PNC Business Checking
Branch + cash deposits + analyzed treasury for higher-volume businesses; monthly fee waivable but not unconditionally free; no APY on standard checking
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 | PNC Business Checking | Live Oak Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly maintenance | BC $12; Plus $22; Analysis $25; TEP $50. First 3 statement cycles $0 on BC/Plus/TEP. | 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$25,000; Analysis $100/mo (offset by earnings credit — rate unpublished) |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 | BC: $500 avg monthly collected balance OR $500 linked PNC business-card purchases OR $500 linked Merchant deposits. Plus: $5,000 collected OR $5,000 card OR $5,000 merchant OR $20,000 combined business checking+MMA. TEP: $30,000 combined collected across master + beneficiaries. Analysis: offset by earnings credit. | Essential: cycle ADB ≥ $1,000. Plus: cycle ADB ≥ $25,000. Analysis: earnings credit offsets fees. |
| Transaction fees | Combined items = deposits + deposited items + paid items + ACH credits/debits received. BC: 150 free then $0.50 each. Plus: 500 free then $0.50. TEP: unlimited per 2026 marketing (confirm PDF). Cash priced separately on volume. | Unlimited — no charge for checks paid/deposits, ACH, debit card on Essential/Plus (fee schedule 7.21.25) |
| Overdraft/NSF | $36 per item; max 4/day. Auto-refund if overdrawn ≤$5 after all items post. | Overdraft $25; NSF no charge; returned item $5. No daily cap published. |
| ATM fees | PNC ATM $0. OON: $3 US/CA/PR/USVI; $5 other countries. Plus: first 2 non-PNC ATM transactions reimbursed/statement. TEP/Analysis: $0 PNC fee at non-PNC ATMs (surcharge may remain). | 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 $15 (Plus/TEP: 1 free received domestic wire/month). Outgoing domestic $95. Incoming intl $21. Outgoing intl $135 same-currency / $110 cross-currency. ACH received counts toward item bucket; no separate ACH received fee. | 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 | PNC Business Checking | Live Oak Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Checking APY | None on BC, Plus, TEP DDA. Non-interest checking. | None — non-interest-bearing on all three current tiers |
| Savings APY | ||
| FDIC coverage | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at PNC Bank, N.A. | Standard FDIC $250,000 per depositor per ownership category at Live Oak Banking Company |
Features & Access
| Metric | PNC Business Checking | Live Oak Bank Business Checking |
|---|---|---|
| Branch/ATM network | ~2,300–2,419 branches in 27 states + DC. ~58,000–60,000 PNC + partner ATMs. Night depository at many branches. HQ lobby Fishers-style hours vary by location. | No retail branch network. Allpoint 55,000+ for cash withdrawal only — no ATM cash deposit. OON Live Oak fee $0. |
| Mobile app | iOS ~4.8–4.9 (~1.9–2.0M ratings); Google Play ~4.6 (~306k). NerdWallet weighted 4.72 (May 21, 2026). J.D. Power 2025 mobile #2 at 675/1000. | iOS ~2.6/5 (~109 ratings); Android ~3.0–3.1/5 (~100–107 reviews) — Forbes Advisor Aug 2026 called mediocre |
| Virtual cards | Easy Lock + standard Visa controls. Full virtual-card program not offered as checking feature. | Not disclosed beyond debit Card Center |
| Opening deposit | $100 | $100 |
| Eligibility | Sole prop, partnership, LLC/LLP, corporation, unincorporated association, nonprofit. Holding companies/funds/SPVs not listed — expect enhanced KYC. | Sole prop, partnership, LLC, corporation, nonprofit. LP, professional corp, association on savings/CD pages. |
Pros & Cons
PNC Business Checking
Pros
- Official all-market fee PDF current (effective 5/31/2026) — rare clarity
- BC monthly fee waives at only $500 average collected — low national-bank bar
- Real cash rails (branch, night drop, Quick Deposit) with free caps to $50,000 on TEP
- TEP packages 4 extra checking accounts, aggregated limits, and $0 QuickBooks Direct Connect
- $400 / $1,000 bonuses through 9/30/2026; business phone line and ~58k ATM network
Cons
- No APY on core checking; Interest Checking rate unpublished and historically ~0.01%
- Outgoing wires $95 domestic / $110–$135 intl at list — among highest in SMB sets
- $36 OD max 4/day; only ≤$5 overdraw refunded
- Combined-item definition broader than checks written — 150 can burn fast on BC
- QuickBooks Direct Connect $15/month unless TEP; FDIC stays $250k
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
PNC Business Checking
PNC's SMB checking is a conventional regional-national bank stack from PNC Bank, N.A. (direct FDIC member). Four tiers: BC ($12, 150 items, $5k cash), Plus ($22, 500 items, $10k cash), Analysis ($25 analyzed + ECR), TEP ($50, unlimited items, $50k cash, 4 beneficiary accounts, ECR >$125k). Fee schedule effective 5/31/2026: outgoing domestic wires $95, OD $36, incoming wires $15. No APY on core DDAs. First 3 months fee-free; waivers by collected balance or card/merchant activity. ~2,400 branches in 27 states + DC. $400/$1,000 bonus through 9/30/2026. Strong app; weak site-level CSAT. Poor filter match for wire-heavy, APY-seeking, or out-of-footprint digital-only firms.
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.