Free help for Boston business owners: SCORE, the SBA and what each does

Key takeaways

• SCORE Boston lists 65 certified volunteer mentors and says mentoring is “always free, for the life of your business.”
• The SBA Massachusetts District Office at 10 Causeway Street, Room 265, Boston, covers all 14 Massachusetts counties and answers the phone at 617-565-5590.
• The Massachusetts Small Business Development Center serves Boston from its Greater Boston Region office at 100 Carlson Avenue in Newton, with no-cost advising by appointment only.
• The City of Boston Office of Small Business is at 26 Court Street, 617-635-0355, and matches owners with consultants through its Technical Assistance program.
• SBA loans come from banks and other approved lenders, so the district office points you to a lender instead of writing the check.

Owners and managers of small businesses in Boston have four free places to ask for help: SCORE Boston, the SBA Massachusetts District Office, the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center and the City of Boston Office of Small Business. SCORE Boston is the local chapter of SCORE, a national network of volunteer business mentors funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The short answer for most owners: ask SCORE Boston for a mentor, ask the Massachusetts SBDC for a professional advisor, call the SBA about federal loans and certifications, and call the city about Boston permits and licenses.

The sections below explain what each organization does, which level of government stands behind it, what it costs, how to sign up and where each one stops.

What is SCORE Boston?

SCORE Boston is a volunteer mentoring chapter that gives free business advice to owners in Greater Boston. The chapter’s page on score.org lists 65 certified local mentors, part of a national SCORE network of 10,000, and gives its address as 10 Causeway Street, Boston, MA 02222. SCORE describes its mentors as experienced professionals who volunteer their time, and says they advise every type of business at any stage. The national organization states that it is funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, a federal agency.

Beyond mentoring, SCORE Boston runs in-person workshops and webinars and keeps an online library of templates. Mentoring carries no charge. Workshops are a different matter: the chapter’s workshop calendar marks some sessions free and puts a price on others, so read the listing before you register.

What does the SBA Massachusetts District Office do?

The SBA Massachusetts District Office is the federal Small Business Administration’s local office for the whole state. Its page says the office helps with SBA services that include funding programs, counseling, federal contracting certifications and disaster recovery, and that it connects owners with partner organizations, lenders and community groups. The Massachusetts District Office is at 10 Causeway Street, Room 265, Boston, MA 02222. The phone number is 617-565-5590, and posted hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., closed on federal holidays.

The SBA does much of its advising through outside groups it calls resource partners. A resource partner is an organization that the SBA funds or works with to counsel and train business owners. The SBA’s resource partner page names four types: SCORE, Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers and Veterans Business Outreach Centers. The SBA says Women’s Business Centers offer free to low-cost counseling and training, and its directory lists the Veterans Business Outreach Center of New England in Westborough, Massachusetts.

What is the Massachusetts SBDC?

The Massachusetts SBDC, in full the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center (MSBDC) Network, is a statewide advising program with paid, full-time business advisors. The Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst hosts the network, which operates as a partnership with the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Massachusetts Office of Business Development. Funding is federal and state, and the network has operated since 1980. According to the MSBDC services page, advising is no-cost, confidential and open to prospective and existing for-profit small and mid-sized businesses. Training is offered at no cost or for a nominal fee.

Boston businesses belong to the Greater Boston Region, which opened in 2022 at the UMass Amherst campus in Newton: Applied Sciences Center, Suite 110, 100 Carlson Avenue, Newton, MA 02459, telephone 413-545-1988. The region’s page lists Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Chelsea, Revere and Winthrop among the cities and towns it serves, along with Boston neighborhoods such as Dorchester, Brighton and Jamaica Plain. Appointments are in person or virtual.

The MSBDC also runs statewide specialty programs. The Massachusetts Export Center, at the same Newton address, helps companies sell abroad, and the Government Sales Advisory Program helps companies bid on public contracts.

What does the City of Boston Office of Small Business offer?

The City of Boston Office of Small Business is the municipal office that answers questions about opening and running a business inside Boston city limits. According to the Small Business page on boston.gov, staff answer questions on permitting and licensing, business plan development and site selection. The office is at 26 Court Street, Boston, MA 02108, open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The phone number is 617-635-0355 and the email address is smallbiz@boston.gov.

Technical Assistance is the city program that pairs owners with outside consultants on a project basis. The Technical Assistance page says a Neighborhood Business Manager first assesses your goals, then matches you with an approved provider. Provider fields named by the city include business strategy, legal, accounting, marketing and digital branding. The page does not state a price or eligibility limits, so ask the Neighborhood Business Manager about both during the assessment.

The same office lists Small Business Financing, the ReStore program for signs and storefront facades, and the city’s 20 Main Streets organizations. Brookline, Cambridge and Somerville are separate municipalities, so a business there deals with its own city or town hall, not Boston’s.

How do SCORE, the SBA, the SBDC and the city office differ?

SCORE, the SBA, the SBDC and the city office differ in who does the advising, which government stands behind the work and what each can decide. The table compares the four as each describes itself.

Organization	Who helps you	Backed by	Published cost
SCORE Boston	Volunteer mentors	SCORE, funded in part by the federal SBA	Mentoring free; some workshops have a fee
SBA Massachusetts District Office	Federal staff	U.S. Small Business Administration	No fee listed for office help
Massachusetts SBDC, Greater Boston Region	Full-time business advisors	UMass Amherst, the SBA and the Massachusetts Office of Business Development	Advising no-cost; training no-cost or nominal fee
City of Boston Office of Small Business	City staff and contracted consultants	City of Boston	Not stated for Technical Assistance

Which free service should you contact first?

The free service to contact first depends on the question you need answered. Use this list as a starting map.

• A sounding board over months or years: SCORE Boston, whose national site says a mentoring relationship lasts as long as you need.
• A business plan, cash flow analysis or loan package: the Massachusetts SBDC Greater Boston Region.
• An SBA-backed loan, a federal contracting certification or disaster recovery: the SBA Massachusetts District Office.
• A Boston permit, license or storefront location: the City of Boston Office of Small Business.
• Exporting or selling to government agencies: the MSBDC’s Massachusetts Export Center or Government Sales Advisory Program.

The city also publishes a Business Support Directory of other organizations, searchable by specialty. Boston states that the entries are self-reported and that the city does not endorse the programs listed.

How do you request a SCORE Boston mentor?

You request a SCORE Boston mentor online through SCORE’s national Find a Mentor page. SCORE describes the process this way:

1. Enter your ZIP code, which opens the mentoring request form.
2. Describe your business question or goal. SCORE compares the request with mentor profiles to find matching expertise.
3. Watch for a reply. SCORE says you typically hear from a mentor within 48 hours, by email and text, and suggests checking your junk folder for messages from score.org and scorevolunteer.org addresses.
4. Schedule a session. Sessions typically run one hour and take place by online meeting, phone or email.

An in-person meeting is available only if a local mentor can do one. SCORE’s Code of Ethics requires mentors to keep client information within SCORE. The Massachusetts SBDC has its own sign-up: every client completes and signs a Request for Advising on msbdc.org, and the Greater Boston Region says it typically responds in 1 to 3 business days.

What will these free services not do for you?

Free services from SCORE, the SBA, the SBDC and the city come with limits that each organization publishes. The main ones as of November 13, 2026:

• The SBA does not hand out its main loans itself. The agency’s loans page says 7(a) loans are delivered by SBA 7(a) lenders, 504 loans by Certified Development Companies and microloans of $50,000 or less by intermediary lenders. Lender Match is the SBA tool that connects you with approved lenders.
• The Massachusetts SBDC takes no walk-ins, and no advisors work at its State Office in Amherst.
• MSBDC advising is for for-profit businesses. A founder who has not launched or earned revenue must first complete the MSBDC’s 2-hour online “How to Start a Business” training series before booking an advisor.
• SCORE Boston’s free promise covers mentoring. Workshop prices are set per session.

None of the four acts as your lawyer or accountant. The city’s Technical Assistance program is the one route described above that can connect you with legal and accounting providers.

What should you recheck before you act?

Each detail below was checked on November 13, 2026 and can change without notice.

• SCORE Boston’s count of 65 mentors, its address and its workshop prices: confirm on the SCORE Boston page at score.org.
• SBA Massachusetts District Office room number, phone and hours: confirm on the district page at sba.gov, and call before visiting the federal building.
• MSBDC Greater Boston Region address, phone, service towns and the pre-launch training requirement: confirm on msbdc.org.
• City of Boston Office of Small Business hours, contacts and open programs: confirm on boston.gov. Programs with application windows open and close during the year.
• SBA loan programs and the $50,000 microloan ceiling: confirm on the SBA loans page.

This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules and fees change; confirm the current requirements with the agency named before you file or pay.

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