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Lili banking review

This account for small business owners automatically sets aside money for taxes and emergency funds.

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By

Cassidy Horton

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Our verdict

A Lili business banking account offers an array of features perfect for small business owners and freelancers who need help managing their business finances. The account automatically sets aside money for emergencies and offers early access to payments. While you can access its basic features for free, its paid plans start at $9 a month and come with more advanced features like cashback rewards, a built-in expense tracker, a savings account that earns 4.15% APY and free overdraft protection. Lili also supports joint accounts, so multiple owners can have account access and their own debit card. But Lili lacks the ability to write checks so if this is a concern, you might need to look elsewhere.

Best for: Small business owners looking for a business checking account that can help make managing taxes and business finances easier.

Pros
  • Auto savings for taxes and emergencies, depending on your plan
  • Access to payments up to two days early
  • Tax tools, including pre-filled tax forms on the Lili Smart plan
  • Overdraft protection on its paid plans
Cons
  • Can't write checks
  • Live customer support only available on weekdays
4.6

★★★★★

Finder rating

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APY

4.15%

Fee

From $0 per month

Minimum deposit to open

$0

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Lili

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How much does Lili cost?

Lili has a free basic plan and three paid accounts starting at $9 a month. Here’s how they differ:

PlanMonthly feeFeatures
Lili BasicFree
  • Debit card
  • Automatically set aside money for an emergency fund
  • Early payments up to 2 days faster
Lili Pro$9Everything in the Basic plan, plus:
  • Debit card with cashback rewards
  • Built-in expense tracking
  • No fees for overdrafts up to $200
  • 4.15% APY on savings
  • Automatically set aside money for taxes
Lili Smart$20Everything in the Pro plan, plus:
  • Financial reports
  • Unlimited invoices and payments
  • Pre-filled business tax forms
Lili Premium$35Everything in the Smart plan, plus:
  • Dedicated account specialist
  • Priority customer support
  • Metal card

Who is Lili best for?

Lili is best for small business owners who want some automated assistance in managing their emergency savings goals. The overall lack of account fees and automated savings tools make Lili an easy account to open and maintain so you can focus on your business. It’s also a great fit for small business owners who might be interested in expanding their business account’s features down the line, thanks to the optional paid subscriptions. Lili also supports joint accounts, so if your business has multiple owners, all owners can get account access and each can get a debit card.

Compare Lili to similar accounts

We gathered a quick comparison of similar accounts to help you decide if Lili is right for you.

Lili logo

Lili

★★★★★

Finder rating 4.6 / 5

Go to site

Fee

$0

Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

4.15%

Minimum deposit to open

$0

BMO Smart Advantage Checking logo

BMO Smart Advantage Checking

★★★★★

Finder rating 4.7 / 5

Go to site

Fee

$0

Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

N/A

Minimum deposit to open

$25

Cash Card by Cash App logo

Cash Card by Cash App

★★★★★

Finder rating 4.4 / 5

Go to site

Fee

$0

Annual Percentage Yield (APY)

N/A

Minimum deposit to open

$0

What makes Lili shine

Lili’s biggest strength is how the account aims to make the life of small business owners easier. This starts by offering minimal fees: owners can open the account with $0 and won’t pay a monthly maintenance, overdraft, account inactivity, bill pay or stopped payment fee. Lili also supports early access to payments, which let you receive payments up to two days earlier than with a traditional bank account.

You can also deposit cash at any retailer in the Green Dot network, for a $4.95 fee — a perk not often offered by other online banks and fintechs. You’ll also get unlimited, free incoming domestic wire transfers. But outgoing domestic wires are still unavailable.

And since Lili integrates with other accounting platforms like Quickbooks and Xero, which also have similar bookkeeping tools, you can select the Lili plan that makes the most sense for your business.

Set aside cash automatically

Lili’s most notable feature is its automated savings feature, which sets aside a percentage of your paycheck for emergency funds — and future taxes on the Lili Pro plan. Given the somewhat complex structure of small businesses and freelance taxes, this can prove a nice relief for business owners as it provides peace of mind that taxes are accounted for while business owners focus on their work.

Extra perks with paid plans

Lili also offers optional paid subscriptions that start at $9 a month. These accounts come with a few additional accounting features, rewards on eligible Lili debit card purchases, advanced expense tracking, a built-in invoicing tool and more. There’s also an overdraft service called BalanceUp, which allows free overdrafts on up to $200 on purchases.

Paid plans also offer access to the savings account with a 4.15%APY on balances up to $100,000.

Where Lili falls short

Given the specialized nature of Lili, it naturally won’t fit everyone’s needs. A few drawbacks to the account include limited customer support as they’re only available on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET and there are no live chat options. You also can’t write checks, which is a feature on standard checking accounts.

Lili‘s fees and access

Type of feeFee details
Monthly service$0
Opening deposit$0
ATMs
  • In-network: $0
  • Domestic – out of network: $2.50
  • International – $5
Overdraft or nonsufficient funds$0
Wire transfers
  • Domestic: $0 for incoming; doesn’t support outgoing wires
  • International: Doesn’t support wire transfers
Debit card feesLost card – $5.00 after first free replacement
Other fees
  • Express mail fee – $20.00
  • Funds transfer fee, ACH express delivery – 1.50%

Customer experience

Lili is generally appreciated by customers on social media for its user-friendly features and low fees. However, some older customer reviews have complained of unwarranted account closures.

Lili isn’t accredited with the Better Business Bureau and has just a few customer reviews. On Trustpilot, Lili earns a 4.7 out of 5 customer rating with several praising the user-friendly nature of Lili as well as the prompt customer service.

There are several ways to contact Lili:

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★★★★★ — Good

★★★★★ — Average

★★★★★ — Subpar

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We analyze top checking accounts and rate them one to five stars based on factors that are most important to you. These factors include: monthly fees, the ease at which monthly fees can be waived, the breadth of ATM access, ATM and overdraft fees, and customer service.

Read the full methodology of how we rate checking accounts.

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