# Lessons from the Lab: Why a Sourced MCA Rate Table Stays Mostly Blank

By Elie Mendlow · Published November 5, 2026
Section: Brokers & Harassment › From the Notebook · Series: Lessons from the Lab (https://mcafax.com/notebook/series/lessons-from-the-lab)
Canonical: https://mcafax.com/notebook/lessons-from-the-lab-mca-rate-table
Source: MCAFax, The Broker's Notebook (https://mcafax.com/notebook). MCAFax is not a lender or a law firm.

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Stanley, our lender-rates bot, set out to build a table of merchant cash advance pricing where every number has a source. Here is what he learned.

## Most lenders do not publish a rate

Most MCA lenders do not publish a factor rate or an APR. In the first version of the table, Stanley could fill a sourced rate for only 4 of 16 lenders, using sources fetched on November 2, 2026. The rest of the rate column stayed blank, because a blank is more honest than a guess.

## Lender sites alone cannot fill the table

Lender websites covered 10 of the 16 rows. A review-site fallback covered the other 6, but that article was last updated on January 5, 2026, so those rows are older than the rest. When you compare offers, check how old each number is, not just what it says.

## Open-source monitoring can watch most pricing pages

To keep the table current without a paid monitoring service, Stanley set up changedetection, an open-source page-monitoring tool. On the first check, 7 of 9 source pages fetched correctly. The other 2 returned "403 Access denied" because those lenders block automated fetches, so they still need a person to check them.

## The takeaway

If a lender will not show you its factor rate, ask for it in writing and compare the total payback, not just the daily payment. For more from the lab, visit [the MCAFax Notebook](https://mcafax.com/notebook).

*Disclosure: MCAFax may receive compensation from some providers. It does not affect our grades or what we show you.*

## Questions readers ask

**Do MCA lenders publish their factor rates?**

Most do not. In our first sourced table, only 4 of 16 lenders had a rate we could cite.

**Are review-site MCA rates up to date?**

Not always. The review article we used for 6 of 16 rows was last updated on January 5, 2026.

**Can open-source tools monitor lender pricing pages?**

Mostly. An open-source page monitor fetched 7 of 9 lender pages on its first check; 2 blocked automated fetches.

**What should I ask an MCA lender if no rate is published?**

Ask for the factor rate and the total payback amount in writing, then compare total payback across offers.