Bluevine Business Checking Review 2023
This article is part of a larger series on Business Banking.
Bluevine’s checking account stands out in a competitive, crowded marketplace by charging no transaction or monthly fees and offering qualified accounts a high interest rate of 2% annual percentage yield (APY) on balances up to $250,000. Bluevine also has an easy application process and competitive technology, which extends to its line of credit product if you need additional business financing.
Bluevine is a business financial technology (fintech) platform backed by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC)-insured Coastal Community Bank.
What We Like
- No monthly fee
- No transaction fees
- High APY at 2% on balances up to $250,000 for qualified account holders
Drawbacks
- $4.95 fee for depositing cash at Green Dot locations
- No other business deposit accounts
- Only one debit card is issued per account
Features
- Free debit card, mailed within 10 business days of application approval
- Two free checkbook orders per year
- Integrates with QuickBooks Online, Wave, and Xero
- Connects with business payment solutions, including Square, Wise, Venmo, and Expensify
- Shared account access
- Live customer support from dedicated professionals
- Line of credit available
- International business payment service
How Bluevine Stacks Up With Its Competitors
APY | Cash Deposit Fee | ATM Fee | Minimum Opening Deposit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Business Checking | 2% on balances of $250,000 or less (conditions apply) | $4.95 per deposit; accepted at Green Dot locations | None at 38,000-plus MoneyPass ATMs nationwide | None |
 Do More BusinessTM Checking | 0.50% for accounts with a $10,000 average daily balance | No cash deposits accepted | None; refunds up to $10 per month in ATM fees | None |
 Business Checking | N/A | None; cash is deposited through money orders/cashier’s checks | Refunds all ATM fees | None |
*Providers are fintech platforms backed by and FDIC-insured through a supporting bank partnership (Coastal Community Bank for Bluevine and Middlesex Federal Savings for Novo). | ||||
To learn how Bluevine’s Business Checking account stacks up against other popular providers, read our comparison guides:
- Bluevine vs First Internet Bank Business Checking
- Bluevine vs Mercury Business Checking
- Bluevine vs Relay Business Checking
- Bluevine vs Axos Business Checking
When Bluevine Is a Good Fit
- Businesses that want an interest-earning account with no balance requirement: Bluevine has no maintaining balance and offers 2.0% APY on qualifying accounts with balances up to $250,000. Limited liability companies (LLCs) and single-owner startups are a great fit since the provider is one of our leading business checking accounts for LLCs and best bank accounts for self-employed professionals.
- Single-owner startups looking for a fee-free business checking account from an online-only provider: Bluevine has no monthly fees, minimum opening deposit requirement, and transaction fees. It’s one of our top-recommended banks for startups and our leading free business checking accounts.
- Businesses seeking fast approval for funding: Bluevine offers a quick and simple application process for its line of credit product, where businesses can easily get the funding they need within a day. This is among the reasons it’s included in our guide to the top small business lines of credit.
- Business owners who need subaccounts to separate finances: Bluevine offers up to five subaccounts, allowing you to track your budgets and expenses better.
- Business owners who want to maximize business software integrations: Bluevine connects with QuickBooks, Xero, Wave, Expensify, Wise, and Square, helping you streamline your business operations.
- Business owners looking to share account access with their team: You can add authorized users to your account to help you manage your bills and pay your business taxes.
When Bluevine Is Not a Good Fit
- You deposit cash frequently: While Bluevine allows cash deposits through Green Dot, deposits cost $4.95 per item and are limited to $2,000 daily. You may want to consider Chase for its numerous brick-and-mortar branches. To find out which account suits your business needs, see our review of Chase’s business checking.
- Your business has multiple signers who each need a debit card: Since Bluevine allows only one signer and one debit card per account, you may opt for Bank of America, where business debit cards can be issued to owners and other authorized signers. Our Bank of America Business Checking review can help you decide which account fits the bill.
- You’re looking to open business money market accounts or apply for Small Business Administration (SBA) loans: Bluevine provides only a business checking account and a line of credit for now. You can check out our review of First Internet Bank Business Checking for the bank’s wide array of products.
- You want to earn interest on business funds above $250,000: Bluevine offers a great 2.0% APY if you meet the conditions—but it’s confined to balances of $250,000 or less. You may consider Mercury, which offers a competitive rate through its Treasury product for funds exceeding $500,000. Read our Mercury Business Checking review for more information about the Treasury product.
If your small business meets one or more of these scenarios, check out our roundup of the best small business checking accounts for additional recommendations.
Bluevine Business Checking Overview
Bluevine Business Checking Requirements
Applying for Bluevine’s business checking account is relatively simple. You can visit the Bluevine website to open a business bank account.
You need to:
- Be at least 18 years old
- Be an owner of a verifiable business
- Be a United States citizen or resident with a verifiable US address
- Not be in the following industries: adult entertainment, gambling, weapons and firearms, illegal substances, and virtual currency
You’ll need to provide personal information, such as your name, address, Social Security number, mobile number, and date of birth. You’ll also be asked for business information, like your entity type, business name and address, work phone number, annual revenue, industry, and employer identification number (EIN) or tax identification number (TIN). Proof of identification is also required.
Here are the additional Bluevine business checking requirements according to business type:
- Sole proprietorship: Doing-business-as (DBA), assumed, fictitious, or trade name certificate
- General or limited partnership: Signed partnership agreement; owners with 20% or more share of the business will need to provide personal information and declare the percentage of business ownership
- Corporation/LLC/limited liability partnership (LLP):
- Articles of organization, certificate of organization, or certificate of formation (for LLC)
- Articles of incorporation, certificate of incorporation, or certificate of formation (for corporation)
- Owners with a 20% or more share of the business will need to provide personal information and declare the percentage of business ownership
Upon providing information about you and your business, your application will be submitted for approval by Bluevine. While Bluevine asks to allow up to three business days for review, most approvals are made in about 24 hours. Upon approval, Bluevine will ask you to sign an account agreement. Once that’s done, you’ll be able to fund and access the account.
Before opening an account, see our step-by-step guide on how to open a business bank account. It includes a free downloadable checklist of required documents.
Bluevine Business Checking Features
Bluevine’s Business Checking account offers a high interest rate, a debit card, integration with accounting software, the ability to create subaccounts, and more.
Savings on Fees
Bluevine helps small businesses save a lot with its lack of account fees. There are no fees on monthly account maintenance, incoming wire transfers, overdrafts, and standard ACH transfers.
Competitive Interest
Bluevine Business Checking provides a 2% APY on balances of up to $250,000. To qualify for this high return, you’ll need to fulfill one of two requirements:
- Make $500 or more monthly purchases using the Bluevine Business Debit Mastercard.
- Receive $2,500 monthly payments into a checking account or subaccounts via ACH, wire transfer, mobile check deposit, or your merchant payment processing provider. This threshold can be met with any combination of incoming payment types or sources.
Note that the transactions mentioned above must post to your account or subaccounts before the month’s end to be eligible for interest earnings—and the requirements must be met each month. Interest is paid out on the first of the following month if you meet any of the two conditions.
Debit Card
Bluevine provides each business checking account with one Mastercard business debit card, mailed to you within 10 days of account opening. Expedited shipping at one to two business days is available for a $30 fee.
No additional cards are provided nor are available. Your debit card can be used to make purchases wherever Mastercard is accepted, and it serves as your ATM card for the account.
It’s important to note that if you own a larger business and provide debit cards to multiple employees for purchases, Bluevine only issues one debit card per business—and only for your main Bluevine Business Checking account.
Bluevine doesn’t charge fees at any of the 38,000-plus MoneyPass ATMs nationwide. There’s an ATM surcharge of $2.50 for usage outside the MoneyPass network, plus any applicable ATM operator fees. The no-fee withdrawal limit is currently set at $2,000 daily. For cash deposits, you can head to any of over 90,000 Green Dot retail locations. The current deposit limit is $2,000 daily, and a $4.95 fee per item applies.
Bill Payment
Bluevine offers the ability to pay your bills online. If you’re in a cash crunch, Bluevine allows you to link your credit card to pay bills for an added fee of 2.9% per transaction. You can deliver payments via check, wire transfer, or free ACH. Check payments have a $1.50 fee, outgoing wires cost $15, and same-day ACH payments charge a $10 fee. In addition to one-time payments, Bluevine allows for recurring payments on a weekly, biweekly, or monthly basis at no cost.
Accounting Software Integrations
Bluevine’s Business Checking account integrates with leaders in the accounting software space—Xero, QuickBooks, and Wave. Bluevine includes a tutorial that lists which actions in QuickBooks sync with Bluevine.
Subaccounts
Businesses that need to maintain separate accounts to track expenses will like Bluevine’s ability to create subaccounts. Bluevine Business Checking allows up to five no-fee subaccounts. Each has its own account number and almost all of the same basic functionality as the primary checking account. You can also order separate checkbooks for any of your subaccounts. However, the subaccounts don’t allow you to deposit cash and lack a debit card.
But if you need a payroll account or a specific type of expense account that doesn’t require you to deposit cash or use a debit card, subaccounts will be a great feature to utilize. The combined balances of the subaccounts will be considered in calculating your monthly interest, which will be applied to your primary account.
Note that only the Business Checking account owner is permitted to open a subaccount. However, additional users can access the account once it’s opened and perform different transactions.
Mobile App
Bluevine Business Checking customers can use Bluevine’s mobile app, which allows them to make check deposits and execute transactions as needed while on the go. Note that check deposits can only be made through the app. Also, Bluevine allows its customers to connect to third-party tools such as Square, Venmo, and Expensify.
Reviews for the app are good on the App Store (4.7 out of 5) and on Google Play (4.4 out of 5). Users rated it positively for its simple interface and responsive customer service, but some gave lower ratings for encountering long check clearing times and experiencing mobile deposit issues. You can check out Bluevine on App Store and Bluevine on Google Play for more information.
Shared Account Access
Bluevine allows business owners to securely share access with additional users to assist with managing bill payments or filing taxes. You can permit an administrator, authorized user, and accountant to access the business account.
Customer Service
Bluevine Business Checking account holders can contact customer service by calling the toll-free number (888) 216-9619, available from Mondays to Fridays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. You can also send a message to support@bluevine.com or fill out the contact us form. In addition, Bluevine has live customer support from dedicated professionals. If you need additional resources, see the Help Center and guides on Bluevine’s website to help you navigate your online account.
Other Bluevine Business Products
Line of Credit
Bluevine also offers an excellent business line of credit that regularly ranks among our best small business lines of credit. Bluevine’s line of credit application process is easy to use and generally approves and funds within one day. Repayment terms can be monthly or weekly and extend to a year. Bluevine will approve lines of credit up to $250,000 for business owners who have been in business for more than 24 months. It also offers rates as low as 6.2%.
The minimum qualifications to access a line of credit are
- 625-plus personal FICO score
- More than 24 months in business (in good standing with the secretary of state and no bankruptcies in the past three years)
- $40,000 in monthly revenue
- Eligible US state-operated or incorporated LLC or B Corporation (B-corp); Nevada, North Dakota, and South Dakota are ineligible
- Active bank connection or statements from the last three months
To apply, you must provide basic personal information, business information, and bank statements for the last three months. Your business must also be in good standing.
International Payments for Business
You can send international payments to 32 countries in 14 currencies, making it convenient for businesses with global vendors (see Bluevine’s list of countries available for international payments). Charges are also transparent. US dollar (USD) payments charge a flat fee of $25 per payment, while foreign currency payments are billed $25 plus 1.5% of the payment in USD conversion.
Payments can be received in 24 hours, depending on the recipient’s bank and country and when the payment was made. Note that Nevada-based businesses and those in the finance, insurance, or mining sectors are exempt from sending international payments.
Bluevine Business Checking User Reviews
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Simple and fast account application | Accounts placed on hold for review |
| Great online tools for money management | Check deposits on hold for over five days |
| Generous interest rate on checking | Login issues resulted to a locked account |
Those who left a Bluevine business checking review on Trustpilot1 (4.2 out of 5 rating with more than 7,200 reviews) were impressed with the fast and easy application process and the subaccount feature, which helps customers budget and set aside taxes and expenses. They also praised the high interest on checking balances and the customer service team’s responsiveness, stating that the representatives were diligent and informative.
Meanwhile, some complained about the lengthy hold on check deposits and said it was inconvenient for them. Others also mentioned they weren’t notified about the random account reviews that froze their funds, led to fee charges, and blocked client payments. One customer even experienced repetitive password resetting and device registration, resulting in a locked account for half an hour. It’s worth nothing that Bluevine took the time to reply to most of the negative reviews.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
While Bluevine is not a bank, it’s a legitimate financial service. Bluevine is a fintech platform that works in partnership with, and is FDIC-insured through, Coastal Community Bank.
To be eligible for a Bluevine Line of Credit, you need a personal FICO credit score above 625.
Applying for a Bluevine Line of Credit won’t impact the credit score of an LLC or corporation since Bluevine doesn’t perform a hard credit pull at any stage. For businesses structured as sole proprietorships or general partnerships, Bluevine conducts a hard credit pull, but only when an offer is received and accepted.
Yes. Through FDIC member Coastal Community Bank, other program banks and a sweep network, Bluevine Business Checking deposits are FDIC-insured up to $3 million per depositor.
Yes, all Bluevine Business Checking accounts are opened online since the provider has no branches and offers online-only services. You must provide personal and business information to apply for a Bluevine business account.
Generally, Bluevine takes 1–3 business days to review a business checking account application.
Bottom Line
Bluevine Business Checking is an outstanding product with a great selection of features and minimal fees. As long as your business isn’t cash-heavy and you don’t require in-person banking and additional business products (savings accounts, certificates of deposit, or credit cards), Bluevine is a superb option. It‘s also a good choice for businesses that may need an unsecured line of credit for working capital and want the convenience of using the same provider for borrowing and banking.
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