Bluevine Business Checking review

Our verdict

Our verdict

Bluevine makes its mark in business banking as one of the highest-yielding choices out there — earning an impressive 2% APY. To start earning interest, you'll need to spend at least $500 with the debit card or receive $2,500 in payments. The account also doesn't have any monthly service or overdraft fees, and it allows you to make cash deposits for a fee, which is unusual for a digital bank. You can also enjoy the high FDIC insurance up to $3 million, provided by its partner Coastal Community Bank and a network of program banks.

Best for: Businesses looking for an interest-bearing account with few fees.

Pros

• Earn 2% APY when you meet spend or deposit requirements
• No monthly service, overdraft or incoming wire fees
• Create up to 5 subaccounts for categorizing
• 8+ software integrations for a smooth workflow

Cons

• No interest on balances over $250,000
• 2.9% credit card transaction fee to pay bills

4.6

★★★★★

Finder rating

Go to site on Bluevine's secure site

APY

2.00%

Fee

$0 per month

Minimum deposit to open

$0

Who is Bluevine Business Checking best for?

Bluevine Business Checking is best for small business owners, contract workers and freelancers who want a free account that earns interest. If you already spend at least $500 a month or receive $2,500 a month, you’re rewarded with a 2% APY on up to $250,000, and you don’t have to worry about monthly fees that drain your funds.

Although it accepts cash deposits, which is rare for online bank accounts, you’ll pay $4.95 each time. Bluevine also doesn’t have built-in accounting tools, so you’ll need to rely on external accounting apps like Quickbooks for expense tracking, which you can connect to Bluevine.

What we like about Bluevine

Bluevine‘s main stake in the field of business checking accounts is that it’s one of the few to earn high-yielding interest. Paired with minimal bank fees and no limits on how many transactions you make, this business account packs in more perks than usual.

In addition, Bluevine has high FDIC insurance, up to $3 million which is provided by its partner bank, Coastal Community Bank and a network of program banks. Most banks only offer up to $250,000 per account holder.

Earning interest

Bluevine steps up the earnings with a 2% APY on funds in your main account or subaccounts, up to $250,000. If you max out the account, your total earnings can amount to over $2,000 yearly.

For most business accounts, you either don’t earn interest or you get an insignificant amount, like Chase’s 0.01% APY on its interest-bearing business accounts. Bluevine‘s competitors NorthOne and Novo don’t earn interest at all.

Also, while you must spend $500 or earn $2,500 a month to accrue interest, compared to other interest-bearing checking accounts, this isn’t strict. Most high-yield checking accounts require you to jump through several hoops, which may even include opening up other types of accounts before you start earning interest.

Unlimited transactions

Bluevine doesn’t set limits on how many transactions you can make, whereas some business checking accounts do. For example, Wells Fargo gives 100 to 250 free transactions before it charges $0.50 per transaction, depending on your business account.

While incoming ACH transfers and wires have no fees, Bluevine doesn’t have tools for invoices or payment processing, although these features are hit-and-miss with other digital bank accounts.

For example, Wave Money charges a 1% fee to accept ACH payments and up to 3% for debit or credit cards. Yet Novo offers free invoices and ACH or check payments, but you have to connect to Stripe, Square or PayPal to accept card payments.

Bluevine can now do international transactions, and payments can be received as soon as 24 hours. You can send payments to 32 countries in 14 currencies. There’s a flat $25 fee for international payments, and if you send the payment in a non-US currency, Bluevine charges an additional 1.5% of your payment amount. Also, if you frequently do international transactions (more than $25,000 per month), Bluevine states you may be eligible for lower fees.

Few fees

Like other online banking competitors, Bluevine doesn’t charge a monthly fee or require a minimum opening deposit. However, Bluevine avoids overdraft fees altogether, while competitors like Novo charge around $30. As long as you keep a balance of some kind, you’ll also get 200 free checks. Most online-only accounts don’t provide checkwriting at all.

Standard business accounts, like Chase Business Complete Checking, charge monthly fees between $15 and $30 — unless you top up your account with a few thousand dollars minimum. These banks typically come with ATM access and checks. But you might pay extra for overdrafts and wires, and forget about invoices or free payment processing.

Software integrations

Bluevine lets you connect with popular business services like Quickbooks so that you can see your cash flow and approve transactions directly from Bluevine‘s dashboard. It connects to:

• Cash App
• Expensify
• Quickbooks
• Square
• Wave
• Wise
• Venmo
• Xero

Many digital business accounts offer software integrations for payment and accounting apps so you can continue using your existing software. But if you’re looking for a business account with built-in accounting features, look at other accounts like Found or Lili.

Where Bluevine falls short

Bluevine‘s biggest downfall is that it charges a 2.9% transaction fee to pay bills with your credit card, a huge con if using your card lands you rewards. Pay with a bank transfer or check to avoid any fees for paying bills.

Also, while Bluevine allows cash deposits, you have to use the Green Dot store network, and individual stores charge up to $4.95 for each deposit. This fee is common for digital banks that allow cash deposits.

Bluevine Business Checking fees and access

Bluevine steers clear of fees for common fees like monthly maintenance, overdrafts, foreign transactions or even closing the account. But you’ll pay for a few services.

Type of fee	Fee details
Monthly service	$0
Opening deposit	$0
ATMs	37,000 free MoneyPass ATMs $2.50 for out-of-network ATMs
Debit card fees	Up to $4.95 per cash deposit $30 for expedited card replacements
Foreign transaction fee	0%
Overdraft or nonsufficient funds	$0
Wire transfers	$0 for incoming wires $15 for outgoing wires No international wires
Other fees	$18.22 + tax and shipping for checks $0 for account closure $0 e-statements, no paper statements $12 fee for international payments and 1.5% of your payment amount when sent in non-US currencies

Compare Bluevine Business Checking with other checking accounts

How to open a Bluevine Business Checking account

It takes a few minutes to open an account directly through Bluevine‘s site by entering basic information about you and your business.

Required information

Along with personal details like your address and Social Security number, and you’ll need this information about your business when signing up.

• Business name, address and phone number
• Employer identification number
• Industry and entity type
• Annual revenue
• Percentage of ownership in the business

Customer experience

Bluevine Business Checking is highly rated by thousands of customers across its app and user sites like Trustpilot and Reddit, although many positive reviews are about its business line of credit. For the checking account, happy customers like its user-friendly app, few fees and Quickbooks integration.

However, multiple people say that Bluevine‘s mobile deposits are finicky and checks can take a few days to a week to clear. The biggest complaints come from a few Redditors who were denied refunds for fraudulent charges, which cost them thousands of dollars. Keep in mind that people tend to leave reviews when they’ve had an overly positive or negative experience with a company.

To get in touch with customer support:

• Call 888-216-9619 on weekdays, 8 am to 8 pm ET or 24/7 for lost or stolen debit cards.
• Email banking.support@bluevine.com.

How long will it take to get my card?

Once your account is approved, you instantly get a virtual debit card to use online and through ApplePay or GooglePay. Your physical debit card arrives in the mail within seven to 10 business days

How do I deposit or withdraw my money?

Bluevine Business Checking gives you several ways to access your money: