Head-to-Head
American Express Business Checking
No monthly fee + 1.30% APY on first $500k + Membership Rewards, online-only, no cash deposits
VS
Old National Bank Business Checking
Branch + cash deposits; low/no monthly fee with 500-item cap; Midwest/Southeast relationship bank (not high-APY checking)
Monthly Fee
$0 — unconditional
Access: $0 on current product page ($3/mo paper statements; eStatements free). Pro: $25/mo OR $0 with $20,000 avg ledger OR $50,000 combined checking+savings+MMA avg ledger.
Checking APY
1.30% APY on first $500,000 per account (variable; no activity gate)
0.00% — noninterest-bearing on Access and Pro
Rating
8.2/10
7.6/10
Costs & Fees
| Metric | American Express Business Checking | Old National Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | $0 — unconditional | Access: $0 on current product page ($3/mo paper statements; eStatements free). Pro: $25/mo OR $0 with $20,000 avg ledger OR $50,000 combined checking+savings+MMA avg ledger. |
| Fee waiver | N/A — no monthly fee to waive | Access: unconditional $0 maintenance (use eStatements to avoid $3 paper fee). Pro: $20k ledger or $50k combined deposit averages. |
| Transaction fees | No excess-item fees; effectively unlimited electronic and paper items (operational limits may apply unpublished) | 500 items/month free then $0.50 each. Items = checks paid, withdrawals, deposits, deposited items, ACH/POS debits and credits. |
| Overdraft/NSF | $0 NSF/stop pay/returns; overdrafting not a product — items exceeding balance generally refused | Paid NSF/Overdraft Item $36 if overdrawn >$25; max 2 paid items/day. Daily Overdraft $7 from day 7 if overdrawn >$25 for 7+ consecutive business days, up to 5 days. Overdraft Courtesy discretionary. |
| ATM fees | Allpoint + MoneyPass in-network $0 Amex fee; out-of-network owner surcharge (no rebate). Daily ATM cash limit $1,000. | ONB + Allpoint (~55,000+) $0 ONB fee. Non-ONB/non-Allpoint: $3 Foreign ATM Fee + operator surcharge. No rebate disclosed. |
| 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 $16; outgoing domestic $30; incoming intl $16; outgoing intl $50. Pro/Payments Plus: 1 free domestic outgoing wire/month; discounted fees thereafter not disclosed. |
Interest & Yields
| Metric | American Express Business Checking | Old National Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | 1.30% APY on first $500,000 per account (variable; no activity gate) | 0.00% — noninterest-bearing on Access and Pro |
| Savings APY | N/A — single checking product | Business Savings and Business Market Monitor: tiered interest; APY not disclosed on public pages |
| FDIC coverage | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor, per ownership category at AENB (accounts aggregate) | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at Old National Bank |
Features & Access
| Metric | American Express Business Checking | Old National Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | No branches. 70,000+ Allpoint + MoneyPass ATMs for withdrawals only (no cash deposits). | ~346–361 banking centers in IL, IN, IA, KY, MI, MN, NC, ND, TN, WI. ONB ATMs + Allpoint ~55,000+ surcharge-free. Cash deposit at deposit-taking ONB ATMs. |
| Mobile app | Business Blueprint ~4.5/5 Google Play (~1.6k reviews); Amex app ~4.8–4.9 iOS cited | Old National Mobile app — Google Play ~4.5 (13.8K reviews). iOS U.S. volume uncertain from public scrapes. |
| Virtual cards | Not marketed for business debit product | Not disclosed |
| Opening deposit | $0 | $100 |
| Eligibility | Corporation, LLC, partnership, unincorporated association, sole prop. 25%+ owners must be U.S./territory residents with SSN/ITIN. | Sole prop, association, org, partnership, LLC, corporation, business fiduciary/escrow per agreement. EIN emphasized in checklist. |
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
Old National Bank Business Checking
Pros
- Access $0 maintenance with 500-item bucket and no minimum balance (ONB product page)
- $25,000 monthly cash/currency free then $0.15 per $100 — explicit branch-bank pricing
- Allpoint 55k+ surcharge-free ATMs plus ~346+ owned branches in 10 states
- Pro bundles Autobooks Basic, 1 free domestic wire/month, ACH allowance, and fraud tools
- Path to ONPointe Treasury, Analysis Checking, Elavon merchant, and local lending; $400/$800 bonus through Oct 30, 2026
Cons
- 0.00% APY on checking
- In-person opening only — not nationwide online account
- 500-item definition is broad (ACH, POS, deposits count) at $0.50 over — easy to exceed
- Full current business fee schedule PDF not publicly posted
- Out-of-network ATM $3 + 3% foreign debit fee; standard FDIC $250k only
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.
Old National Bank Business Checking
Old National Access Business Banking is branch-opened FDIC checking: Access $0 maintenance, 500 items then $0.50, $25k cash free then $0.15/$100. Pro adds $25 fee (waivable at $20k/$50k), bundled Autobooks/Payments Plus, 1 free wire/month, 25 ACH/month. 0% APY. Wires $16 in / $30 out / $50 intl. Full business fee PDF not posted. Fits in-footprint cash SMBs; poor for remote founders and high-volume treasury.