The specs
CrediblyBluevine
Product typeMulti-productLOC
Amount range$5K – $600K$10K – $250K
Cost (factor / APR)Factor 1.11+ (MCA); APR varies (term)APR 6.2% – 27% (LOC)
Speed to fundAs fast as 4 hours1 – 3 business days
Min time in business6 months12 months
Min monthly revenue$15,000$10,000
Min credit score550+625+
Products
- MCA
- Working capital LOC
- Short-term term loan
- Line of credit
- Invoice factoring
Verdicts by use case
- GC or subcontractor ($30K – $80K/mo) covering payroll between draw requests — Winner: Credibly. Credibly's 6-month TIB, 550+ FICO, $15K/mo revenue, and 4-hour funding fit the typical small GC or specialty subcontractor profile better than Bluevine (12+ months TIB, 625+ FICO) or OnDeck (12+ months TIB). Construction subcontractors frequently have B-paper FICO from variable income, seasonal revenue dips, or material gaps between contract draw requests that gate them out of Bluevine and OnDeck. For small GCs and subs in the $30K – $80K/mo band Credibly is the structural working-capital primary option. For pure progress-billing financing (covering the 30 – 60 day GC payment gap to subs) invoice factoring or construction-specialist factoring is structurally cheaper.
- Established construction firm (5+ years, 680+ FICO, $200K+/mo) seeking cheapest revolving — Winner: Bluevine. Established construction firms with clean files qualify for Bluevine LOC at 10 – 20% APR — materially below Credibly MCA (factor 1.18 – 1.30 effective APR 35 – 65%) and OnDeck term (27%+ APR). The LOC structure fits construction cash flow better than MCA because draws can size to specific contract gaps (payroll between draws, surprise material price increases, retention release timing). For clean-file established construction Bluevine LOC is the structural cost winner across the 3-way.
- Equipment purchase ($100K – $400K) for excavation / lift / specialty trades — Winner: Tie. Equipment-specialist lenders (Balboa, Currency Capital, Beacon Funding, Commercial Fleet Financing) typically beat all three on construction equipment financing because the equipment collateralizes the loan — equipment APR 6 – 18% vs working-capital APR 27%+. Among the 3-way set: OnDeck term to $400K is the closest fit for documented equipment purchases with fixed amortization. Credibly MCA covers size but daily ACH conflicts with construction's lumpy weekly revenue. Bluevine LOC at $250K is too small for most large equipment. For equipment route to specialists first; among the 3-way use OnDeck if qualifying, Credibly as fallback.
- Bonded large-job working capital ($500K+ project mobilization) — Winner: Credibly. Credibly's $600K MCA cap is the structural largest option in this 3-way for project mobilization capital (initial labor and materials before first GC draw). Bluevine LOC at $250K is too small; OnDeck term at $400K is closer but the fixed amortization doesn't fit a 6 – 9 month project lifecycle. For bonded large-job mobilization capital evaluate also Fora Financial ($1.5M MCA cap), Libertas Funding ($5M MCA cap), or SBA 7(a) via Live Oak for cheapest long-amortization cost of capital. Among the 3-way Credibly is structurally largest but evaluate larger-cap MCA funders for $600K+ projects.
- Construction company with weather-driven seasonality (Northeast / Midwest) — Winner: Bluevine. Bluevine LOC structure handles seasonal construction better than any MCA in this 3-way — draw down during active season (April – October), repay during slow season (November – March), redraw next spring. Credibly MCA daily ACH continues through the winter slowdown when revenue drops materially. OnDeck term has fixed monthly amortization that also continues through the slow season. For weather-driven construction Bluevine LOC is the structural fit; if Bluevine declines on FICO or TIB, Forward Financing's reconciliation policy (responds when revenue drops) is a structural alternative to Credibly MCA for the same reason.
The honest takeaway
Credibly and Bluevine solve overlapping but distinct problems. The right choice depends on three things you already know about your business: how fast you need the money, how long you've been operating, and whether the capital need is one-time or recurring.
Frequently asked questions
- When does OnDeck win for a construction company vs Credibly and Bluevine?
- OnDeck wins for established construction firms (3+ years operating, 600+ FICO, $30K+/mo, clean bank statements) needing a $150K – $400K lump-sum capital event with fixed-amortization structure — equipment package purchase, office or yard relocation, software platform rollout (Procore, Buildertrend), bonding line setup costs. OnDeck's same-day funding on approved + verified files matches Credibly on speed for files that clear underwriting. The 12+ months TIB gates out most newer construction firms, and OnDeck term APR (27%+) materially exceeds Bluevine LOC for files that qualify at Bluevine. As of 2026-06-28 the realistic construction 3-way playbook: Credibly for typical $30K – $80K/mo small GCs and subs (sub-12-month TIB, 550 – 650 FICO, B-paper acceptance), Bluevine for established 5+ year construction firms with clean files needing revolving working capital (payroll between draws, material price volatility, retention timing), OnDeck for established firms needing $200K – $400K amortizing capital for documented capital events. For construction-specific seasonal cash flow Forward Financing's reconciliation policy is the structural B-paper alternative to Credibly. Avoid stacking MCA + term + LOC simultaneously — construction's lumpy revenue makes triple-debit-stream cash management nearly impossible to maintain through a slow season.
- Which is best for an electrical subcontractor doing $45K/mo with 16 months TIB and 630 FICO?
- Credibly is structurally the right primary option for this file. The merchant qualifies for Credibly (6+ months TIB, 550+ FICO, $15K+/mo) cleanly; Bluevine requires 625+ FICO (file at edge) and the 16-month TIB is on the short side for Bluevine's typical underwriting comfort. OnDeck requires 600+ FICO so qualifies but term APR (30 – 40% likely for this paper grade) is materially higher than Credibly MCA factor 1.22 – 1.30 (effective APR 35 – 50% on 6 – 9 month payback). Credibly is competitive on cost with faster funding (4 hours vs same-day verified) and broader product flexibility. The realistic electrical sub playbook: take a sized Credibly MCA ($40K – $80K) for near-term payroll-bridge or material-purchase capital, push FICO toward 660+ and add 6 – 12 months trading history, then refinance into Bluevine LOC at materially better pricing. Also evaluate construction-specific subcontractor factoring (FundThrough, BlueVine Invoice Factoring, Riviera Finance) for the progress-billing receivables cycle — typically cheaper than MCA for B2B subcontractors with net-30 / net-60 GC payment terms.
- Are there construction-specific funders outside Credibly, Bluevine, and OnDeck?
- Yes — for progress-billing receivables (covering GC payment gap to subs) invoice factoring or construction-specific factoring (Riviera Finance, BlueVine Invoice Factoring, FundThrough) is structurally cheaper than working-capital MCA. For equipment purchases construction equipment specialists (Balboa Capital, Currency Capital, Commercial Fleet Financing, dedicated yellow-iron lenders) offer APR 6 – 18% on collateralized financing. For SBA-grade cheap capital on $500K+ construction firm expansion or commercial real estate Live Oak Bank's SBA 7(a) team includes construction industry expertise. For B/C-paper construction declined by Credibly, Forward Financing (reconciliation policy responds to seasonal revenue dips) is the structural fallback. For bonded large-project mobilization capital ($500K – $1.5M) Fora Financial covers the size; Libertas Funding ($5M MCA cap) covers larger. For GCs and developers doing $5M+ projects with documented contracts, mezzanine debt or project-specific construction loans from regional banks (BankUnited, Centennial Bank in Florida; M&T Bank, Fulton Financial in Northeast) are structurally cheaper than MCA. The full 2026-06-28 construction capital ladder: Subcontractor factoring for receivables cycle > Equipment specialist for yellow-iron and trade equipment > Live Oak SBA for $500K+ firm expansion > Bluevine LOC for clean-file seasonal revolving > OnDeck term for $200K – $400K documented capital events > Credibly MCA for B-paper or fast funding > Forward Financing for seasonal B-paper > Fora / Libertas for $500K+ mobilization capital > C/D-paper specialty for distressed / stacked files.