What do I do when my business grant money runs out?

Grants are one-time; operating needs are ongoing

A grant is a fixed, often purpose-restricted injection — it doesn't refill. When it's spent but the business still needs capital to operate or grow, the durable answer is financing you can size to the need and repay from revenue, rather than waiting on the next grant cycle.

Bridging to sustainable capital

• Business line of credit — for recurring working-capital swings; draw, repay, reuse
• Term loan — for a specific, defined investment with a clear payoff
• Revenue-based financing — fast capital repaid as a share of sales when timing is tight
• SBA loan or CDFI loan — for larger or mission-aligned needs where eligible

Plan capital — don't chase the next grant

Treat grants as a supplement, not the foundation. Build a capital plan around predictable financing for ongoing needs, and pursue grants opportunistically on top. That keeps the business funded on its own timeline instead of a grant calendar you don't control.

The financing you line up after a grant runs out should match why you're actually borrowing: in the Federal Reserve's 2025 Small Business Credit Survey, 56% of financing applicants cited covering operating expenses as their reason for applying, while 46% of financing applicants cited pursuing an expansion or new opportunity instead — a grant that funded a specific project leaves an operating-expense gap once it's spent (a line of credit or revenue-based financing fits), while a business scaling past what the grant covered is in the smaller expansion category better served by a term loan or SBA product.