---
title: "Lump sum: definition | Desert Rock Capital"
url: "https://www.desertrockcapital.com/glossary/lump-sum"
description: "A lump sum is a single payment of a full amount at once, rather than spread over time. In lending, it can describe how a loan is funded or repaid."
---

Loan structure

# Lump sum
All lending terms
Definition

A lump sum is a single payment of a full amount at once, rather than spread over time. In lending, it can describe how a loan is funded or repaid.

A lump sum is one complete payment made at a single time instead of in installments. In lending, the term can describe funding, when you receive the entire loan amount up front, or repayment, when a balance must be cleared in one payment. A payday loan is commonly structured as a lump-sum repayment due on a set date, and a balloon payment is a lump sum due at the end of an otherwise installment loan. By contrast, an installment loan replaces a single repayment with a series of smaller scheduled payments over the term.

Source: [U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (Investor.gov)](https://www.investor.gov/introduction-investing/investing-basics/glossary/lump-sum-payment). This definition is general educational information, not legal or financial advice.
Related

- [Compare: vs. a payday loan](/compare/payday-loan)
- [Payday loan alternatives](/compare/payday-loan)
- [Personal loans](/services/personal-loans)
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Loan structure
Collateral
Term (loan term)
Amortization
Fully amortized loan
Balloon payment
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