Best Free Business Checking Accounts of 2024

Choosing the best free business checking account for your business doesn’t have to be painful, though it definitely can be if you’re not sure where to start. While there are many types of checking accounts to choose from, understanding what each offer can help you decide what’s best for your business.

And, I might be repeating myself here, but you’ll be doing your business and personal finances a huge favor by keeping your bank accounts separate.

In this article, we will be looking at the best free business checking accounts available today. While some accounts are completely free, others will require you to meet some criteria before waiving their fees.

12 Best Free Business Checking Accounts

Here are the best free business checking accounts you can open today:

1. 🏆 U.S. Bank: Silver Business Checking Package
2. Chase: Business Complete Checking®
3. Bluevine: Business Checking
4. Found: Business Checking
5. Axos: Basic Business Checking
6. American Express: Business Checking
7. Novo: Business Banking
8. Navy Federal: Business Checking
9. Bank of America: Business Advantage Fundamentals™ Banking
10. Citizens Bank: Clearly Better Business Checking
11. nbkc: Business Checking
12. Wells Fargo: Initiate Business Checking

Compare today’s best business credit card offers

1. U.S. Bank: Silver Business Checking Package

U.S. Bank offers three different business checking packages, including Silver, Gold, and Platinum. There are also specialized business packages available for specific types of businesses, such as nonprofit businesses.

U.S. Bank’s Silver Business Checking has no monthly maintenance fee and includes 125 free transactions and 25 free cash deposits each statement cycle.

You also get a 50% discount on your first check order (up to a $50 maximum value) as well as on the Gold Personal Package.

The account includes online and mobile banking, the ability to process card payments and deposit checks, as well as overdraft protection. You can easily open a bank account online or by visiting a branch close to you.

2. Chase: Business Complete Checking®

While Chase’s Business Complete Checking® account has a $15.00 monthly fee, getting this account for free is quite achievable.

All you need to do is meet one of the following requirements every single statement period:

• Maintain a daily account balance of $2,000 or more
• Make $2,000 worth of purchases using a Chase Ink business card
• Make $2,000 worth of transactions using eligible Chase Merchant Services, including QuickAccept® deposits
• Link a Chase Private Client checking account

The account includes many of the features and functionality found in other business checking accounts, including mobile and online banking, wire transfers, and Bill Pay. If you accept payments on the go, then the QuickAccept® feature is something that might interest you. You can use QuickAccept® to accept payments through the mobile app, with the optional mobile card reader giving you the option to accept card tap payments.

3. Bluevine: Business Checking

Bluevine’s business checking account is built from the ground up for small businesses, offering many helpful features and tools designed to help businesses grow. There are no monthly fees or minimum deposit or balance fees, making this account ideal for growing businesses.

Furthermore, there are no fees for insufficient funds (NSF) withdrawals or incoming wire transfers. Transactions are also unlimited, helping you manage your money your way. And you can now send international payments in 26 countries and eight currencies.

The account also earns you an APY of up to up to 4.00% APY on balances of up to $250,000 when you meet eligibility requirements. Unlike many other online bank accounts, Bluevine also lets you deposit cash through its partnership with Green Dot.

The account offers many features that we have come to expect from business checking accounts, including online and mobile banking, a debit card, checkbooks, ACH transfers, and wire transfers. Accounts are insured up to $250,000 through Bluevine’s partnership with Coastal Community Bank.

4. Found: Business Checking

The Found Account is designed with all types of freelancers in mind, from writers to chefs, to graphic designers to housekeepers.

The account aims to make clearer sense of your financial picture and help you avoid instability through insights and automation.

The Found Account comes with a business debit card, which you can use for everyday purchases, and links to your digital wallet for Apple Pay or Google Pay.

There are no required monthly fees and no minimum balance requirements.

For the most part, the Found account is a pretty solid online checking account, with mobile-driven banking, digital deposits, and modern features like automatic transfers and push notifications.

What sets it apart is its auto-tax savings, where you set a percentage of your incoming deposits or a specific amount to enter each bucket, automatically.

Found also has features to help you automatically handle expense tracking. We still recommend that you have a dedicated account for your business – even if you’re just starting out – but this feature is helpful if you slip up or otherwise need to make a one-off purchase from your business account.

5. Axos: Basic Business Checking

Axos’ Basic Business Checking account is a good fit for truly fee-free business banking. It covers all the bases for small business owners. The account offers unlimited transactions and reimburses for all ATM transactions in the US.

You can also make cash deposits with Allpoint and MoneyPass networks. Axos allots 60 free remote deposits per month and 2 free domestic wire transfers. Additionally, the account comes with a Visa debit card and a free set of 50 checks.

The Basic Business Checking account doesn’t earn interest, but Axos also offers a Small Business Interest Checking Account with up to 1.01% APY.

While the bank doesn’t have physical branches, it provides 24/7 customer support for account holders.

If you incorporated your business on June 1, 2020, or later, you’ll be eligible for a $200 welcome bonus. Older businesses are still eligible for a $100 bonus, which will be added to your account.

6. American Express: Business Checking

Business Checking is a relatively new offering from American Express, launched in the Fall of 2021. This builds on their acquisition of Kabbage, a FinTech offering cash flow solutions to small businesses.

While AMEX is relatively new to the business checking space, they’re not new to businesses: their business credit cards are some of the most popular. In fact, that’s one of the appeals of opting for an AMEX account: you can now seamlessly manage both from one place. You can even redeem Membership Rewards points as cash in your checking account.

But even if you’re not a current credit card holder, AMEX’s Business Checking account stands on its own.

A free checking account with one of the most competitive APYs you can find, and on balances up to $500,000 – all from a reputable national bank.

That said, it’s not without its downsides.

First, American Express Business Checking does not accept cash deposits, which could be a dealbreaker if your company frequently handles cash.

Additionally, the app is iOS only for now – sorry Android users!

If neither of those dissuades you, however, then we definitely recommend looking into the account.

7. Novo

Novo’s business checking account is built for freelancers, entrepreneurs, and small business owners looking for the convenience of an online checking account.

With no monthly fees and no minimum balance requirements to keep, the account is a completely free small business online account.

The account integrates with several third-party applications, including Shopify, Quickbooks, Slack, and Stripe. Transfers, mailed checks, and incoming wires are completely free, with all ATM fees refunded.

Novo promises that there are no hidden fees with the fee schedule available online through their website. Opening the account requires a minimum deposit of $50 while NSFs (insufficient funds) are charged at $27 each.

8. Navy Federal: Business Checking

Navy Federal is a credit union offering several different Navy Federal business checking accounts. The most basic account is called Business Checking and is best suited for small businesses with limited activity when it comes to cash flow.

The account has no monthly service fee and can have up to two signers. It’s also interest-earning, albeit a negligible amount right now.

You get 30 free non-electronic transactions included, while anything more than that sets you back $0.25.

This being a credit union, you can expect to earn dividends, which all account holders are eligible for. Once approved, you also get a business debit card, free starter checks, as well as online and mobile banking.

9. Bank of America: Business Advantage Fundamentals™ Banking

Bank of America offers several different business checking accounts, starting with Bank of America Business Advantage Fundamentals™ Banking.

It’s worth pointing out that this account has a monthly fee of $16, but this can very easily be avoided. In fact, you can avoid paying the fee in 3 different ways. This makes it easier to get a free Bank of America business checking account.

Meet any of the following requirements to bag the account for free:

1. Make at least $250 in new net qualified purchases on your Bank of America business debit card.
2. Keep a monthly combined balance of at least $5,000 on average across linked Bank of America accounts

The account includes several tools to help you better manage your finances. Cash Flow Monitor is one such app offering cash flow projections, key transaction monitoring, and many other features designed to simplify how you manage your business. You can also connect apps such as QuickBooks and ADP payroll to better track performances from a single dashboard.

10. Citizens Bank: Clearly Better Business Checking

Citizens Bank offers many different business checking accounts. The Citizens Bank Clearly Better business checking account is an entry-level account. This checking account designed for small businesses has no monthly maintenance fee and no minimum balance to maintain.

The account also includes some 200 free check transactions, with each transaction over and above costing $0.50. You get both online and mobile banking functionality, allowing you to deposit checks, transfer funds, and pay bills easily and securely from virtually anywhere.

The bank has branches at many locations, but it’s not available nationwide. You can refer to their website to see if Citizens Bank is available in your area and locate your nearest branch.

11. nbkc: Business Checking Account

nbkc Bank’s business checking account is completely free with no minimum balance, no overdraft or insufficient funds (NSF) fees, and no fees for incoming domestic wire transfers.

The bank does charge for outgoing wires with domestic and international transfers costing $5 and $45 in transaction fees.

The bank’s app, available for both Android and iOS devices, lets you carry out most banking tasks, including depositing checks, paying your vendors, transferring money, and originating wires.

You also get an nbkc debit card with free withdrawals from over 34,000 ATMs in the US and Puerto Rico. The bank offers up to $12 in refunds when using out of network ATMs.

The bank is insured by the FDIC, so your money is safe. Communication is encrypted using 256-bit encryption with multi-factor authentication in place to access your account.

12. Wells Fargo: Initiate Business Checking

The Wells Fargo Initiate Business Checking Account offers access to common business banking requirements for a $10 service fee payable every month.

You can access the account for free by either keeping a daily balance of at least $500 or maintaining an average ledger balance of $1,000.

The first $5,000 in cash deposits are free, as are the first 100 total transactions. Fees apply once these limits have been reached.

Online and mobile banking are included with the account allowing you to pay bills and deposit checks, among other things. The bank’s ATM network includes some 13,000 locations.

The account also includes Zero Liability protection, fraud monitoring, and account alerts to keep you safe and secure.

What Is A Free Checking Account?

Generally speaking, free checking accounts are deposit accounts with no mandatory fees. This means that as long as you stay within the account’s limits, you can get by without paying any fees. This is important to understand as it can negatively impact your finances.

Free accounts are not accounts with no fees whatsoever. In most cases, accounts that do not have a monthly maintenance fee and are considered free might still have fees for other things such as NSF (insufficient funds) and making more transactions than are included in the account for free.

Either way, the bank’s schedule of fees will make it clear what fees are applicable and how much they cost.

Familiarizing yourself with these fees and learning to minimize checking account fees can help you make sure you pay as few fees as possible or none at all.

What You Need To Apply For a Business Checking Account

Banks will ask for some documents when it comes to opening a business checking account.

The information they ask for will depend on several things, including the type of account and the type of business you have.

Below is a list of some of the documents you might be requested to present during the sign-up process:

• Personal ID
• Personal details
• SSN (Social Security Number)
• EIN (Employer Identification Number)
• Articles of Incorporation
• Business licenses
• Corporate Charter
• Corporate Resolution
• DBA – Doing Business As
• Partnership Agreement
• 501(c) – Nonprofit organization

Making sure that you have the required documentation handy can help you open the account faster.

Once you’ve decided which bank you want to open your account with, head over to their website to see what documents they ask for during the sign-up process.

This will help you ensure a smoother process and help you open the account that much faster.

Frequently Asked Questions

What banks have free business checking accounts?

Many banks are offering free business checking accounts for a variety of businesses. Some banks offer completely free checking accounts, while others require certain conditions to be met for the account to be free.

These conditions change from one bank to the next and from one account to the next but will typically require you to keep an average balance and/or make a number of transactions per month or billing cycle.

What is the best bank for free small business checking?

There is no one best bank for small business checking accounts that’s the best for everyone. This is because different banks offer different things and different small businesses tend to have different requirements.

We have reviewed the best business checking accounts on offer today, including what they’re offering to help you choose the best bank for you.

Are business accounts free?

Not all business accounts are free. Some business accounts, including business checking accounts and business savings accounts, are completely free. Others are free but need some requirements to be met.

Requirements change from one bank to the next. In most cases, the same bank will have different accounts with different requirements. The lower the requirements, the fewer perks you get, but it is easier to get free.

Finding the Best Free Business Checking Account for You

Choosing the right bank account for your business is very important, especially if your business is a small business or still in its early stages.

This is because small businesses require more careful planning since they do not have the financial cushion that bigger businesses do.

Before you open a business checking account, make sure you look at your financial history, paying special attention to the number of monthly transactions, business debit card or credit card usage, and the average account balance you tend to have on a daily and monthly basis. This can help you choose the best account for you.

It might also be worth your while to try and understand what financial products and services you might need in the future.

If you think you’ll need business loans, for example, try to choose the financial institution that can continue supporting you into the future.

If you already have an existing relationship with a bank, even if you hold a personal checking account, it might be worth your time asking that bank if they have any special offers for businesses as this can help you secure a great deal.