American Express Business Checking
No monthly fee + 1.30% APY on first $500k + Membership Rewards, online-only, no cash deposits
Lili Business Account
Startup/SMB digital checking with $0 Core fee, team access, Green Dot cash, savings APY, and IntraFi sweep to $3M
Costs & Fees
| Metric | American Express Business Checking | Lili Business Account |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | $0 — unconditional | Core $0. Pro $15/mo or $144/yr. Smart $35/mo or $336/yr. Premium $55/mo or $528/yr. Subscription fees, not balance-waivable. |
| Fee waiver | N/A — no monthly fee to waive | No balance waiver on paid plans. Occasional new-applicant discounts not in fee table. |
| Transaction fees | No excess-item fees; effectively unlimited electronic and paper items (operational limits may apply unpublished) | Unlimited electronic items on published schedule. Priced extras: Express ACH, outgoing wires, Mail-a-Check, OON/international ATMs, plan subscription. |
| Overdraft/NSF | $0 NSF/stop pay/returns; overdrafting not a product — items exceeding balance generally refused | Overdraft fee $0. Returned item (EFT) $0. Deposited-check returned $0. BalanceUp (Pro+ only) is discretionary courtesy pay $0–$200, not guaranteed coverage. |
| ATM fees | Allpoint + MoneyPass in-network $0 Amex fee; out-of-network owner surcharge (no rebate). Daily ATM cash limit $1,000. | MoneyPass in-network $0 Lili fee. OON domestic $2.50 + surcharge. International ATM $5 + surcharge. Intl balance inquiry $2.50. No rebate. |
| Wire/ACH | Incoming domestic wire $0. Outgoing domestic wire $25. Standard ACH $0. Same-day ACH $10 (cutoff 2:45 PM ET). Outgoing international wires not offered. | Incoming domestic wire $0. Outgoing domestic $15. Incoming intl $15 + correspondent FX. Outgoing intl $25 + 1% commission on USD principal + correspondent markup. Standard ACH $0. Express ACH 1.5%, min $0.50, max $20. |
Interest & Yields
| Metric | American Express Business Checking | Lili Business Account |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | 1.30% APY on first $500,000 per account (variable; no activity gate) | None — non-interest-bearing on all tiers |
| Savings APY | N/A — single checking product | 2.25% APY on portion up to $500,000; 4.00% on portion $500,000.01–$1,000,000; 0.00% above $1,000,000. Blended by tranche. All plans including Core. |
| FDIC coverage | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor, per ownership category at AENB (accounts aggregate) | Standard FDIC $250,000 at Sunrise Banks, N.A. per depositor per ownership category |
Features & Access
| Metric | American Express Business Checking | Lili Business Account |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | No branches. 70,000+ Allpoint + MoneyPass ATMs for withdrawals only (no cash deposits). | No branches. MoneyPass 38,000–40,000+ ATMs for cash withdrawal only. No ATM cash deposit. |
| Mobile app | Business Blueprint ~4.5/5 Google Play (~1.6k reviews); Amex app ~4.8–4.9 iOS cited | CreditDonkey Jul 2026: ~4.6 iOS / ~4.1 Android — re-check live stores |
| Virtual cards | Not marketed for business debit product | Digital debit yes; dedicated virtual-card/spend-control suite not disclosed |
| Opening deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Eligibility | Corporation, LLC, partnership, unincorporated association, sole prop. 25%+ owners must be U.S./territory residents with SSN/ITIN. | Sole prop (incl. DBA), LLC, GP, LLP, S-Corp, C-Corp, 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Not B-Corps, non-501(c)(3) tax-exempts, trusts. International: no sole props. |
Pros & Cons
American Express Business Checking
Pros
- $0 monthly fee, $0 opening deposit, $0 excess-item fee unconditionally
- 1.30% APY on first $500,000 per account with no balance or activity gate
- Membership Rewards on debit spend plus Redeem-for-Deposits into checking
- 24/7 specialist support — differentiator vs most online business banks
- 70,000+ Allpoint/MoneyPass ATM withdrawals at $0 Amex fee; up to 10 accounts at $0 extra
Cons
- Cash deposits not supported at all — need another bank for cash businesses
- No outgoing international wires; USD Fedwire domestic/territories only
- APY stops at $500k/account; FDIC remains $250k with no ICS/sweep
- Thin card/user toolkit vs Relay/Bluevine-style employee and virtual cards
- Beneficial owners must be U.S./territory residents with SSN/ITIN — blocks international founders
Lili Business Account
Pros
- Core $0 with no min balance and $0 NSF/OD fee (Appendix A, Jul 2, 2025)
- Savings APY 2.25%/4.00% by tranche through $1M on all plans (rate sheet Jan 13, 2026)
- IntraFi sweep advertised to $3M via Sunrise + program banks
- Team/accountant roles and up to five businesses per login without per-seat fees
- Incoming domestic wires $0; debit card foreign-transaction fee $0; intl founder path (passport + EIN)
Cons
- Checking earns 0%; 4.00% applies only to $500k–$1M savings slice
- Cash deposits via Green Dot (retailer fee up to $4.95) capped at $5,000/month per cardholder
- Outgoing wires $15 domestic / $25 + 1% international; Express ACH 1.5%
- Invoicing and bill management require Smart ($35) or Premium ($55)
- No branches, no ATM cash deposit, no published RTP/FedNow or treasury API
Verdict
American Express Business Checking
American Express Business Checking is a single-tier online account issued directly by American Express National Bank — not a fintech wrapper. As of September 2026: $0 monthly fee, 1.30% APY on the first $500,000 per account (up to 10 accounts), standard FDIC $250k with no sweep. Strengths are unconditional $0 fees, decent APY without activity gates, MR on debit spend, QuickBooks, Zelle, and 24/7 support. Weaknesses are no cash deposits, no outgoing international wires, APY/FDIC gap above $250k, and limited multi-user debit tooling. Best for digital firms already in the Amex ecosystem; pair with a branch bank if the business handles cash.
Lili Business Account
Lili Business Checking is a four-tier digital SMB package from Lili App Inc. with deposits at Sunrise Banks, N.A., wires via Column, cash via Green Dot, and IntraFi sweep to $3M. Core $0; Pro $15, Smart $35, Premium $55 sell software not cheaper banking. Checking 0% APY; linked savings pays 2.25% to $500k and 4.00% $500k–$1M (Jan 13, 2026). ACH and MoneyPass ATM free; outgoing wires $15/$25+1%; Express ACH 1.5%. Team roles on all plans. Strong for digital SMBs and intl founders with U.S. entity; weak for cash-heavy ops and multi-currency treasury.