5 Best Banks for Small Businesses: Compare Rates and Features

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As a small business owner, having a good bank account to manage your money is crucial. Business bank accounts can be expensive, both in terms of monthly fees and also per-item charges. Fortunately, many banks offer excellent options for small business owners that charge no monthly maintenance fees — or provide an option to get the fee waived — as well as cash back on purchases, interest on balances and other features that can make it easier to run your business.

Here are five of the top banks for small businesses. Take your time to compare each one, along with other options you're considering, to determine the best fit for you.

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Axos® Bank: Best for ATM Fee Reimbursements

Banking products: Basic Business Checking, Business Interest Checking, Business Savings, Business Premium Savings, Business Money Market, Non-Profit Money Market and Business Certificates of Deposit.
Monthly fees: Up to $10, but it's waivable.
Per-item fees: None for Basic Checking; $0.50 per item after 50 free items per month for Interest Checking.
ATM access: Unlimited domestic ATM fee reimbursements.
Notable features: Cash deposits with MoneyPass® and AllPoint™ ATMs, offers a welcome bonus to new account holders, and high APY on Interest Checking.

Axos Bank is an online bank that offers a variety of personal and business banking products. For small businesses, its two options cover a lot of ground. If you want no minimum deposit requirement, no monthly fee, no minimum balance requirement and no fees for item processing (debits, credits and deposits), go with the Basic Business Checking account.

The Interest Checking account charges a $10 monthly fee, but you can get that waived with an average daily balance of $5,000 or more. It also charges a $0.50 fee per item, but you'll get 50 items for free every month.

But if you want to earn interest on your balance, you can get up to a 1.01% APY with the Business Interest Checking account — that's 1.01% on the first $49,999.99, then it drops down to 0.20% at $50,000, then down to 0.10% at $250,000.

In both cases, you can earn up to $100 as a welcome bonus if you open an account with a promotional code and meet certain requirements.* While it's traditionally difficult to make cash deposits with online-only banks, Axos does allow small business owners to deposit cash at MoneyPass and AllPoint ATMs.

Axos also offers business savings products, but their APYs max out at 0.20%, and there may be a minimum deposit requirement and monthly fee, depending on the account.

Who it's best for: You may consider Axos Bank if you make a lot of ATM withdrawals for your business. Having the ability to get those ATM fees reimbursed can save you the time and effort of tracking down in-network machines. It could also be a good choice for small business owners who make some cash deposits but don't make them regularly enough to merit a bank with physical branches. But while the bank's Interest Checking account's APY is impressive, think twice about opening an account unless you can meet the minimum balance requirement to skip the monthly fee.

Standout Accounts:

*Disclosure

^{To be eligible to earn all or a portion of the cash incentive as part of the “SBIZ100" $100 promotion, a Basic Business Checking (BBC) or Business Interest Checking (BIC) that includes the promotional code “SBIZ100" must be submitted between 05/15/2023 at 12:00am PT and 11:59pm PT on 06/30/2023. Axos Bank reserves the right to limit each primary account holder to one (1) checking account promotional offer per year and customers who have held primary ownership of an Axos Bank or Axos Bank for Nationwide checking or savings account at any time in the past 12 months may be disqualified from the “SBIZ100" offer. Promotional terms and conditions are subject to change or removal without notice. Bonus cash may be taxable and reported on IRS Form 1099-MISC. Consult your tax advisor. After initial requirements above are met, the amount of cash bonus earned will depend on meeting the additional requirements outlined below:}

^{Small Business Checking bonus up to $100: You must be approved for your new Small Business Checking account and fund it within 60 days of account opening. A cash bonus of up to $100 can be earned in the following manner during the first five (5) statement cycles. A statement cycle is a calendar month consisting of the days your account was open during that month. $25 will be earned for each statement cycle during which the average daily balance in your Small Business Checking account must be at a minimum $5,000 or greater. A maximum of four (4) payouts can be earned during the five (5) statement cycles and the bonus will be deposited into your Small Business Checking account within 10 business days following the end of the statement cycle in which the balance requirement was met. Your Small Business Checking account must be open and in good standing at the time the bonus is paid to be eligible to receive the bonus and your Small Business Checking account must remain open for 120 days or an early closure fee of up to $100 may apply.}

American Express®: Best for Interest on Your Balance

Banking products: American Express Business Checking.
Monthly fees: None.
Per-item fees: None.
ATM access: Fee-free withdrawals at more than 37,000 MoneyPass ATMs.
Notable features: High APY on balances, valuable welcome bonus and rewards on debit card purchases.

American Express Business Checking is relatively new on the scene, following the financial institution's acquisition of small business lender Kabbage®. The bank offers an impressive 30,000 Membership Rewards points if you meet certain requirements — you can redeem those points for cash back, or if you have a credit card that earns Membership Rewards, you may be able to get more value from them. Also, American Express offers several solid business credit card options.

American Express also offers an APY of 1.30% on balances of up to $500,000, which is far more generous than the Interest Checking account from Axos Bank. Small business owners will also enjoy no fees on regular item processing, non-sufficient funds and more. Finally, the bank offers 1 point for every $2 you spend on eligible purchases with your debit card.

Note that American Express does not offer any business savings products.

Who it's best for: Consider American Express if you have one of the bank's credit cards and want to manage banking and credit card use in one place. It's also a solid choice if you tend to maintain a high balance and want to put that money to work earning interest. While it's great to earn rewards, this account's rewards rate isn't great, so it's a nice feature but not one to focus on.

LendingClub: Best for Cash Back on Debit Card Purchases

Banking products: Business Banking Tailored Checking.
Monthly fees: $10, waivable.
Per-item fees: None.
ATM access: Unlimited ATM fee rebates.
Notable features: Offers 1% cash back on eligible debit card purchases, provides up to a 1.50% APY on balances up to $100,000

LendingClub only offers one checking account and no savings accounts, so it's best for small business owners who prefer its features over other banks' offerings. The Business Banking Tailored Checking account offers unlimited ATM fee rebates, allowing for easy access to your cash.

It also offers a 1.50% APY on balances of up to $100,000 (then 0.10% after that) and 1% cash back on signature-based debit card purchases — just select "credit" for point-of-sale purchases and sign instead of choosing "debit" and entering your PIN. Just note that you'll need to receive $2,500 or more in direct deposits or maintain an average monthly balance of $2,500 to qualify for debit card rewards.

The bank does charge a $10 monthly fee, but it's relatively easy to avoid — simply maintain a balance of $500 or more in your account.

Who it's best for: If you want to take advantage of interest, debit card rewards and no ATM fees, this account is tough to beat. Just make sure you can meet the requirements to take advantage of the rewards program and avoid the monthly fee. LendingClub may not be the best choice, though, if you want to keep all of your business finances under one roof.

NBKC Bank®: Best for No Fees

Banking products: The Business Account, Money Market Account, Business Certificates of Deposit.
Monthly fees: None.
Per-item fees: None.
ATM access: Fee-free withdrawals at more than 37,000 MoneyPass ATMs.
Notable features: No account fees whatsoever.

The Business Account with NBKC Bank is a no-frills business checking account in that it doesn't offer a lot of features. However, the account also doesn't charge any account fees, making it an excellent choice for small business owners who are looking to save as much money as possible.

It also has access to a large ATM network, making it easy to get fee-free ATM withdrawals. If you live in the Kansas City area where the bank is headquartered, you can enjoy in-person service at one of NBKC's four physical branches.

Who it's best for: NBKC is a good option for new businesses, independent contractors and freelancers who do all of their business online and want a no-fee banking option. It could also be beneficial for larger small businesses, but you won't get any of the extra features that some of our other top banks offer.

Chase: Best for Full-Service Business Banking

Banking products: Business Complete Checking℠, Performance Business Checking^®, Platinum Business Checking℠, Business Savings, Business Certificates of Deposit.
Monthly fees: Up to $95, but waivable.
Per-item fees: Varies.
ATM access: Fee-free withdrawals at more than 16,000 Chase ATMs.
Notable features: Has more than 4,700 physical branches, offers a new customer bonus when you meet certain requirements and provides a variety of business finance products and services.

Among our best banks for small businesses, Chase is the most established, offering a variety of banking products and other options, including credit cards, loans and lines of credit, payment processing services, retirement plans and more. The monthly fees for its checking accounts range from $15 to $95, but you can get the charge waived if you meet certain balance requirements.

Additionally, some accounts charge a per-item fee and even a fee on cash deposits above a certain amount each month, so you'll want to read the fine print to see if it's a good fit. If your business makes a lot of cash deposits, though, having so many physical branches is beneficial.

If you're considering Chase, you can earn a generous bonus when you open a Chase Business Complete Checking account and meet certain requirements. Chase also offers business savings products, but they're pretty basic in terms of interest and features.

Who it's best for: With its full-service banking options, Chase is best for small business owners who want to have all of their finances under one roof. However, you'll want to make sure you can avoid the monthly fees on the accounts. You will also need to ensure that you don't run into issues with per-item fees or cash deposit fees.

Standout Accounts:

Which Bank Is Right for You?

With so many business banking options out there, it's important to take your time to shop around and compare multiple banks and credit unions. Think about which bank features matter the most, whether it's low fees, interest, debit rewards or ATM benefits to pinpoint which banks offer the most value to you.

Featured photo courtesy of Chase

Ben Luthi

Ben Luthi is a personal finance and travel writer and credit card expert. He has a degree in finance from Brigham Young University and worked in financial planning, banking and auto finance before writing full-time for NerdWallet and Student Loan Hero. Ben is now a full-time freelance writer and enjoys traveling and spending time with his two kids. His work has appeared in several publications, including U.S. News & World Report, USA Today, Money, Success and Slickdeals.

5 Best Banks for Small Businesses

Best Business Credit Cards

Axos® Bank: Best for ATM Fee Reimbursements

Axos Business Checking: Up to $100 Bonus

Axos Basic Business Checking Account

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Axos Business Interest Checking

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*Disclosure

American Express®: Best for Interest on Your Balance

LendingClub: Best for Cash Back on Debit Card Purchases

NBKC Bank®: Best for No Fees

Chase: Best for Full-Service Business Banking

Who Should (and Shouldn’t) Open a Chase Business Complete Checking Account?

Chase Business Complete Checking℠

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Which Bank Is Right for You?

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