This Is Why You're Here
Why Food Trucks Come to Us Instead of Their Bank
Your generator died at a 3-day festival — $4K repair and you lost $6K in sales. You need a backup generator ($3K) and working capital to cover the lost revenue.
A brewery offered you a permanent parking spot — $2K/month rent but guaranteed foot traffic. You need $15K for a covered seating area, signage, and 3 months of rent upfront.
You're ready for truck #2. A used food truck with equipment is $65K. Your first truck does $12K/month in revenue. The ROI is clear but you need financing to scale.
Health department says your truck's propane system doesn't meet new code. $7K to replace the whole setup and you've got 2 weeks before your next festival or you lose your spot.
A corporate park wants you 3 days a week for their lunch crowd — guaranteed $2K/day. But they need a canopy, tables, signage, and a dedicated menu board. Setup costs $11K and they want you there in 3 weeks.
My generator died mid-festival — lost $6K in sales. Basecamp funded $7K for a new generator plus working capital in 2 days. Haven't missed a festival since.
Carlos V., Food Truck Owner, Austin, TX
Food Truck Financing
Get Your Food Truck Business Funded in 60 Seconds
Slide the calculator to see your estimated approval range. Then answer 3 quick questions to lock it in. No documents needed. Soft-pull pre-qual.
See What You Could Qualify For
Slide to your average monthly bank deposits.
Estimated Approval Range
Based on 100-150% of monthly revenue
Soft-pull pre-qual · No obligation · Estimate only
Built for Your Business
Why Food Truck Businesses Choose Basecamp
The Truck IS Your Restaurant
When your generator dies mid-festival, you're losing $2K a day in sales and your reputation takes a hit. A $4K repair can't wait until Monday. We fund emergency food truck repairs in 24 hours so you don't miss the next event.
Festival Season Requires Cash Upfront
Event permits, commissary deposits, extra inventory — festival season costs $5K-$10K before you sell a single taco. And the best festivals book out months in advance. A line of credit lets you lock in spots without draining your account.
Mobile Kitchens Break Down Constantly
Generators, propane systems, refrigeration, the truck itself — everything vibrates, bounces, and wears out faster than a brick-and-mortar kitchen. Maintenance runs $3K-$8K a year. We keep you funded so breakdowns don't end your season.
Truck #2 Is Your Real Growth Move
A used food truck with equipment runs $65K. Your first truck does $12K/month. The ROI is obvious — but most banks won't finance a food truck at all. We've funded dozens of second trucks through equipment financing.
Bobby's Take
Bobby's Playbook for Food Truck
Most food truck operators hear 'restaurants are risky' from every bank they walk into. What banks miss is that event-driven revenue at $200-$800 daily gross with no front-of-house overhead doesn't behave like the brick-and-mortar failure stats they're underwriting against. Specialist lenders who fund food trucks know to read your event-booking calendar and venue-rotation revenue stream differently. Here's how to position your transaction so the right lenders see it first.
Three things determine whether a food truck transaction closes: event-and-route revenue consistency, your commissary kitchen documentation, and equipment value (the truck itself is collateral). Not your personal FICO. Not whether you have a brick-and-mortar location. Specialist food truck lenders care about whether your monthly event and lunch-route revenue supports a $1,200-$2,000/month payment — and whether the truck and equipment hold resale value to underwrite the loan against the asset itself.
The biggest mistake food truck operators make: applying without separating private-event revenue from public-route revenue. Lenders see blended deposits and assume all revenue is variable foot-traffic. The fix: include a one-page note showing your booked private events versus public route revenue. Specialist food truck lenders price booked event revenue as recurring contracted revenue. Generalist lenders just see hospitality income with no nuance.
festival or corporate-catering revenue lost without a second truck
Where this gets interesting at scale: a food truck operator adding a second truck or transitioning to a brick-and-mortar doesn't need ONE loan. They need equipment financing for the new truck or kitchen + a working capital line for permits and event deposits + a revenue-based term loan stacked against route earnings to cover a brick-and-mortar buildout (see /loans/business-acquisition). Three products, three lenders, one application — that's how single-truck operators scale to two trucks or graduate to a brick-and-mortar without losing the route revenue that funds the expansion.
The food truck operators who scale fastest aren't the ones who waited until they had cash to buy the next truck outright. They're the ones who had a second truck ready when a corporate-account or festival circuit opened up. Turning down a 90-day festival route or a corporate catering season because you don't have a second truck is $20,000-$40,000 in seasonal revenue. Run the numbers in 60 seconds — see what 70+ specialist lenders will offer your food truck business this week.
Bottom line:
Food truck operators don't scale by buying the next truck cash. They scale by separating booked private events from public route revenue so a specialist prices the booked side as recurring contracted income.
Bobby Friel
Founder, Basecamp Funding
What You're Up Against
The Real Challenges Food Trucks Face
Pricing Transparency
What Food Truck Funding Actually Costs
Rates and terms depend on credit, revenue, time in business, and lender. Every business is unique — see what 70+ lenders will offer you in 60 seconds. Soft-pull pre-qual.
These are industry averages. Your actual rate depends on your revenue, credit profile, and time in business — it could be lower. Run your specific numbers in 30 seconds.
Calculate Your Real Cost →Food truck operators are some of the scrappiest business owners I know. When you're ready to go from one truck to two, you need $65K-$100K fast. We've financed dozens of second trucks — the ROI is usually clear within 6 months when your first truck is already doing $12K+/month.
Bobby Friel
Founder, Basecamp Funding
How It Works
From Application to Funded in 5 Steps
No paperwork avalanche. No bank lobby. No guessing.
60-Second Intake
Tell us about your concept, locations, and weekly bank deposits. No P&L upload yet.
Soft Credit Screen
We screen options with no impact on personal FICO or your restaurant's commercial credit.
Restaurant-Specialty Lenders Compete
70+ lenders who fund full-service, fast-casual, food trucks, and franchises review your file in parallel.
One Specialist, Multiple Term Sheets
Your funding specialist walks through equipment finance, working capital, and buildout structures.
Choose Your Offer, Sign, Get Funded
E-signature. Funds hit before payroll runs or the supplier truck rolls.
Food Truck Capital Uses
What Food Truck Businesses Use Funding For
Kitchen Equipment
Ovens, fryers, walk-ins, hood systems, POS systems. Upgrade without draining your cash reserves.
Payroll & Staffing
Cover payroll during slow weeks. Hire for the busy season. Retain your best staff year-round.
Renovation & Buildout
Dining room refresh, patio expansion, bar remodel, second location buildout.
Inventory & Food Costs
Stock up for busy season. Lock in bulk pricing from suppliers. Never run out of your best sellers.
Marketing & Promotion
Social media ads, Google Ads, delivery platform fees, grand opening campaigns, loyalty programs.
Second Location
Open a new spot, launch a ghost kitchen, or expand into catering. Scale without risking the mothership.
Full Transparency
What Kills Your Qualification (And What Doesn't)
Most lenders won't tell you this upfront. We will.
✅ These Won't Stop You
These Can Be Deal-Breakers
Need commercial insurance for your food truck business?
Most restaurant lenders require proof of business property and liability coverage. InsuranceService365.com covers restaurants across 29 states with same-day binding.
Don't Wait Until You Need Funding to Get Funded
Restaurant cash flow is brutal — payroll Friday, food cost daily, rent monthly, and a Tuesday slow week can wipe the buffer. The operators that survive pre-qualified BEFORE the slow stretch hit. By the time you're stalling on payroll, lenders see stress; before, they see opportunity. Pre-qualify when the room is full.
Ready?
See What Your Food Truck Business Qualifies For
Slide the calculator, answer 3 questions, and a specialist pulls your options within the hour.
See What You Could Qualify For
Slide to your average monthly bank deposits.
Estimated Approval Range
Based on 100-150% of monthly revenue
Soft-pull pre-qual · No obligation · Estimate only
Other Restaurants Specialties We Fund
Click any specialty for tailored financing options.
Recommended Products
Recommended Funding for Food Truck Businesses
Working Capital
Cover payroll, rent, and food costs during slow seasons. Fund same day.
Learn More →Equipment Financing
Finance ovens, walk-ins, and kitchen equipment with the asset as collateral.
Learn More →Business Line of Credit
Draw funds for inventory and payroll, repay from weekend revenue.
Learn More →SBA Loans
Long-term financing for buildouts, renovations, and second locations.
Learn More →FAQs
Food Truck Business Loan FAQs
Food Truck Loans & Mobile Food Business Financing — $10K to $500K+
Your generator just died at a 3-day festival. That's $6K in lost sales and a $4K repair bill — and you've got two more events this month. Most banks won't even talk to food truck operators. They don't understand the model. We do. 70+ lenders who fund mobile food businesses based on your deposits, not whether you have a brick-and-mortar location. Approvals in hours, not weeks.
And when you're ready to scale? A second truck runs $65K used with equipment. Your first truck does $12K a month. The math works. But try explaining food truck ROI to a bank loan officer. We've funded $7K emergency generator replacements in 2 days. $65K second truck purchases through equipment financing. $15K permanent parking setups with working capital. One application, 60 seconds. Soft-pull pre-qual. If you're depositing $10K+/month, you've got options.
Stop Letting Slow Tuesdays Drain Your Friday Buffer. Get Your Food Truck Restaurant Funded Today.
60 seconds. Soft-pull pre-qual. No obligation.
See What You Qualify For →Soft-pull pre-qual · Free to check · Nationwide