Bluevine Business Checking
Online SMB checking with tiered APY, waivable paid plans, and $3M sweep FDIC — weak on cash, strong on ACH/invoicing
Axos Bank Business Checking
Basic = $0 monthly + unlimited items + unlimited domestic ATM rebates. Interest = waivable $10 + declining-tier APY.
Costs & Fees
| Metric | Bluevine Business Checking | Axos Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | Standard $0; Plus $30; Premier $95 | Basic: $0 unconditional. Interest: $10/mo waived if average daily balance ≥ $5,000 |
| Fee waiver | Plus waived if avg daily balance ≥ $20,000 AND ≥ $2,000 card spend (excl. ATM). Premier waived if avg daily balance ≥ $100,000 AND ≥ $5,000 card spend. Balance across main + sub-accounts. | Interest Checking only — $5,000 ADB waives $10 monthly fee. Basic has no monthly fee. |
| Transaction fees | No per-item excess fees; unlimited transaction count subject to dollar caps (see limits) | Basic: unlimited items (debits, credits, deposited items). Interest: 100 free items/month then $0.50 each. RDA deposits count as 2 items; 60 RDA items/month cap on both. |
| Overdraft/NSF | $0 overdraft; $0 NSF (returned deposited items: customer owes item amount) | NSF paid or returned item $25 (max $75/day); no fee if negative balance less than NSF fee. Returned deposited item $10. Linked-account OD transfer free. |
| ATM fees | MoneyPass in-network $0; out-of-network $2.50 + operator surcharge (no rebate). Daily cash-out cap $2,000. | Axos charge $0. Unlimited domestic third-party ATM surcharge reimbursements on both products. International ATM surcharges not reimbursed. |
| Wire/ACH | Incoming domestic wire $0 all plans. Outgoing domestic: $15/$12/$7.50. Incoming intl: $15/$12/$7.50. Outgoing intl USD: $25/$20/$12.50. Outgoing intl FX: $25+$1.5% / $20+$1.25% / $12.50+$1.0%. Standard ACH $0. Same-day ACH: $10/$8/$5. | Incoming domestic + international: $0. Outgoing domestic: $15. Basic reimburses 2 outgoing domestic wires/month. Outgoing international: $50. Online/automated transfers free. ACH origination is treasury add-on. |
Interest & Yields
| Metric | Bluevine Business Checking | Axos Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | Standard 1.3% (first $250k, monthly activity test); Plus 1.75% (to $250k); Premier 3.0% (no cap per interest terms) | Basic: none. Interest: tiered variable — 1.01% ($0–$49,999.99), 0.20% ($50k–$249,999.99), 0.10% ($250k–$4,999,999.99), contact RM at $5M+ |
| Savings APY | N/A — single checking product with tiered APY | Business Premium Savings advertised up to 3.60% APY as of 9/2/2026 — separate product, not checking APY |
| FDIC coverage | Standard $250,000 at Coastal Community Bank; sweep program up to $3,000,000 across Program Banks (pass-through, aggregation caveats apply) | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at Axos Bank (Cert 35546) |
Features & Access
| Metric | Bluevine Business Checking | Axos Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | No branches. 37,000+ MoneyPass surcharge-free ATMs for withdrawals. | No SMB retail branches. Any U.S. ATM with unlimited domestic surcharge rebates (~90,000+ network cited). Cash deposits at deposit-taking Allpoint+/MoneyPass ATMs only. |
| Mobile app | Google Play ~4.2/5 (~2.2k reviews, Apr 2026); iOS ~4.7 cited in secondary reviews | iOS ~4.7; Android ~4.6 (~10.1K reviews); NerdWallet weighted ~4.52 (Feb 2026) |
| Virtual cards | Included — physical + virtual debit cards with spend/ATM controls; up to 50 cards | Standard Visa debit only; virtual employee cards not disclosed |
| Opening deposit | $0 | Basic: none. Interest: $100 |
| Eligibility | U.S. owners: sole prop, LLC, corp, partnership, nonprofit corp. International owners: U.S. LLC or corp only (25 supported countries). | U.S. companies only — sole prop, GP, LLC, LP/LLP, C-corp, nonprofit corp, association/HOA. U.S. resident signer with SSN and physical business address required. |
Pros & Cons
Bluevine Business Checking
Pros
- Standard is $0 monthly with $0 overdraft/NSF and free standard ACH plus incoming domestic wires
- Premier 3.0% APY with no interest cap in March 2026 terms — rare for SMB checking
- Advertised sweep FDIC up to $3M at Program Banks (with aggregation caveats)
- Sub-accounts (5/10/50), up to 50 cards, and role-based AP with bill-pay approvals
- Built-in invoicing, Stripe Tap to Pay, and QuickBooks sync without separate banking subscription
Cons
- Plus/Premier waiver requires balance AND card spend — miss either and $30/$95 posts
- Cash deposits priced ($1+0.5% or $4.95) and capped at $7,500/30 days — poor for cash businesses
- Default $100,000/30-day combined outgoing wire+ACH ceiling unless raised
- No branches; support weekday 8am–8pm ET only
- Standard APY drops to 0% any month the activity test is missed; recurring freeze/hold complaints
Axos Bank Business Checking
Pros
- Basic: $0 monthly, $0 open, unlimited item processing (Agreement 07/2025)
- Unlimited domestic ATM surcharge rebates on both products
- Incoming domestic and international wires $0 on fee schedule
- Basic reimburses two outgoing domestic wire fees per month
- Interest Checking publishes dated deposit APY (1.01% as of 9/2/2026) with no spend gate; IntraFi ICS to $265MM
Cons
- No branches; cash is ATM/retail-constrained with possible retailer fees
- Interest Checking: $0.50/item after 100 plus 60-item RDA cap; APY falls sharply above $50k
- RDA availability can be five business days by contract
- Business support weekday-only; reviews cluster on holds, portal bugs, slow ops
- Outbound international wires $50 + undisclosed FX; no multi-currency; weak native multi-user
Verdict
Bluevine Business Checking
Bluevine Business Checking is an online interest-bearing SMB account from fintech Bluevine Inc., with deposits at Coastal Community Bank and optional sweep to Program Banks for up to $3M FDIC coverage. Three plans: Standard ($0, 1.3% APY with monthly activity test), Plus ($30 waivable, 1.75% to $250k), and Premier ($95 waivable, 3.0% uncapped APY). Strengths are yield, free Standard ACH/incoming wires, sub-accounts, 50 cards, invoicing, and QBO sync. Weaknesses are priced/capped cash deposits, $100k/30-day outgoing cap, weekday-only support, and documented freeze/hold patterns. Best compared to Chase for digital-first businesses that prioritize APY over branches.
Axos Bank Business Checking
Axos Bank offers two online SMB checking accounts at a direct FDIC member bank (Cert 35546). Basic Business Checking is structurally cheap: $0 monthly, $0 open, unlimited items, free incoming wires, and two reimbursed outgoing domestic wires — ideal for digital SMBs. Business Interest Checking adds tiered APY (1.01% below $50k as of 9/2/2026) but charges $10 unless $5k ADB and meters items after 100. Both cap mobile deposits at 60 items with up to 5th-business-day availability. IntraFi ICS to $265MM helps large balances but checking APY collapses above $50k. Weak on branches, cash, multi-user, and 24/7 support. Price Interest against the $50k APY cliff and item cap.