Novo Business Checking
No monthly fee + invoicing/integrations; online-only; no cash deposits; 0% APY
Live Oak Bank Business Checking
Online U.S. bank checking with waivable monthly fees, unlimited items, Allpoint ATM cash-out, no cash deposits, no checking APY
Costs & Fees
| Metric | Novo Business Checking | Live Oak Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | $0 unconditional | Essential $10/cycle if ADB <$1,000; Plus $25/cycle if ADB <$25,000; Analysis $100/mo (offset by earnings credit — rate unpublished) |
| Fee waiver | N/A — already $0 | Essential: cycle ADB ≥ $1,000. Plus: cycle ADB ≥ $25,000. Analysis: earnings credit offsets fees. |
| Transaction fees | No excess-item fees on schedule. Operational limits on ACH, RDC, mailed checks, ATM, POS (raisable in-app). | Unlimited — no charge for checks paid/deposits, ACH, debit card on Essential/Plus (fee schedule 7.21.25) |
| Overdraft/NSF | $0 Insufficient Funds; $0 Uncollected Funds Returned. No overdraft protection product. | Overdraft $25; NSF no charge; returned item $5. No daily cap published. |
| ATM fees | Novo ATM fee $0. Third-party operator surcharge rebate max $7/customer/month. No branded free network disclosed. | Allpoint 55,000+: $0 from Live Oak. OON: Live Oak $0 + owner surcharge. Foreign ATM 3% of amount. No rebate program. |
| Wire/ACH | Incoming domestic: $0. Outgoing domestic: up to $45 (online only, eligibility-gated). Incoming intl: $0 Novo-side. Outgoing intl: via Wise (Wise fees apply). Standard ACH in/out: $0. | Incoming wire $10. Outgoing domestic $19. Outgoing international $40. ACH no charge on fee schedule. ACH collections/payments/EFTPS are Plus/Analysis features only. |
Interest & Yields
| Metric | Novo Business Checking | Live Oak Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | 0% — non-interest-bearing (fee schedule Annual Percentage Yield 0%) | None — non-interest-bearing on all three current tiers |
| Savings APY | N/A — Reserves earn 0%; same deposit account | |
| FDIC coverage | FDIC pass-through at Middlesex Federal Savings, F.A. — $250,000 per depositor per ownership category | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at Live Oak Banking Company |
Features & Access
| Metric | Novo Business Checking | Live Oak Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | No branches. Any ATM for withdrawal only — $7/month rebate cap. No ATM cash deposit. | No retail branch network. Allpoint 55,000+ for cash withdrawal only — no ATM cash deposit. OON Live Oak fee $0. |
| Mobile app | iOS ~4.8; Android ~4.5–4.6 (secondary 2026 aggregators) | iOS ~2.6/5 (~109 ratings); Android ~3.0–3.1/5 (~100–107 reviews) — Forbes Advisor Aug 2026 called mediocre |
| Virtual cards | Virtual debit included. Fine-grained merchant locks not documented. | Not disclosed beyond debit Card Center |
| Opening deposit | $0 ($1,000 recommended) | $100 |
| Eligibility | U.S. sole prop (incl. DBA), LLC, corp, partnership, 501(c)(3). Trusts not offered. One checking login per EIN. | Sole prop, partnership, LLC, corporation, nonprofit. LP, professional corp, association on savings/CD pages. |
Pros & Cons
Novo Business Checking
Pros
- $0 monthly, $0 minimum, $0 NSF/stop-pay/statement/card replace (Feb 2026 schedule)
- Free standard ACH both ways; $0 inbound domestic and foreign wires
- Invoices + up to 20 Reserves in one account
- Stripe/Shopify/Square/QuickBooks/Xero connectors (40+ integrations)
- Virtual + physical debit; $7/month ATM rebate; fast U.S. online open including nonprofits
Cons
- No cash deposits at all
- 0% APY; Reserves earn nothing
- Advertised FDIC $250,000 only — no marketed multi-million sweep
- Outbound wires up to $45 and eligibility-gated; FX via Wise only
- Weekday support; added users get full owner access; freeze/hold complaints recur
Live Oak Bank Business Checking
Pros
- Unlimited transactions and $0 item/ACH/debit fees on Essential/Plus (fee schedule 7.21.25)
- Monthly fee waivable at modest ADB — $1,000 Essential, $25,000 Plus
- Deposits at Live Oak Banking Company (true bank) with optional IntraFi ICS
- Allpoint 55,000+ cash-out with no Live Oak surcharge
- QuickBooks, bill pay, mobile deposit, multi-approver controls; long weekday phone hours (8am–11pm ET)
Cons
- Checking earns no APY
- No cash deposits and no branches
- Essential lacks online wire origination and ACH collections/payments per official matrix
- Outgoing wires $19 domestic / $40 international; Analysis fee schedule not public
- Weak mobile app ratings (~2.6 iOS); ICS liquidity not instant ($350k enrollment minimum)
Verdict
Novo Business Checking
Novo Business Checking is a single-tier online account from fintech Novo Platform Inc. with deposits at Middlesex Federal Savings, F.A. (FDIC Cert. 28368). Feb 26, 2026 fee schedule: $0 monthly, $0 NSF, $0 standard ACH, $0 inbound wires, 0% APY. Costs appear on Express ACH (1.5%), Express Check Deposit (up to 2%), outbound wires (up to $45 when enabled), and ATM surcharges above $7/month rebate. Up to 20 Reserves inside same 0% account. Strong ecommerce integrations. No cash, no branches, $250k FDIC advertised. Fits indie digital businesses; weak for cash, treasury, international founders, and teams needing permission controls.
Live Oak Bank Business Checking
Live Oak Bank offers three online-only business checking tiers at Live Oak Banking Company (Member FDIC): Essential ($10, waived at $1k ADB), Plus ($25, waived at $25k ADB), Plus Analysis ($100, ECR offset unpublished). Fee schedule 7.21.25: unlimited items, $0 ACH/debit, $10 incoming wires, $19/$40 outgoing wires, $25 OD. Essential = QuickBooks, bill pay, mobile deposit. Plus adds wire origination, ACH collections/payments, EFTPS, RDC. No cash, no APY, no branches. Allpoint cash-out only. Optional IntraFi ICS ($350k min). Weak app ratings. $200 bonus expired Apr 2026.