Relay vs Novo business checking differs in the number of accounts you can make and the availability of cash flow boost. Relay offers collaborative features, such as multiple account creation and customized user access. Meanwhile, Novo lets you receive revenue quickly from payment processing software. Through Novo Boost, Novo deposits Stripe payouts into your account within hours instead of days. Novo also offers Express ACH for same-day ACH processing.
Here is a summary of when to choose Relay vs Novo business checking:
- Relay
- Novo
Relay vs Novo Business Checking Quick Comparison
 Relay Business Checking |  Novo Business Checking | |
|---|---|---|
| Required Opening Deposit | $0 | $0 |
| Required Balance Minimum | $0 | $0 |
| Transaction Limit Before Fees | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Monthly Fees | $0 | $0 |
| ACH Fees | $0 | $0 |
| Domestic Wire Transfer Fees | Incoming: $0 Outgoing: $5 | Incoming: $0 Outgoing: N/A |
| International Wire Transfer Fees | Incoming: $0 Outgoing: $10 | Novo partners with Wise to send international wires for a low fee |
| ATM Fees | None at Allpoint ATMs; Relay doesn’t charge out-of-network ATM fees | None; refunds up to $7 in ATM fees monthly |
| Cash Deposit Fee | Cash must be deposited through Allpoint ATMs or Green Dot retail locations | Cash must be deposited through money orders |
| For More Information | Read our Relay Business Checking review | Read our Novo Business Checking review |
Relay Business Checking | Novo Business Checking | |
|---|---|---|
| Debit Card | Up to 50 Visa Debit Cards (physical or virtual) | Mastercard Business Debit Card (physical and virtual) |
| Reserve Accounts | Up to 20 | Up to 20 |
| Accounting Software Integrations | QuickBooks and Xero | QuickBooks and Xero |
| Business Software Integrations | Includes CashApp, Gusto, PayPal, Plaid, Shopify, Square, Stripe, Venmo, Wise, and Envestnet | Yodlee | Includes AWS, eBay, Etsy, Gusto, PayPal, Stripe, Square, Wise, WooCommerce, and Zapier |
| Customer Service | Phone (1-888-205-9304), chat, and email | Live customer support from dedicated professionals |
| Invoicing Products | N/A | Unlimited free invoicing |
| Other Products Available | Savings accounts, credit card, and Relay Pro | LLC creation and merchant cash advances via Novo Funding |
| For More Information | Read our Relay Business Checking review | Read our Novo Business Checking review |
When to Use Relay, Novo, or Alternatives
- You work in teams of two or more: Relay was designed to help business owners distribute financial responsibilities. It lets you issue up to 50 virtual or physical debit cards with adjustable spending rules and limits. You can add team members to your account and customize each member’s access level.
- You need support for outgoing wire transfers: Through Relay, you can send domestic wire transfers for just $5 and international wire transfers for $10. If you upgrade to Relay Pro
- You want to deposit cash fee-free: With Relay, you can deposit cash for free at Allpoint ATMs. With Novo, you must purchase money orders to deposit cash into your business checking account.
- You want to make ATM transactions at any location: Novo does not charge ATM withdrawal fees and refunds third-party ATM surcharges up to $7 each month. Similarly, Relay does not charge fees for nonnetwork use, but it does not refund any third-party operator fees you may incur.
- You use Stripe for payment processing: In our roundup of the best small business bank accounts, we named Novo one of the best providers, specifically for rapid access to funds and faster payments. The Novo Boost feature lets you access your Stripe revenue within hours rather than days. Relay does not offer features that speed up cash flow.
- You need access to funding products: Relay only offers business checking, savings, and a credit card, whereas Novo provides only merchant cash advances up to $75,000 through Novo Funding.
- You want access to in-person banking: As online-only banking solutions, neither Relay nor Novo has physical locations. If you are reliant on in-person banking, consider Chase, which has brick-and-mortar branches in all 48 mainland states. Our Chase business checking review can help you determine which account best suits your business.
- You want to earn interest on checking deposits: Neither Relay nor Novo offers interest-earning checking accounts. The best online-only banking solution for earning interest is Bluevine. You get 2.00% APY on qualifying balances up to $250,000 if you open a Bluevine Standard checking account. Read our review of Bluevine business checking to learn more.
- You want a provider that offers tax preparation assistance: While Relay and Novo both offer useful bookkeeping tools, they don’t provide tax preparation assistance. The fintech platform Found helps you file taxes by using your banking data to provide accurate tax estimates. It also offers automated tax savings. Check out our Found business checking review for detailed information.
For additional recommendations, see our list of the best small business checking accounts.
Comparison of Relay vs Novo Business Checking Features
| Relay | Novo | |
|---|---|---|
| OVERALL RATING | 2.9 out of 5★ | 3.6 out of 5★ |
| Check Deposits | ★★★ | ★★★★ |
| Cash Deposits | ★★★★ | ★★ |
| Collaboration Tools | ★★★★★ | ★★★ |
| Reserve Accounts | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Additional Debit Cards | ★★★★★ | ★★★ |
| ATM Fees | ★★★★ | ★★★★★ |
| Cash Flow Boost | 0 | ★★★★ |
| Same-day ACH | ★★★ | ★★★★ |
| Invoicing | 0 | ★★★★★ |
| Promotional Deals | 0 | ★★★★★ |
| Savings Products | ★★★★★ | 0 |
| Credit Card/Financing Products | ★ | ★★★ |
| Rating Explanation: ★★★★★: This feature enhances your banking experience at little to no cost. ★★★★: This feature has a few minor drawbacks/limits or comes at a slight cost. ★★★: This feature has a few drawbacks/limits or comes at a slightly high cost. ★★: This feature has a few major drawbacks/limits or comes at a high cost. ★: This feature has major drawbacks/limits. 0: This feature is unavailable. | ||
Comparing Novo vs Relay business checking, we can see that Novo edges out Relay when it comes to cash flow boost, invoicing, and promotions features. It also goes a step further by offering ATM fee refunds of up to $7 monthly.
Meanwhile, Relay users can save on transaction fees when depositing cash at Allpoint ATMs, which is fee-free. Relay also makes it easy to delegate tasks and track spending with its flexible shared account access and ability to issue multiple debit cards to team members.
Relay: 3 out of 5
The Relay app has a mobile check deposit function. However, it does not accept non-US checks or substitute checks.
Novo: 4 out of 5
Novo app’s mobile check deposit function can accept checks, cashier’s checks, and money orders.
Relay: 4 out of 5
Through Relay, you can deposit cash for free at any cash deposit-enabled Allpoint ATM. The provider also allows its users to deposit cash at over 90,000 Green Dot retail locations for a fee of up to $4.95 per deposit.
Novo: 2 out of 5
Novo does not have direct cash deposits. However, you can use money orders to put cash into your account.
Relay: 5 out of 5
You can add additional users to your Relay account. As the main business owner, you decide each member’s permission level, which determines which banking activities they gain access to.
You can choose between the following permission levels:
- Administrator
- Manager
- Bill payer
- Cardholder
- Deposit-only
- Read-only
Novo: 3 out of 5
Novo lets you add users to your account and gives all users full access and account owner privileges. For payroll responsibilities, however, Novo provides an option of adding a user as a payroll administrator to perform payroll functions without engaging with the business checking account.
Relay: 5 out of 5
Relay lets you create up to 20 individual checking accounts
Novo: 5 out of 5
With Novo, you get one primary checking account and up to 20 reserves. You can move funds from your reserves instantly, make payments directly, and set a portion of your income for savings automatically.
Relay: 5 out of 5
With Relay, you can issue up to 50 physical and virtual debit cards per business. You can customize each card’s spending rules and limits.
Novo: 3 out of 5
Novo users are only allowed one card per user.
Relay: 4 out of 5
Relay charges no fees for ATM usage, but third-party operator fees may apply, except when you use Allpoint ATMs.
Novo: 5 out of 5
Novo does not charge ATM withdrawal fees and refunds third-party ATM surcharges up to $7 each month.
Relay: 0 out of 5
Relay does not offer features that speed up cash flow.
Novo: 4 out of 5
If you have a Stripe account, you can use the Novo Boost feature to gain faster access to your Stripe revenue. Novo Boost will put Stripe funds into your account within hours instead of waiting for Stripe’s typical payout schedule.
Relay: 3 out of 5
Relay business checking delivers ACH payments within one to two business days. If you upgrade to Relay Pro, which costs $30 per month, you gain access to same-day ACH.
Novo: 4 out of 5
Novo users can process same-day ACH payments through Novo’s Express ACH feature. You will be charged a fee worth 1.5% of your transaction for every transfer made through Express ACH. The minimum transfer fee is 50 cents while the maximum is $20.
Relay: 0 out of 5
Relay lacks invoicing tools.
Novo: 5 out of 5
Novo comes with an invoicing tool that lets you create and send an unlimited number of personalized invoices for free. The tool accepts payments via card, ACH, Google Pay, Apple Pay, Venmo, and more. You can also connect Novo Invoicing to Stripe, Square, and PayPal.
Relay: 0 out of 5
Relay does not offer discounts or promotional deals.
Novo: 5 out of 5
Through Novo, you gain access to a wide selection of exclusive offers. It offers discounts and deals on popular software like QuickBooks, Stripe, and Gusto. Check out Novo’s Perks page for current promotions.
Relay: 5 out of 5
You can open up to two Relay business savings accounts. Relay places savings account deposits into partner banks in Thread Bank’s sweep network, which provides FDIC insurance of up to $3 million.
APY rates depend on your savings account balance.
- Under $50,000: 1.0%
- Between $50,000 and $250,000: 1.5%
- Between $250,000 and 1 million: 2.0%
- Over $1 million: 3.0%
Novo: 0 out of 5
Novo does not offer business savings products.
Relay: 1 out of 5
Relay extends a Relay Visa® Credit Card to its customers by invitation.
Novo: 3 out of 5
Through Novo Funding, Novo offers merchant cash advances up to $75,000. Monthly factor rates can go as low as 1.5%. Applications can be done online, which takes 24 hours or less for the provider to review.
Relay vs Novo Business Checking User Reviews
| Relay | Novo | |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot Rating | 4.6 (based on 1,700-plus reviews)[1] | 4.4 (based on 4,100-plus reviews)[2] |
| Users Like |
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| Users Dislike |
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Upon comparing Novo vs Relay business checking reviews on Trustpilot, a third-party reviews site, both providers have almost similar ratings. Users praised Relay for offering custom options for multiple accounts, exceptional customer service, and no hidden fees. Meanwhile, Novo reviewers raved about the provider’s user-friendly interface, useful account features, and wide range of integrations.
Negative Relay reviews were written by clients who said the check-clearing period takes 7 to 10 business days. Some also reported that the provider asked them to submit additional documents to support their application when they already provided plenty of business information.
On the other hand, some Novo reviewers complained about provider-initiated account closures and unresolved issues. They claimed that they didn’t receive adequate or informative email responses when they sent messages to the customer service team.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Yes. Relay deposits are FDIC-insured through its partner bank, Thread Bank, member FDIC. Your business funds are covered up to $3 million through Thread Bank’s insured cash sweep program. In addition, Relay uses industry-standard encryption to protect data transmissions.
Novo partners with Middlesex Federal Savings, an FDIC member, to insure deposits up to $250,000.
Bottom Line
Both Relay and Novo are good providers for businesses needing budgeting tools with their business banking platforms. However, Relay is the better choice for business owners who prefer to work in teams. Robust account permission settings and spending controls for debit cards help facilitate risk-free team collaboration. Meanwhile, if you need rapid access to funds and faster payments, go with Novo.
User review references:
1Trustpilot | Relay
2Trustpilot | Novo
