When a business owner is finally getting really serious about their business, they finally decide that it's time to have a real business bank account, aside from PayPal and their personal bank account.
So the question I usually get is what is the best bank to get a business bank account with?
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Shop Around
No matter what account you end up going with, you want to spend some time shopping around.
When you shop around for a business bank account, you'll be able to find an account that little to no fees. You'll be able to find the account that fits you and your business.
Maybe the bank you already have your personal bank account with is best for you.
Maybe a bank that is purely online and doesn't have any physical branches is best for you.
Maybe the bank across the road from your personal bank is the best for you.
There are also banks that do not offer business bank accounts. You do not want to just have a personal bank account designated as your business account. You need a bank designated business account.
You'll never know which one is the best for you, unless you spend some time shopping around.
And you can do almost all of your research online to find what the fees and charges are for a business bank account.
Check out the Fee Structure
You're going to want to check out the fee structure and what it costs to have your bank account.
There are tons of banks out there that have free accounts and don't charge you for having an account.
There are banks that may charge you for making transfers from places like PayPal or Stripe. Or you can only make so many transactions in a month.
There are banks that make you keep a minimum amount of money in your account at all times. Can you keep that much money in your account at all times?
Make sure you look into the fee structure that the banks you are looking to use charge for the type(s) of account(s) you want for your business.
Think About Both Savings and Checking Accounts
Can you get both a savings and checking account from the same bank? Are there fees for having both? Do you have to keep a certain amount of money in both accounts?
Is there overdraft protection for linking the two accounts?
It is important to have both types of accounts so that you can put money in savings for your business. You'll want to put aside the amount of tax savings to pay your quarterly taxes on a regular basis. Plus, you'll also want to put aside the amount of money that will allow you to have a business emergency fund in place.
Accepting Payments and Making Payments to Other Countries
As an online business owner, you tend to accept payments and make payments to and from people in other countries. It’s just the nature of your business.
Does the bank you are looking at charge you extra fees to bank with clients and service providers in other countries?
What about accepting payments that aren’t in the same currency you use? What kind of fees are there?
Sometimes these fees are small and minimal and not as noticeable. But other times these fees can be quite astronomical. Ask the questions and learn this ahead of time instead of waiting until you start dealing with providers in other countries and then you see the fees hit your account.
Linking to PayPal and Stripe and other Merchant Providers
It is normally pretty easy to link to PayPal and Stripe and many other merchant service providers. But this is still something you are going to want to look into.
Is it difficult to get the bank details that you need to make these links possible?
Can your bank account be your merchant provider?
Maybe you really don’t want to use PayPal and Stripe and anyone else there. There are a lot of banks that do offer merchant provider services.
Look into seeing if your bank has this. You may be able to save some money on the fees because they could be lower by using your bank than PayPal or Stripe.
Can you easily make electronic payments to other banks from your account?
You want to make it as easy as possible to pay yourself (and anyone else you may need to pay for your business).
So you are going to want to have a way to link your personal bank account and then just a few quick clicks to make a payment to yourself.
Does your bank account link to your bookkeeping software?
You may not think this is all that important. But if your bank account links to your bookkeeping software that makes your bookkeeping that much easier.
You can easily import the information into your bookkeeping program over hand entering each transaction. That is a big time saver by having the transactions imported.
There are banks that don’t link to some of the bookkeeping software, usually the smaller credit union type of banks, but this is still worth checking into.
What are some of the Best Business Bank Accounts for Online Businesses?
Using the tips above, you’ll be able to find a bank account that works best for you.
That account may be one that is right down the street from your house, or it could be an online bank account.
The most important thing is that you find an account that works best for you and your business.
Here are a few of the accounts I’ve found while doing my research for my own personal bank account:
Azlo
They have a free business checking account. They do not have savings accounts, only checking. You can send invoices and electronic payments directly from your account. And the invoices you can send can be paid directly on the invoice. You can easily pay yourself to your personal bank account through Azlo, as well as link to Quickbooks, Stripe and Square.
Chase
In my experience, Chase does not have a free business banking account unless you meet certain banking thresholds, but they have a free personal account. You can also create multiple bank accounts for both business and personal and link them all together. Chase easily links to the bookkeeping software as well.
Capital One
Capital One is very similar to Chase. You may have fees unless you can meet certain thresholds, but you can easily link between multiple accounts and have multiple accounts of your own through Capital One. It also easily links to the bookkeeping software.
Tips for Your Business Bank Account
You want to make sure that you spend some time shopping around for the best business account that fits you and your business. Not all accounts are the same.
Can you find a bank and an account that charges you less in fees and still fits your business?
Make sure that the account that you do pick fits with you and your business.
