Brex and Mercury are great digital solutions for tech startups. Both offer digital banking services that integrate with popular tech tools like QuickBooks and Xero. They also provide access to a number of useful banking products, such as corporate cards, venture debt, and high-yield treasury accounts.
However, when comparing Brex vs Mercury business checking, Brex has stricter eligibility requirements, which makes it more suitable for high-performing businesses or venture-backed startups. Meanwhile, newer businesses are served better by Mercury, which provides tools designed to help early-stage startups scale. However, neither accepts sole proprietorships.
Here is a summary of what each provider is best for:
- Brex: Best for venture-backed startups looking for fee-free digital banking services with access to rewards-earning business cards and financial modeling tools
- Mercury: Best for early-stage startups looking for fee-free digital banking solutions and access to cash back business cards and investor networks
If you’re looking for an account with built in invoicing functions, you may want to consider:
- Novo: With Novo you can create and send invoices for free through its app or website
Looking for an affordable business checking and don’t need access to in-person banking services? Novo is a good choice. |
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Brex is a financial technology (fintech) platform offering up to $6 million in Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) insurance through supporting bank partnerships. It does not accept sole proprietors, unincorporated partnerships, and companies organized and/or registered outside the United States.
Mercury offers Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) insurance of up to $5 million through a supporting bank partnership with Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust. Sole proprietorships and trusts are ineligible for accounts.
Brex vs Mercury Business Checking Quick Comparison
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|---|---|---|
Debit Card | N/A | Free virtual debit card; free physical debit card mailed within a few days |
Physical Checks | No physical check-writing abilities | No physical check writing abilities |
Accounting software integrations | QuickBooks, Xero, Sage Intacct, SAP Concur, and Oracle NetSuite | QuickBooks and Xero |
Business Payment integrations | Can auto-sync with Xero and QuickBooks, or can send payments directly from Brex business account by wire, ACH, and check for free | Includes Shopify, Stripe, Zapier, Amazon, and PayPal |
Customer Service | Includes Shopify, Stripe, Zapier, Amazon, and PayPal | Brex support 24/7 by chat or email, one-on-one support from relationship managers, or email help@mercury.com or hello@mercury.com |
Other Products Available | Business card, treasury account, and venture debt | Savings account, business card, high-yield treasury account, and venture debt |
Our Reviews | ||
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Brex vs Mercury Business Checking Features
Brex | Mercury | |
|---|---|---|
3.5 ★ | 3.6 ★ | |
Ease of Account Opening | ★★ | ★★★★ |
Treasury APY Earnings | ★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
FDIC Insurance Coverage | ★★★★★ | ★★★★ |
Reserve Accounts | ★★★★★ | ★★★★ |
Wire Transfer Fee Savings | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
ATM Fee Savings | 0 | ★★★ |
Business Card Rewards | ★★★ | ★★★ |
Lending Product Access | ★★★ | ★★★ |
Business Software Integrations | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
Discount Perks | ★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
Financial Modeling | ★★★★ | 0 |
Investor Community Resources | ★★★ | ★★★★ |
Rating Explanation: ★★★★★ 5: This feature enhances your banking experience at no cost. ★★★★ 4: This feature has a few minor drawbacks/limits or comes at a slight cost. ★★★ 3: This feature has a few drawbacks/limits or comes at a slightly high cost. ★★ 2: This feature has a few major drawbacks/limits or comes at a high cost. ★ 1: This feature has major drawbacks/limits. 0: This feature is unavailable. | ||
When comparing Mercury business checking vs Brex business checking, Mercury’s features offer slightly better advantages. It outshines Brex when it comes to ATM fee savings, ease of account opening, and additional subaccounts, discount perks, and investor community resources. Brex’s stringent account opening requirements and lack of ATM access cost it points in our evaluation, but Brex won in terms of excellent financial modeling tools and slightly higher FDIC insurance coverage.
Click on each feature below to see more details.
Brex: 2 out of 5
When it comes to opening a business bank account, Brex has stricter requirements than Mercury. You need to meet at least one of the following requirements to qualify for a Brex account:
- Receive an equity investment of any amount from an accelerator, angel investor, venture capitalist
- Generate more than $1 million a year in revenue
- Have more than 50 employees
- Be a tech startup on a path to meeting the criteria above and referred by an existing customer or partner
Brex does not accept sole proprietors, unincorporated partnerships, and companies organized and/or registered outside the US.
Mercury: 4 out of 5
Mercury has fewer restrictions than Brex and will accept any business that is incorporated in the US and has a federal employer identification number (EIN). However, it does not accept sole proprietors and trusts.
Brex: 4 out of 5
With Brex Treasury, you get 4.90% Yield is variable and fluctuates. through a money market fund administered by the Bank of New York Mellon. Preservation of the capital and liquidity are a priority since 99.5% of the fund is held in cash or US government-backed securities.
Mercury: 5 out of 5
Mercury Treasury Mercury Treasury, by Mercury Advisory, LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor. Registration with the SEC does not imply a certain level of skill or training. SEC registration does not mean the SEC has approved of the services of the investment adviser. invests your deposits into the Vanguard money market fund—but only Mercury business checking accounts with balances exceeding $500,000 are eligible for Mercury Treasury.
You can get an APY of up to 4.88% Yield is variable and fluctuates. for deposits over $20 million, invested in the Vanguard money market fund. These funds are held in 99.5% US government-backed securities, ensuring high liquidity and security.
Brex: 5 out of 5
Brex can obtain up to $6 million in FDIC insurance coverage through the sweep programs of over 25 partner banks (see Brex’s list of partner banks).
Mercury: 4 out of 5
Meanwhile, Mercury has a slightly lower FDIC insurance protection compared to Brex. It offers up to $5 million through the sweep networks of two partner banks via Mercury Vault.
Brex: 5 out of 5
When comparing Brex vs Mercury business checking reserve accounts, Brex surpasses Mercury. It lets you create up to 240 separate checking accounts under one EIN. You can transfer funds between accounts for free instantly.
Mercury: 4 out of 5
You can open up to 14 subaccounts under your main Mercury business checking account.
Brex: 5 out of 5
Brex does not charge fees for sending and receiving domestic and international wires.
Mercury: 5 out of 5
Similarly, Mercury users can save from fee-free inbound and outbound domestic and international wire transfers.
Brex: 0 out of 5
Brex does not issue ATM or debit cards, giving users no way to make ATM transactions.
Mercury: 3 out of 5
Mercury customers can use 55,000-plus Allpoint ATMs. There are no ATM fees charged when accessing non-network ATMs, but operator surcharges can apply.
Brex: 3 out of 5
Brex issues a business card offering card limits 10 to 20 times higher than the average business card. It earns a lot of points that can be redeemed for unique rewards, such as billboards, executive coaching, offsite team events, mental health, and more.
Read our review of Brex Card to learn more about the product features and rewards.
Mercury: 3 out of 5
Meanwhile, Mercury provides a corporate card with 1.5% automatic monthly cash back on both domestic and international spending. The card is available to users with at least $25,000 in their accounts.
Our Mercury IO Mastercard® review provides detailed information on features, rewards, and pros and cons.
Brex: 3 out of 5
Brex users can apply for venture debt funding to accelerate growth and outpace competitors.
Mercury: 3 out of 5
Mercury clients can maximize venture debt financing, a term loan designed specifically for businesses that have raised venture capital.
Brex: 4 out of 5
Brex users can connect with accounting solutions, such as QuickBooks, Xero, Sage Intacct, SAP Concur, and Oracle NetSuite. It also offers a broad selection of business software integrations, including Slack and Gusto (see more Brex integrations).
Mercury: 4 out of 5
Mercury business checking accounts are compatible with QuickBooks and Xero. It also integrates with Shopify, Stripe, Zapier, Amazon, and PayPal.
Brex: 4 out of 5
Brex offers its users discounts to popular business solutions, including Amazon Web Services, QuickBooks, Gusto, Slack, Vouch, and FreshWorks.
Mercury: 5 out of 5
Mercury provides more deals than Brex. Through Mercury Perks, customers can access over a hundred discounts on popular business software. Among them are QuickBooks Online, Amazon Web Services, Slack, Zeplin, and Intercom.
Brex: 4 out of 5
With Brex, you can access financial modeling tools through Pry. The platform lets you track revenue and costs, review profits and losses, build financial plans, and forecast future financial plans.
Mercury: 0 out of 5
Another major difference between Mercury business checking vs Brex is that currently, Mercury does not provide a financial modeling tool feature.
Brex: 3 out of 5
Brex provides customers with business insights through e-books and guides, webinars, and case studies (see Brex’s resources page). It also offers scheduled industry and Brex events to build network connections.
Mercury: 4 out of 5
Meanwhile, customers can check out Mercury’s investor database, which lists seed and preseed investors. Its Mercury Raise program helps introduce business owners to top investors.
Mercury Business Checking vs Brex Business Checking User Reviews
Brex | Mercury | |
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Trustpilot Rating | 3.1 out of 5 (based on around 550 reviews[1]) | 3.9 out of 5 (based on more than 800 reviews[2]) |
Users Like |
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Users Dislike |
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Mercury and Brex business checking reviews on user review platforms showed that more customers were satisfied with Mercury. Brex’s lower score can be attributed to the mass account closures it enforced after tightening eligibility requirements in 2023.
Most Mercury reviews were positive, where users praised the company’s customer service arm for having a speedy response time. They also found the onboarding process smooth and easy. One even commended the company’s perks program, claiming that it was effective in providing savings.
Meanwhile, negative reviews typically criticized Mercury for failing to deliver check deposits in a timely manner. According to clients, deposited checks typically take two days to clear, which is a significantly longer delivery period than what most major banks offer. Users also disliked how high the minimum balance requirement was for qualifying for a credit card.
However, positive Brex reviews also praised customer service. Clients appreciated the efficient support they received and found the customer service team professional and responsive in resolving issues. They also said that the company’s QuickBooks integration is effective in helping them save time.
Complaints from Brex users usually discussed unjust account suspensions. Several had their accounts shut down with no notice or explanations, which made it difficult to access needed funds. Others said that they disliked how Brex changed the value of rewards points without warning.
Bottom Line
The choice between Brex vs Mercury business checking depends on what growth stage your business is currently in. Given its strict eligibility criteria, Brex suits mid-level or late-stage startups seeking financial tools that can accommodate high performance. Meanwhile, Mercury fits early-stage startups searching for growth opportunities. By providing access to venture debt, business discounts, and investor networks, Mercury is well positioned to help startups scale.
User review references:
[1]Trustpilot | Brex
[2]Trustpilot | Mercury
