as collateral. Best for the vast majority of machinery, vehicle, and technology purchases.
SBA 504 loans: up to $5M (more for certain manufacturing and energy projects) with 20-25 year structures, fixed for life. Best for heavy long-life assets and equipment-plus-real-estate projects.
Business lines of credit: $10K-$250K+ revolving, no fixed term. Best for short-life tools and equipment expenses too small to term out.
Run the numbers on your loan
Pick a product, set the amount and term, and see a typical payment.
How Quordx Capital Works
Term flexibility varies more across lenders than most borrowers realize, and Quordx Capital's job is finding the ones whose structures fit your asset. One 10-minute application with the equipment details and your bank statements lets the AI engine pull your 3-7 best matches from 50+ lenders, each with term options laid out plainly. Decisions usually land in 24-48 hours; funding in 3-7 business days.
What to Expect
You'll see how each term length changes the payment and the total cost side by side, no guessing. If a lender's maximum term would leave you paying on a dead asset, Quordx Capital says so rather than letting payment size make the decision for you. The matching is free, fully transparent, and carries no obligation.
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Written by
Cody Dreis
Founder, Quordx Capital
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Quordx Capital is a business funding broker, not a lender. Lenders make every credit decision and set the rate, fees and terms, and not every business qualifies. Quordx may be paid by a lender when a deal funds. Full disclosures