Are you a freelancer in the gig economy or one of the currently 44 million self-employed individuals in the United States? It's best for you to manage your money by using a dedicated business account designed for freelancers and business owners rather than by using your personal checking account.
Of course, it's not a necessity for you to open a separate bank account for your freelancing business, but it will help you a lot in running and managing your business later.
The good thing about opening an account with banks for freelancers is that these banking services will provide you with the business-specific features you might not get from your traditional bank accounts. Also, by opening a dedicated bank account for your freelancing business, you can separate your personal expenses from your business-related expenses, which can save you a lot of time when you need to do some accounting or tax filing for it.
Best Business Bank Accounts for Freelancers and Self-Employed Workers
There are many business bank accounts designed for freelancers and self-employed workers you can use today.
Most of them offer features that can help freelancers and business owners to manage and run their businesses. Here are recommended bank accounts for freelancers and self-employed workers:
Best Banks for Freelancers
Compare the top 3 business accounts and pick the one that fits your freelance workflow.
1. Novo
Novo provides a simple and powerful business banking solution with no hidden fees, easy transfers, and online banking system. You can sign up for a free business checking account and get access to various small business tools from your account. It also provides the virtual card that you can use for instant and secure spending from your Novo account.
Features:
- Novo provides a simple banking account for business owners, freelancers, and entrepreneurs, which you can use in the US and abroad.
- It also provides a list of apps you can access to make it easier for you to manage your business with your Novo account, such as Etsy, Quickbooks, Xero, Amazon, WooCommerce, and more.
- You can get the physical debit card from Novo with an EMV chip, along with the virtual card for digital transactions.
$0
$0
App Integrations
2. Axos Basic Business Banking
Axos Basic Business Banking is a business checking account from Axos that is designed for business owners with modest checking needs. You don't need to pay any maintenance fee per month for your account, and there is no minimum balance you need to maintain. With this business checking account, you can send your first 50 checks for free.
Features:
- Axos Basic Business Banking provides the online banking services with various business tools you can use, which are also accessible via your mobile device.
- You can also create low-fee accounts for your employees via Axos Basic Business Banking, which can make it easier for you to send payroll to them.
- It can accept ACH payments, and it is compatible with QuickBooks.
$0
$0
Check Writing
3. Lili
Lili Banking provides freelancers with the banking services they need, allowing freelancers and business owners to manage various aspects of their business finances in their account. With Lili, you will get a Visa debit card you can use in any ATM and merchants worldwide, with cashback rewards in participating merchants. Lili provides security and peace of mind for each transaction you make in your account.
Features:
- Lili provides various business tools any freelancers and business owners can use, including expense management, tax bucket, invoices, and Visa business debit card.
- It provides various features that ensure your banking security and peace of mind, including transaction notifications, the option to freeze and unfreeze your card, and FDIC-insured account.
- Lili also provides automatic savings with 1% APY and fee-free overdraft for up to $200.
$0
1.0%
$200 Fee-Free
Best Banks for Freelancers Summary
These are the banks for freelancers that you can use to help you run your freelancing business better. You can send invoices, deposit checks, send the payroll to your employees, and fill your tax information with these banks. You can also get other benefits, such as mobile banking, debit cards, rewards, and many others.
Best Bank Accounts for Entrepreneurs FAQs
It's not a necessity, but it will depend on your needs. You can open a separate freelancing account if you want to separate between your business expenses and personal expenses.
You can set up a business checking account in an instant if you have met the requirements for setting the account. To set up a business account at a bank branch, you might need to wait for a few days before you can use your account.
You can use most banks listed in this guide, as many of them offer free transactions and no fees per month.
It will depend on the bank, but the interest will be offered to you as APY (Annual Percentage Yield), and you can earn the interest from the account balance you have.
Most banks for freelancers listed in this guide can help you operate your business. They offer various business-related tools to make it easier for you to run your freelancing business.
It's best to avoid banks for freelancers that require you to reach a minimum balance just to waive the service fees per month. It's also good for you to avoid banks for freelancers that require you to pay for service fees per month and go with the one that doesn't charge any service fees per month.
