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9 best free business checking accounts

Explore free small business checking accounts with free transactions, no monthly fee or overdrafts.

A business bank account helps keep your personal expenses separate from your business expenses and keeps you stay in the clear from a legal and compliance standpoint. In addition to this base necessity, the best free business checking accounts have no monthly maintenance fees, no minimum opening deposit or overdraft fees and offer built-in tools to help you manage your cash flow.

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  • 300+ banks and credit unions reviewed
  • 50+ business checking accounts analyzed and rated by our team of experts
  • Evaluated under our unbiased rating system covering 13 categories
  • 20+ years of combined experience covering financial topics

We're big on editorial independence. That means our content, reviews and ratings are fair, accurate and trustworthy. We don't let advertisers or partners sway our opinions. Our financial experts put in the hard work, spending hours researching and analyzing hundreds of products based on data-driven methodologies to find the best accounts and providers for you. Explore our editorial guidelines to see how we work.

Best free business checking accounts

Do a deep dive into the best accounts by comparing their pros and cons:

Best overall

NBKC Business Checking

4.6
★★★★★

Finder score

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APYN/A
Fee$0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0

Best for accountants and bookkeepers

Novo Business

4.2
★★★★★

Finder score

Go to site Read review
APYN/A
Fee$0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0
Novo is a fintech company; not a bank. Deposit account services provided by Middlesex Federal Savings, F.A., Member FDIC. Physical debit cards issued by Middlesex Federal Savings or Patriot Bank, N.A., Member FDIC; virtual cards issued by Patriot Bank, pursuant to licenses from Mastercard® International Incorporated. Mastercard can be used everywhere Mastercard is accepted. Mastercard is a registered trademark of Mastercard International Incorporated.

Best for team access

Relay

4.8
★★★★★

Finder score

Go to site Read review
APYUp to 3.00%
Fee$0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0
Relay is a financial technology company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services and FDIC insurance are provided through Thread Bank and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC.The Relay Visa® Debit Card is issued by Thread Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and may be used everywhere Visa® debit cards are accepted.

Best for high APY

Bluevine Business Checking

4.5
★★★★★

Finder score

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APYUp to 4.25%
FeeFrom $0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0

Best for free reimbursements

Axos Bank Basic Business Checking

4.5
★★★★★

Finder score

Open a business checking account by August 1 and get up to $400 when you use promo code NEW400 on your application and maintain a minimum average daily balance of $50,000.
APYN/A
Fee$0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0

Best for free domestic wire transfers

Mercury

4.4
★★★★★

Finder score

Go to site Read review
APYN/A
Fee$0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0

Best for early access to payments

Lili

3.9
★★★★★

Finder score

30 day free trial for Lili Pro, Lili Smart, and Lili Premium
Go to site Read review
APY4.15%
FeeFrom $0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0
Lili is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Sunrise Banks N.A., Member FDIC.

Best for freelancers

Found

4.5
★★★★★

Finder score

Go to site Read review
APY1.50%
FeeFrom $0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0
Found is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services are provided by Piermont Bank, Member FDIC. The Found Mastercard®️ debit card is issued by Piermont Bank pursuant to a license from Mastercard Inc. Found’s core features are free. Found also offers a paid product, Found Plus.

Best for landlords

Baselane

4.6
★★★★★

Finder score

Up to 5% cash back on debit card spend
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on Baselane's secure site
APYUp to 4.19%
Fee$0 per month
Minimum deposit to open$0

Methodology: How we choose the best accounts

Finder’s banking experts review more than 41 business checking accounts to determine which banks offer the best perks and features to businesses at no extra cost. We choose the accounts with the highest APYs, most software integrations, and least number of miscellaneous fees for a given category on our list. But for our experts to consider an account for this list, it must first meet the following criteria:

  • $0 monthly fee
  • $0 opening deposit
  • $0 overdraft fee
  • $0 incoming domestic wire fees or reimbursements for wire fees
  • $0 ATM fees or an option for ATM reimbursements

How to find the best free business checking account

Find the best account for your business needs by considering these factors:

  • Monthly fees. Some business bank accounts charge a monthly fee. This fee comes in at around $7 a month based on Finder’s internal data.
  • Minimum opening deposit. Look for an account with no deposit requirement, so that you don’t have to transfer money during your application process.
  • Integrations. Many business accounts come with some form of software integration, such as connecting to QuickBooks. These can make tracking and managing your business finances or taxes much easier.
  • Transaction limits. Unlike personal checking accounts, business accounts limit how many deposits and transfers you make each month before you pay a fee. Most have a 200 to 500 transaction limit, but you’ll find some that offer unlimited transactions.
  • Interest. While it’s rare for a business checking account to offer interest, there are some like Bluevine that offer strong yields when you meet certain requirements. If you want to grow your money, look for one that earns above the national average which is currently at 0.08% APY for checking accounts, according to the FDIC.
  • Overdraft fees. The average overdraft fee will cost around $30, according to the FDIC. If you’re prone to overdraw on your account, these fees can add up quickly and hurt your finances. All of the accounts on our best list omit this fee or offer overdraft protection.
  • Cash deposits. Although most online business checking accounts don’t come with the ability to make cash deposits, some like Bluevine are starting to offer it for a fee. Check the bank’s ATM network as well as whether they offer reimbursements for ATM fees.
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Expert tip: Consider where your business will operate before opening an account.

Some banks only allow you to open a business bank account in the same state where your business operates and where one member of the LLC resides. If you need to access your account in other states as well, look at banks that service a wide network in the US, such as Chase or Capital One. Also look at online and digital business bank accounts, which offer more flexibility in this area.

— Steven Dashiell, .

Free business checking accounts by state

Use this table to find which free business checking accounts are available in your state or online. Compare features like monthly transaction limits and minimum opening deposits of each to find one that best suits your needs.

What do I need to open a free business checking account online?

Applying online for a business account typically takes a few minutes with the right documents in hand, but the exact steps will look different from bank to bank. Here is what you’ll need to bring with you.

  1. Social Security number
  2. Government-issued ID
  3. Employee Identification Number (EIN)
  4. Business certifications
  5. Ownership agreements

Can I open a free business checking account online with no minimum deposit?

Yes, there are many free online business accounts that don’t require a minimum opening deposit or minimum balance. A few examples include NBKC Business Checking, Lili, Found, Novo and Bluevine Business Checking.

Because digital business accounts have less overhead costs than traditional accounts, they’re able to offer better perks, like no minimum opening deposits to their customers.

Compare top business checking accounts

Narrow down business accounts by monthly fee, APY and ATMs to find the best for your budget and financial goals. Select Compare for up to four products to see their benefits side by side.

Name Product Fee Annual Percentage Yield (APY) FDIC Insured Amount Software Integrations Account management Bank transfer fee Offer
Novo Business
Finder Score: 4.2 / 5: ★★★★★
Novo Business
$0 per month
N/A
Up to $250,000
Amazon, PayPal, Shopify, Square, Stripe and more
Online, App, Phone
$0
Found
Finder Score: 4.5 / 5: ★★★★★
Found
From $0 per month
1.50% on balances of $0 to $20,000
Up to $250,000
QuickBooks, Stripe, Cash App, PayPal, Square, etc.
Online, App, Phone
$0
Chase Business Complete Banking®
Finder Score: 3.8 / 5: ★★★★★
Bonus
Chase Business Complete Banking®
$15 per month
(can be waived)
N/A
Up to $250,00
N/A
Branch, Online, App, Phone
$0
Earn $300 when you open a new Chase Business Complete Checking® account. For new Chase business checking customers with qualifying activities.
Relay
Finder Score: 4.8 / 5: ★★★★★
Relay
$0 per month
Up to 3.00% on balances of $1,000,000+
2.00% on balances of $250,000 to $999,999
1.50% on balances of $50,000 to $249,999
Up to $2.5 million
QuickBooks Online, Xero, Gusto, Plaid, and Yodlee
Online, App, Phone
$0
Bluevine Business Checking
Finder Score: 4.5 / 5: ★★★★★
Bluevine Business Checking
From $0 per month
4.25% on balances of $0 to $3,000,000
3.00% on balances of $0 to $250,000
2.00% on balances of $0 to $250,000
Up to $3 million
Cash App, Expensify, Quickbooks, Square, Wave, Wise, Venmo, and Xero
Online, App, Phone
$0
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Bottom line

Whether you started your business today or have been making money for years, there’s a free business checking account out there to meet your banking needs. Be sure to find one that can accommodate the size of your business and won’t hit you with little fees if you have a better month than usual. The best business checking accounts are ones that offer a perfect mix of features, high transactions and low fees.

Cassidy Horton's headshot
Written by

Writer

Cassidy Horton is a freelance personal finance copywriter and past contributing writer for Finder. Her writing and banking expertise have been featured in Forbes Advisor, Money, The Balance, Money Under 30, Insure.com, and other top digital publishers. She holds a BS in public relations and an MBA from Georgia Southern University. See full bio

Steven Dashiell's headshot
Co-written by

Senior writer

Steven Dashiell is an editor for Bankrate and CreditCards.com and formally a personal finance writer at Finder, specializing in credit cards, banking and growing and protecting your income. His insights and expertise has been featured on Nasdaq, U.S. News & World Report, Time, CBS, ABC, Fox Business, Lifehacker and Martha Stewart Living, among other top media. Steve holds a BA in English from University of Maryland, Baltimore County, minoring in composition and rhetoric. In his spare time Steve nerds out on birds, paints and plays a whole lot of Street Fighter. See full bio

Steven's expertise
Steven has written 66 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Credit cards
  • Budgeting and saving
  • Rewards programs

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