Digital banking platforms Relay and Found both offer affordable business checking accounts and useful bookkeeping tools. Though the two providers seem similar at first glance, each has a very different target customer.
Relay aims to serve organizations with teams of two or more people. It makes collaboration easier by not only letting you create multiple sub-accounts and debit cards, but also by providing custom account permissions and spending limits to ensure that your team uses your funds responsibly. Meanwhile, Found was designed with the one-person team in mind. By offering streamlined tax and bookkeeping assistance, Found helps you save time and effort on the usual business paperwork.
Here is a summary of what each provider is best for:
- Relay Relay is a financial technology (fintech) company, not a bank. It provides deposit services and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insurance through supporting bank partnerships with Thread Bank and Evolve Bank and Trust. is best for businesses needing multiple accounts and debit cards
- Found Found is a fintech company, not a bank. It provides deposit services and FDIC insurance through a supporting bank partnership with Piermont Bank. is best for freelancers, solopreneurs, and self-employed individuals
For small business owners that prefer a traditional bank, we recommend:
- Chase: Best for national availability, easy-to-waive monthly fees, and suite of additional banking products
Relay vs Found Business Checking Quick Comparison
 Relay Standard |  Found |  Business Complete Banking | |
|---|---|---|---|
Required Opening Deposit | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Required Balance Minimum | $0 | $0 | None |
Transaction Limit Before Fees | No limit | No limit | 20 monthly, then 40 cents per transaction |
Monthly Fees | $0 | $0 | $15; waivable if conditions are met |
Automated Clearing House (ACH) Fees | $0 | $0 | $25 for first 25 items per month, 15 cents per item above 25 per month, $2.50 return fee |
Domestic Wire Transfer Fees | $0 for incoming $5 for outgoing | $0 for incoming Outgoing not supported | Up to $35 for outbound, up to $15 for inbound |
International Wire Transfer Fees | $0 for incoming $10 for outgoing | N/A | Up to $50 for outbound, up to $15 for inbound |
ATM Fees | None at Allpoint and Allpoint+ ATMs | $3 per transaction at any non-Chase domestic ATM, plus ATM operator fees; $5 per transaction internationally plus third-party fee | |
Cash Deposit Fees | None at Allpoint+ ATMs | $2 per transaction | $2.50 per $1,000 after you deposit $5,000 in a billing cycle |
For More Information | Read our Relay Business Checking review | Read our Found Business Checking review |
Relay Standard | Found | Business Complete Banking | |
|---|---|---|---|
Debit Card | Up to 50 Visa Debit Cards (physical or virtual) | Mastercard Business Debit Card (physical and virtual) | Free debit card, mailed within 10 business days of application approval |
Reserve Accounts | Up to four pockets | N/A | |
Accounting Software Integrations | QuickBooks and Xero | QuickBooks | QuickBooks, FreshBooks, and other leading accounting software |
Business Software Integrations | Gusto, Plaid, and Yodlee | Cash App, eBay, Lyft, PayPal, Square, Stripe, Uber, and Venmo | BigCommerce |
Customer Service | Phone: (888) 205-9304 chat and email | Email | Live customer support online or in bank branch locations |
Invoicing Products | N/A | Unlimited free invoicing | N/A |
Other Products Available | Relay Pro, and Relay business savings | Found Plus | Business savings, certificates of deposit (CD), lending products, credit cards, merchant services, and collection service |
For More Information | Read our Relay Business Checking review | Read our Found Business Checking review |
When To Use
Once you’ve selected a provider, refer to our guide on how to open a business bank account for application preparation tips.
Relay vs Found Business Checking Comparison of Features
Relay | Found | |
|---|---|---|
3.8 out of 5 ★ | 3 out of 5 ★ | |
Check Deposits | ★★★★ | ★★★ |
Cash Deposits | ★★★★ | ★★★ |
ATM Network & Fees | ★★★★ | ★★★ |
ACH | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
Wire Transfers | ★★★★ | ★ |
Collaboration Tools | ★★★★★ | 0 |
Reserve Accounts | ★★★★★ | ★★★ |
Accounting Tools | ★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
Invoicing | 0 | ★★★★★ |
Interest-earning Accounts | ★★★★ | ★★ |
Premium Versions | ★★★★ | ★★★★ |
Rating Explanation: ★★★★★ 5: This feature enhances your banking experience at little to 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. | ||
Comparing Relay vs Found business checking features shows that Relay has an edge when it comes to basic banking features, such as support for check deposits, cash deposits, and affordable ATM access. It also provides more collaboration tools. Meanwhile, Found excels at providing business paperwork tools, such as accounting and invoicing.
Relay: 4 out of 5
You can deposit checks remotely through the Relay mobile app.
Found: 3 out of 5
The Found app has a mobile check deposit function. However, the feature is only available to eligible users.
Relay: 4 out of 5
You can use your debit card at Allpoint+ ATMs to deposit cash into your Relay account.
Found: 3 out of 5
Found supports cash deposits through participating retail locations. You can find these locations in the Found app. There is a fee of $2 per deposit, and you have a deposit limit of $1,000 per week.
Relay: 4 out of 5
You can make surcharge-free ATM transactions at all Allpoint and Allpoint+ ATMs.
Found: 3 out of 5
Found lets you make ATM transactions at any ATM that accepts Mastercard. Third-party operator fees may apply.
Relay: 4 out of 5
Relay charges no fees for incoming and outgoing ACH transfers. Funds will arrive within two days if you are enrolled in Relay Standard. If you upgrade to Relay Pro, funds will arrive within the same day.
Found: 4 out of 5
Found offers unlimited fee-free ACH transfers.
Relay: 4 out of 5
Relay charges zero fees for all incoming wire transfers. Outgoing domestic wire transfers cost $5, while outgoing international wire transfers cost $10. If you upgrade to Relay Pro, all wire transfers are free.
Found: 1 out of 5
Although Found charges no fees for incoming domestic wire transfers, it does not let you send outgoing domestic wire transfers. Additionally, it provides no support for international wire transfers, whether incoming or outgoing.
Relay: 5 out of 5
By letting you provide team members, including accountants and bookkeepers, access to your account, Relay gives you the ability to divide business banking responsibilities across your team. You can customize each member’s level of account access to ensure that your money and banking data stay protected.
Additionally, Relay lets you issue up to 50 physical or virtual debit cards. You can also customize spending limits and rules to make sure each card will be used responsibly.
Found: 0 out of 5
Found does not offer collaboration tools.
Relay: 5 out of 5
Through Relay, you can create up to 20 checking accounts under a single ID (10 if you are a sole proprietor).
Found: 3 out of 5
With Found, you start with one main account and one subaccount (called a pocket) for taxes. You can create up to two additional pockets.
Relay: 4 out of 5
Relay automatically categorizes and provides detailed transaction data for all card purchases. It syncs your data with QuickBooks Online or Xero to help you reconcile transactions with ease.
Found: 5 out of 5
Found offers automatic expense categorization. It uses your account data to create expense, income, profit, and loss reports. The app comes with a receipt capture function that pulls data from pictures of physical receipts.
It also offers the following tax preparation features:
- Automatically set aside a percentage of your income into a dedicated tax bucket
- Generate real-time estimates of how much you owe in tax
- Track tax write-offs
- Auto-fill your Schedule C Form
Relay: 0 out of 5
Relay does not offer invoicing tools.
Found: 5 out of 5
With Found, you can create and send unlimited invoices. The platform accepts a wide range of payment options, including Cash App, Zelle, PayPal, Venmo, credit card, debit card, and direct deposit. Found will also notify you when your invoices are viewed or paid, and it sends payment reminders automatically to your clients.
Relay: 4 out of 5
You can open up to two Relay business savings accounts. Below are the provided APY rates:
- For balances of $1 to $49,999.99: 1.0%
- For balances of $50,000 to $249,999.99: 1.5%
- For balances of $250,000 to $999,999.99: 2.0%
- For balances of $1 million and higher: 3.0%
Relay spreads your savings account deposits across program banks in the Thread Bank deposit sweep program, thus providing Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) insurance of up to $2.5 million.
Found: 2 out of 5
You can only earn interest on your Found deposits by upgrading to Found Plus, which has a monthly fee of $14.99. Found Plus pays 1.5% APY on balances of $20,000 and less.
Relay vs Found User Reviews
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|---|---|---|
Trustpilot Rating | 4.5 out of 5 (based on more than 1,200 reviews)[1] | 4.7 out of 5 (based on around 300 reviews)[2] |
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When comparing Found vs Relay business checking reviews from users, neither platform has much of an edge over the other. Both platforms earned 4.6 ratings on the user review platform Trustpilot. However, more users left reviews for Relay than Found.
Both received praise for their unique features: Relay for its collaboration tools and Found for its tax preparation and bookkeeping assistance services. Found users, in particular, like that the platform was intuitive and easy to navigate.
Many of Relay’s negative reviews came from unsuccessful applicants who said that they were uncomfortable with the amount of information Relay was requesting and that they did not trust the company with their data. Other complaints centered on the provider’s check-clearing times. Many customers disliked the long hold time for check deposits and money transfers.
Found only received a handful of reviews. Many were from customers who complained about a lack of support for fraud cases, having claimed that Found failed to return money lost to fraudulent or unauthorized customer support. Another handful of reviewers also said that they found customer service difficult to reach.
Bottom Line
The choice between Relay and Found is a matter of team size. If you lead a team of two or more people, Relay is the better choice. By letting you create up to 20 checking accounts and issue up to 50 debit cards, Relay helps large teams manage the same accounts with ease. Meanwhile, freelancers, self-employed individuals, and solopreneurs are best suited to Found. Its bookkeeping and tax preparation features help individuals save time on day-to-day business paperwork.
User review references:
1Trustpilot | Relay
2Trustpilot | Found
