2,835 SBA 7(a) loans were approved in Illinois last year
$1.3B in approvals across 19 industry sectors in fiscal year 2025. Below: which sectors got funded, how much a typical approval was, and how long the lenders wrote the paper for.
What got funded, by sector
Every approved 7(a) loan carries an industry code. Grouped at the sector level, this is where Illinois's SBA money went in FY2025.
| Sector | Loans | Lenders | Median approval | Median term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 381 | 69 | $300,000 | 120 mo |
| Transportation and warehousing | 335 | 31 | $90,700 | 120 mo |
| Construction | 320 | 51 | $150,000 | 120 mo |
| Other services (except public administration) | 319 | 68 | $190,000 | 120 mo |
| Retail trade | 275 | 43 | $249,000 | 120 mo |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 264 | 46 | $150,000 | 120 mo |
| Health care and social assistance | 245 | 65 | $245,000 | 120 mo |
| Manufacturing | 182 | 33 | $250,000 | 120 mo |
| Administrative, support and waste management services | 125 | 34 | $150,000 | 120 mo |
| Wholesale trade | 113 | 32 | $203,000 | 120 mo |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 108 | 39 | $197,500 | 120 mo |
| Finance and insurance | 48 | 17 | $100,000 | 120 mo |
| Real estate, rental and leasing | 44 | 19 | $250,000 | 120 mo |
| Educational services | 34 | 18 | $212,500 | 120 mo |
| Information | 27 | 10 | $150,000 | 120 mo |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting | 8 | 5 | $169,000 | 120 mo |
| Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction | 3 | 2 | $300,000 | 120 mo |
| Utilities | 2 | 2 | $325,000 | 120 mo |
| Management of companies and enterprises | 2 | 2 | $1,588,500 | 120 mo |
Medians are per sector and are not averaged together — a median cannot be added up. Sector counts partition the year: they sum to the 2,835 approvals above, with no loan counted twice.
Illinois industries in detail
Where the data is thick enough to name lenders and show the spread of approvals, there is a page for the industry itself.
- Full-Service Restaurants · 174 loans
- General Freight Trucking, Long-Distance, Truckload · 174 loans
- Limited-Service Restaurants · 88 loans
- General Freight Trucking, Local · 76 loans
- Residential Remodelers · 71 loans
- General Automotive Repair · 63 loans
- Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors · 59 loans
- Child Care Services · 58 loans
- Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers · 57 loans
- Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars · 49 loans
- Beauty Salons · 43 loans
- Home Health Care Services · 42 loans
- Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers · 42 loans
- Hotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels · 41 loans
- All Other Specialty Trade Contractors · 36 loans
- Landscaping Services · 34 loans
- Offices of Chiropractors · 34 loans
- All Other Personal Services · 29 loans
- Electrical Contractors and Other Wiring Installation Contractors · 28 loans
- Offices of Dentists · 27 loans
- Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services · 26 loans
- Insurance Agencies and Brokerages · 25 loans
- Janitorial Services · 25 loans
Lenders active across Illinois
These names come up at the top of several sectors in Illinois. It is a picture of who is lending here — not a ranking: the published file lists the leading lenders of each sector, so a bank strong in one single sector can be missing from this view.
Where this comes from
U.S. Small Business Administration, FOIA 7(a) and 504 loan approval data (data.sba.gov), as published on 2026-06-30. Fiscal year 2025 is the last complete one; the year in progress is excluded so the figures do not move under you. All our sources.
This page reports approvals. It says nothing about applications that were declined, and it is not a prediction about yours. This site is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Other states
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